School says sorry for hurting transgender teacher

Kolkata: Transwoman Riya Sarkar's fight for dignity has borne fruit. Some of her colleagues in Dum Dum Prachaya Bani Mandir For Boys' have tendered an unconditional apology to her following TOI's report on how she was being treated as an outcast after her sex reassignment surgery in 2014.

On Monday evening, teacher-in-charge of the school Amar Nath Chatterjee and some teachers apologised for any behaviour that had "unintentionally hurt Riya". When TOI had first asked Chatterjee about Riya's charges, he had said, "We have documents to prove how we have tried to be accommodative in her case... Everyone is busy with work and we have no time for ostracization."
But his tone changed completely on Tuesday. "There was a misunderstanding. We have spoken to madam and it has been sorted out. Sridam Mondal and I have told her that if there was any mistake on our part, we are extremely sorry about it. We have said that we will make sure that our conduct doesn't unintentionally hurt her in future," Chatterjee said.
To show that there has been a serious change in attitude, Chatterjee even mentioned that their government-sponsored school had organised a get-together with teachers, students and alumni on Wednesday. "We will all dine together. She had complained of being treated as an outcast. We never wanted to make her feel that way. But even if she did feel left out, we will ensure that she is a part of all our programmes. Not only will we dine together, we want her to join all other teachers when they serve us food," Chatterjee said.
After Riya's trauma was reported in TOI, allegations and counter-allegations started flying thick and fast on campus. Riya insisted that the allegations against her were fabricated. "I am ready to introspect and rectify my flaws, if any. But in reality, society finds pleasure in marginalising people like me. I can think of at least two marriages where everyone in the school was invited, except for me. Do I need to spell out how humiliating it can be?" she asked.

Riya is now willing to let bygones be bygones. "So many ex-students came to the campus on Monday after reading about my plight in TOI. When I was asked what punishment I wanted for those who were misbehaving with me, I said I only wanted good sense to prevail. True education liberates people from subscribing to taboos. I wanted to appeal to their conscience. I will be happy if they continue behaving the way they have promised. Their love and support will help in my larger battle," she said.