A dalit transgender, Veena S, is contesting the BBMP elections as an independent from Okalipuram ward, becoming the first from the community in south India to contest a poll. This wouldn’t have been possible without support from her family, friends and other transgenders, she says.
“I have always dreamed of becoming a politician,” says the 34-year-old. “Ram Manohar Lohia is the politician I admire most and look forward to becoming like him,” she says.
She is all praise for Sangama, an NGO, for having made her what she is now. “When I was a sex worker in 2002-03, I was always scared of the police because of their atrocities. I always ran away when I heard their footsteps. But my life changed after I was introduced to Sangama,” she says. She has now started sensitising the cops about the life and struggle of sexual minorities.
Veena may file her nomination on Saturday as she has only 16 days left for campaigning.
Veena works with different NGOs like Sangama, Samara, Aneka, CFAR and Alternative Law Forum. She has also engaged herself in bringing awareness among sex workers and sexual minorities about HIV.
According to her, not much attention is given to civic amenities in her ward. “We get water only once a week, while 24-hour power supply has never been a reality. Public toilets crave for attention from the civic authorities. There is not a single anganwadi in the entire ward to help poor kids. There has not been any proper implementation of government projects. People of Gopalapura are aware of me and my social activism,” says Veena, who has been a resident of Okalipuram ward since her birth.
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