Unlike other new sub-inspectors who joined duty across Tamil Nadu on Monday, K Prithika Yashini's day one was different. Photographs were taken as soon as she stepped into the Choolaimedu police station at 5pm. Donning the khaki uniform with a cross-belt, Yashini, India's first sub-inspector from the transgender community, was assigned her first duty as sub-inspector in the law and order division.

Yashini arrived with another sub-inspector, Thilakavathy, on a scooter to work. She smiled at her colleagues who welcomed her to the station. J Shivakumar, crime inspector at the Choolaimedu police station, wished Yashini luck. "We will not be biased towards her and she will be treated on par with other police personnel. Since there are many transgender people in our jurisdiction, Yashini's presence will be an advantage," Shivakumar said.

Born in 1990 at Salem as Pradeep Kumar, the son of an auto driver P Kalai Arasan and Sumathi, Yashini later changed her name following a sex reassignment surgery. She came to limelight in 2015 when she moved court after her application for the Tamil Nadu Uniformed Services Recruitment Board was rejected as it did not have any category for the third gender. The then first bench of the Madras high court came to Yashini's rescue by pointing out that the recruitment board has not provided the third gender category despite a direction from the Supreme Court. Read more via Times of India