The Supreme Court on Friday issued notice to the Union government on a PIL challenging the constitutional validity of 2017 guidelines prohibiting transgender people from donating blood.
A three-judge bench presided over by Chief Justice S A Bobde sought a response from the Union government after hearing senior advocate Jayna Kothari appearing for petitioner Manipur-based Thangjam Santa Singh.
The petitioner sought a stay on the Guidelines for Blood Donor Selection and Blood Donor Referral 2017, as it prohibited transgender persons and men having sex with men and female sex workers from being donors.
She contended that guidelines, which considered them as a high-risk category for being HIV and AIDS infected, were violative of fundamental rights under Articles 14, 15 and 21 of the Constitution.
However, the court refused to stay the guidelines saying: "These are medical matters. We don't understand these issues. We will see the replies by the government."
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