This is the story of Kerala’s first transgender advocate, who now hopes to use her legal expertise to achieve justice for the poor and underprivileged.
The path was not without challenges, but her optimistic attitude and disregard for negativity spurred her toward becoming a lawyer – a noble profession, according to Padma Lakshmi, Kerala’s first transgender advocate.
“I reject all types of criticism, whether it comes from people or their words. I concentrate on the positive. That, I suppose, is one of my assets.
“If I concentrate on the negative, I will have little time to move on in life,” she told PTI.
She also worked as an insurance agent for a private insurance company and LIC to help pay for her medical and educational expenses, which included the bulky legal textbooks.
She is, however, more than willing and glad to offer these books and her knowledge to anyone who desires them.
She gradually ceased working as an insurance agent after joining as a trainee with her senior, advocate, K V Bhadrakumari so that she could focus more on her legal career, according to Lakshmi.
Lakshmi, who has been interning with lawyer Bhadrakumari since November, says her mentor has helped her find a place among the big-wigs of the legal profession in the Kerala High Court.
“I am extremely grateful to her,” she remarked, adding that her senior usually teaches her that the Constitution is our most powerful weapon.
Lakshmi was the first of over 1,500 law graduates to receive her enrollment certificate on Sunday, March 19.
“That was made possible by Kerala Bar Council members. “I am delighted to be enrolled here because many prominent members of the legal profession are members of this council, and now I am as well,” she remarked.
She stated that she does not want to earn a master’s degree in law or seek judicial service in the near future.
“My plan and desire right now is to take up instances where there has been a breach of fundamental rights and struggle to provide justice for the underprivileged,” she said.
I’d like to fight for people like Vishwanathan from Wayanad or Madhu from Palakkad, she remarked.
On February 11, Vishwanathan (46), a tribal, allegedly hung himself outside the Kozhikode Medical College Hospital, where his wife was admitted for delivery.
He went to such lengths after being suspected of theft and roughed up by certain people, according to his relatives’ police complaint.
Similar to Madhu, another tribal man who was beaten to death by other people in 2018 for allegedly stealing food.
Furthermore, as a new lawyer, she has a lot to learn about court proceedings, and she plans to soak up all of that knowledge, work hard, and then fight to provide justice for the poor and oppressed, she said.
“I have a lot to learn about client management and the law. I have several responsibilities. In addition, I must demonstrate my worth by my activities. Because hard effort and honesty are the instruments, I need to hone.” Her family, which includes a mother who works as an advocate’s clerk and a father who used to work at Cochin Shipyard Ltd, has been a tremendous source of support during her journey.
“They were always encouraging me to pursue my dreams with confidence. “Then why should I be afraid of anything?” she wondered.
Meanwhile, state Law Minister P Rajeev and Higher Education Minister R Bindu praised Lakshmi on her accomplishments on social media.
“Congratulations to Padma Lakshmi, who overcame all obstacles to become Kerala’s first transgender lawyer. “May the life of advocate Padma Lakshmi encourage more transgender persons to pursue the legal profession,” Rajeev wrote on Facebook.
Bindu took to Twitter to wish the aspiring lawyer all the best.
“It is a source of enormous pride that Padma Lakshmi’s name will now be engraved into the history of Kerala as the state’s first transgender lawyer.
“She has undoubtedly encountered numerous challenges on her way. But she persisted, never allowing naysayers to discourage or weigh her down,” she tweeted.
She, too, expressed hope that Padma Lakshmi’s success would encourage many other trans people in the state to pursue legal careers.
While Padma Lakshmi is the first transgender lawyer in Kerala, Satyashri Sharmila from Tamil Nadu became the country’s first trans advocate in 2018.
