The Indian Navy sacked a 25-year-old soldier as he underwent sex-change operation while on leave from work. Manish K Giri had not informed the navy about the procedure, and his new gender only got revealed when the navy doctors found out after the sailor suffered from urinary tract infection.
Manish had joined the service in 2010. He served on INS Eksila for four years. During this time, he discovered his feminine feelings and decided to go for gender realignment in Vishakhapatnam. He took three weeks leave in 2016 and underwent the operation in Delhi. He rejoined the services but did not tell the navy about his operation.
She had to disclose her new gender to the doctors after she suffered from urinary tract infection. The seniors sent her for psychiatric treatment after getting to know about this. However, the doctors couldn’t prove she was mentally unstable. She was taken off sailor duties and put on administrative duty. However, the navy recommended her dismissal from service.
CG Raju, spokesperson of the Eastern Naval Command, said that he was dismissed using the “service no longer required” clause.
“He chose to undergo irreversible gender re-assignment on his own accord, wilfully altering his gender status from the one he was recruited for at the time of his induction. He has, therefore, breached recruitment regulations and eligibility criteria for employment as a sailor in the Indian Navy,” Hindustan Times quoted Raju as saying.
Manish likes to be called Sabi now. She has vowed to challenge the Navy’s decision in the court.
