Thiruvananthapuram: UDF’s transwoman candidate Amaya Prasad, contesting in the upcoming Thiruvananthapuram district panchayat election, secured her place in the fray after the District Election Officer (DEO) accepted her nomination following scrutiny on Saturday. She will contest from Pothencode in a seat reserved for women.

An uncertainty arose earlier when the DEO informed her that her nomination for a women-reserved seat might be rejected and that she would need to obtain a court order to proceed. In response, Amaya approached the Kerala High Court, which observed that the decision lay within the Returning Officer’s discretion and that the authority could take a call on the matter.

“Finally, everything is sorted now, and I’m glad that they accepted my nomination. I’m so happy at the moment and I thank everybody who stood by me throughout this time,” Amaya said.

Amaya has completed medical, psychological and legal transition and is officially recognised as female under the Transgender Persons (Protection of Rights) Act, 2019. She submitted that officials had informed her on November 19 that, as the Kerala Panchayat Raj Act and its rules did not explicitly include transgender women under women-reserved categories, her nomination was likely to be rejected.

After verifying the documents she submitted, officials accepted her candidature. A resident of Kalliyoor panchayat, Amaya is the State president of the Kerala Pradesh Transgender Congress (KPTC). She has been active in politics since her student years in the Kerala Students Union (KSU). A BBA graduate, she is also an actor, writer, entrepreneur and social activist. Advocates Gautham Krishna E J and Rinesh E V represented her in the case.

Meanwhile, UDF’s transwoman candidate from Alappuzha’s Vayalar division, Arunima M Kurup, also faced uncertainty over her candidature. Her issue was resolved as well, with the Vayalar district panchayat division accepting her nomination after scrutiny.