Faizal, a resident of Umarwada near Ankleshwar town, filed the LPA after his petition was dismissed by a single judge who suggested that the petitioner should file a civil suit for declaration in a civil court.

Faizal's story was reported in The Indian Express on December 16. According to the petition, when Faizal was born in April 1976, neither his family nor the midwife could make out what sex he belonged to as the genitals were ambiguous. Since the private parts looked more like those of a girl, the parents decided to treat him like one. For this reason, the petitioner was registered as a female child in the birth resister of Umarwada gram panchayat, it was submitted. The birth certificate also showed Faizal's sex as female.

However, later the parents took the child to a Surat hospital, where doctors asked them to return for regular check-up. Meanwhile, the child, christened Fazila, grew up and appeared for SSC examinations in 1992. But Fazila did not menstruate when she attained puberty. Besides she began to feel that she was a male: the voice started getting husky and hair began to sprout on chin.

At this, the parents took Fazila to another hospital in Surat where a three-doctor panel said the child was male and was suffering from parineal hypospadias with left undescended testes. After undergoing some surgeries, the deformities were set right.

Utpal Panchal, counsel for Faizal, submitted that when the petitioner's father applied to the authorities for change of sex in the records, his plea was rejected on the ground that sex could not be altered in records if it was changed by surgery. Panchal also submitted that it was not a case of trans-sexualism, but of mistaken sex identification.

He submitted that Faizal should be given his constutitional rights as he is suffering for no fault of his. Besides, the petitioner is ready to appear before a panel of doctors if the court so desires, the bench was told.