Mumbai: LGBT campaign targets fake doctors who tout cures for homosexuality

The lsquoquack quackrsquo a sound emanated by ducks and slogans chanted by members of the Lesbian Gay Bisexual and Transgender LGBT community rent the air at Azad Maidan yesterday evening A group of community members marked the International Day Against Homophobia and Transphobia IDAHOT on May 17 with protests against doctors who make fat sums professing cures to homosexuality through a variety of therapiesFrom left Sushant Divgikar Richa Vashista Pallav Patankar and Ashok Row Kavi at the Press Club PicsBipin KokateThe mascot for the event was a person dressed as a duck called lsquoMr Quackrsquo complete with stethoscope around his neck symbolic of the docs they call quacks Mumbairsquos Humsafar Trust which works for the LGBT community lead the awareness programme Pallav Patankar from Humsafar said ldquoThere are many doctors both allopathic as well as ayurvedic who claim that they can lsquocurersquo LGBT people There is a lot of exploitation and mental harassment that happens in the process The time is apt to spread the message to the common man that gay people are perfectly normal and do not need a curerdquoHumsafar Trust and LGBT community members at Azad Maidan with Mr QuackThe LGBT community released documents by the Indian Psychiatric Society and the World Psychiatric Association citing that that homosexuality is not an abnormality They distributed leaflets to people near Chhatrapati Shivaji Terminus CST and on the Azad Maidan road towards Cama HospitalSlogans like lsquoNa sharam na laaj karta hai fraud ilaj Babaji ka tulu no more banaoing oolursquo Bech raha Patanjali phel raha jhoot jaan lo sare ye nahi koi bimari Ramdev Baba Quack quackrsquo The yoga guru has claimed he will cure homosexuals if they come to his ashramSanket Veronica who was at the event shared his story ldquoWhen I came out as gay my family thought it was black magic so I was taken to a doctor The doctor even said he could treat me I am still gay without treatment I am much happier We need to be treated as humansrdquoHumsafarrsquos clinical psychologist Richa Vashista added ldquoI sit from 12 noon to 8 pm to counsel patients from the community who have been taken to quacks for treatment I try to get them out of the depression they suffer because of lack of acceptancerdquoDicky B another community member said ldquoIt is easy to laugh at someone because he is gay This way stigma increases and doctors who propagate false treatments have more reason to make money at the cost of innocentsrdquoShruta Rawat from Humsafar ldquoIt is not homosexuality but homophobia that needs to be treatedrdquoAnand Yadav a teacher who lives at Thane read the pamphlet and said ldquoThis is a good initiative I am becoming aware of some lesser known aspects of homosexuality In my family it is a taboo but I know many gays I will do my best to spread the awareness that being gay is not a diseaserdquoYet looking at protests there were also those who claimed that LGBT rights were being given more importance than water problems Sudha Handa a clerk from Mulund who was at Azad Maidan yesterday said ldquoPeople living near Tansa Lake have been protesting since May 14 at Azad Maidan but no one bothered to help them Now these gay people have a problem and everyone is here to cover their issuesrdquo she said angrily