Constitutional Law : Fundamental liberties - Right to life - Change of gender in identity card - Female seeking declaration to be recognised as a male following gender reassignment surgery - Test to be applied to establish gender - Whether chromosomal requirement part of Malaysian jurisprudence - Whether matter should be viewed from physiological perspective - Whether plaintiff had a constitutional right to be accorded judicial recognition as a male - Federal Constitution, art 5(1)

This was an application by the plaintiff, who was born a woman but had since undergone gender reassignment surgery, seeking for a declaration that the plaintiff was a male and to direct the defendant to recognise and give effect to such declaration. The main issues to be determined were, inter alia, whether the Court of Appeal decision in Kristie Chan v. Ketua Pengarah Jabatan Pendaftaran Negara ("Kristie Chan case") endorsed the chromosomal requirement to establish gender as part of Malaysian jurisprudence; whether in establishing gender, the matter should be viewed from the physiological perspective; whether the plaintiff satisfied the criteria in Kristie Chan's case to be declared a male; and whether the plaintiff had a constitutional right to be accorded judicial recognition as a male.

Held (allowing the plaintiff's application with no order as to costs):

(1) From a reading of the Kristie Chan case, the Court of Appeal did not state unequivocally that it was endorsing the chromosomal requirement to establish gender to be regarded as part of Malaysian jurisprudence. Hence, the Court of Appeal in the Kristie Chan case, left open the possibility that in an appropriate case and depending on the quality and credibility of the medical evidence and other supporting documents, the court could make a determination and grant relevant declaration sought with regard to the reassigned gender. (paras 61-62)