This BJP MP Seeks Change In Gaya Airport's 'GAY' Code, Sparks Backlash From LGBTQ Activists

(MENAFN- Live Mint) A Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) member in the Rajya Sabha has raised concerns about 'GAY' as the IATA identifier code for Gaya International Airport in Bihar.

The Rajya Sabha MP Bhim Singh's complaint calling the code GAY as“socially and culturally offensive” has sparked backlash from LGBTQ activists who say his remarks reinforce prejudice against the community.

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On 4 August, during the ongoing Monsoon Session of Parliament, Singh submitted a written query to Parliament questioning why the International Air Transport Associatio (IATA) code for the Bihar airport remains in use when people find it“uncomfortable”. The MP from Bihar asked whether the government would consider changing it to“a more respectful and culturally appropriate code” and sought a timeline for any such process.

What did the Ministry say?

In response, Minister of State for Civil Aviation Murlidhar Mohol, in a written reply, said the three-letter airport codes once assigned are considered permanent and are altered only under exceptional circumstances, usually involving air safety concerns.

On 4 August, during the ongoing Monsoon Session of Parliament, Singh submitted a written query to Parliament questioning why the International Air Transport Association (IATA) code for the Bihar airport remains in use when people find it“uncomfortable”

The three-letter airport codes, also known as IATA location identifiers, are assigned by the International Air Transport Association (IATA) to facilitate the identification of airports across various travel-related systems and processes.

What are IATA codes?

Minister of State for Civil Aviation Murlidhar Mohol said in a written reply in the Rajya Sabha on Monday that these codes are generally assigned using the first three letters of the location's name where the airport is situated.

He also mentioned that the Ministry of Civil Aviation and Airports Authority of India has received requests to change Gaya's code in the past.

"IATA location codes are primarily intended for commercial airline operations and are issued at the request of airline operators. Air India had earlier approached IATA seeking a change of the existing airport code. However, IATA has conveyed that under the provisions of IATA Resolution 763, assigned three-letter codes are considered permanent and are altered only under exceptional circumstances, usually involving air safety concerns," Mohol said in the reply.

LGBTQ activists take offence

LGBTQ activists have condemned Singh's characterisation of the code as offensive, arguing it reflects deep-rooted prejudice rather than legitimate cultural concerns.

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Arvind Narrain, an LGBTQ activist, pointed to the Supreme Court's 2018 ruling that decriminalised same-sex relationships and recognised LGBTQI persons' right to dignity.

“The member's description of us as immoral strips the community of dignity,” he told Hindustan Times.“They need to educate themselves that as per the Supreme Court, what governs is not personal morality but constitutional morality. He should apologise to the community.”

The member's description of us as immoral strips the community of dignity.

Rajesh Srinivas, another LGBTQ activist, dismissed the need for any change.“The airport code does not require a change as there is nothing culturally inappropriate about it. The discomfort with the term stems from deeply ingrained prejudice,” Srinivas told Hindustan Times.

(With PTI inputs)

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