Congress leader Priya Dutt on Sunday said the party was serious about LGBTQ rights, which would trickle down to the very bottom if the party is voted to power.
With a week to go till the city goes to polls, the Mumbai North Central candidate interacted with members of the lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and queer (LGBTQ) community in Khar.
Ms. Dutt said the community must be made part of the mainstream, and that she stands for queer rights as an individual.
“I am cool about queer rights and so are my kids. They know that it is a part of life and that it is okay. Rather than having a separate section or a focused group for the community in politics, it must be made a part of the mainstream,” she said.
Ms. Dutt said a lot can be achieved through counselling of parents and children. “People are not very aware of what the terms transgender, gay, lesbian or intersex mean. For some, either everybody [from the community] is gay or transgender. The community has different factions too, and there has to be a closeness if we have to fight,” she said.
Rather than having a Queer Congress, Ms. Dutt said a different cell for the community to make their voices heard would be better. Saying that some parties have a divisive mindset, she said the LGBTQ rights will have to trickle down to the bottom.
“Some parties have a divisive mindset, such as moral policing. The Congress manifesto includes LGBTQ rights and our party president feels strongly about it. The fact that it is in our manifesto means we will take it very seriously,” the Congress leader said.
