There have been disturbing clips of khwajasaras being beaten violently followed by other clips where some of them narrate their harrowing tales of rape and violence and bodily harm, all on the social media. The memory of Alisha who bled to death in the corridor of a Peshawar hospital, that could not decide whether to put her in a male or female ward, is still fresh in the mind and yet bad news keeps flashing.

There does appear some encouraging news about recognition of citizenship rights of transgenders by the Supreme Courts but the next thing we get to know is that they may not be counted in the next census.

There must be something drastically wrong with a society to inflict such treatment on a community whose day-to-day lives are marked by discrimination of the worst kind. But how many of us know what we ought to. Those who are slightly better-informed have internalised their marginalisation, stigma and the peculiar job descriptions. But a majority of the people in this country is, as Dr Claire Pamment says in her interview, "plagued by the tyranny of the gender binary".

Today’s Special Report is an attempt to improve not just an understanding of but also our sensitivity about the existence of a third gender that is castigated by the society. There is a need to recognise each and every gender difference that exists and strive for an equal treatment of all.

Read also: Of Other prejudices

We have interviewed Mehlab Jameel, a researcher and an activist whose research is focused on the intersection of postcolonial, feminist and queer theory understanding the trans terms, their connotations and all the sensitivity associated with these. Khwajasaras must be empowered and brought into the mainstream and given all the rights that are rightfully theirs.