Amid a factional dispute within the transgender community in Indore, Kinnar Akhara chief Laxmi Narayan Tripathi on Wednesday cited danger to the lives of the members of a local ‘dera’ (settlement) and demanded police protection for them.

Kinnar Akhara is a Hindu religious order for the transgender community. It functions under the Juna Akhara.

Police officials said the discord took a serious turn on the night of October 15, when 24 members of the Nandlalpura Dera allegedly consumed phenyl with the intention of committing suicide. They were saved by timely hospitalisation.

Members of the Nandlalpura Dera have alleged that they tried to end their lives due to “harassment” by Sapna Haji, the leader of the rival transgender faction, and her associates.

Tripathi, the Acharya Mahamandaleshwa

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