Transgender campaigners woo voters for BJP, SP in UP

Lucknow: Transgender leaders like BJP's Sonam Kinnar and Samajwadi Party's Payal Kinnar may not be contesting the Uttar Pradesh Assembly polls, but have created a buzz through their electioneering. Rooting for their parties, these leaders are generating interest, not only in their community, but also among the common people as they carry out door-to-door campaigns all over the state.

According to the voters list released by the Election Commission recently, the number of third gender voters stand at 8,853. Sonam Kinnar, who was on November 17 appointed vice-chairperson of the newly formed UP Transgender Welfare Board with the status of minister of state, and Payal Kinnar, who was made state president of SP Kinnar Mahasabha, have been travelling in different districts to garner support for their parties.

"I have already campaigned in Noida, Bahraich and Shravasti among other districts and campaigned as per the programme given to me by the party," Sonam said. Working to ensure that the BJP forms a full majority government and Yogi Adityanath returns as the chief minister, Sonam says that once this is achieved, the Kinnar community will also see prosperity and all their problems will be resolved.

For the Samajwadi Party, Payal has campaigned in Varanasi, Kanpur, Gonda, Ghaziabad, Sitapur and Lakhimpur, covering almost 40 districts in recent times, and finds that there has been a perceptible change in the attitude of people who come over to listen to her. Payal had contested the 2002 assembly election against BJP stalwart Lalji Tandon from Lucknow west. She claimed, back then too, the response was very good. Payal, however, feels that a lot needs to be done to make the society sensitive towards the Kinnar Samaj. "Kinnar Samaj is still considered a taboo, not given respect or proper treatment. I am campaigning also among my own community as we have to eke out a place in the entire society and not just among the kinnars. "I feel I have the responsibility to end wrong perception about our samaj among common people, and this is an opportunity to make some headway in this direction," Payal said.