A group of transgender persons who were given free housing plots by the State government, along with pattas, in a village in Chengalpattu district, are facing opposition from an entirely unexpected quarter: the residents in the village.The transgender persons have gone on a protest, demanding that the district administration allow them to occupy the allotted lands and construct houses. Transwoman activist Negha, who has been protesting along with the allottees of the free housing plots, said the Chief Minister M.K. Stalin had provided free housing plots to 37 transgender persons at Ozhalur in Chengalpattu district, at a function held in May last year. However, when they wanted to construct homes on the land allocated to them, they were faced with stiff opposition from the villagers and panchayat leaders, who have have been continuously obstructing the construction of houses on their land.On Thursday, things came to a head when the affected transgender persons gathered in front of the Chengalpattu Collector’s office.They appealed to the government authorities to provide them security, as they were being threatened by the residents of the village.Ozhalur village panchayat president O.E. Prabhakaran, however, claimed that the village was not opposed to the transgender persons using the land allotted to them.Their quarrel, he claimed, was about the location of the land granted to them. “The alloted vacant plot is the only place that is of flat terrain, which the children of the village have been using to play sports. We are ready to accommodate them in an alternate location,” he added. Published - September 26, 2025 02:38 am IST