Court Orders

5% teaching quota to be filled

A High Court division Bench orally directed the State government to complete the process of providing 5 per cent reservations to disabled persons in high school teachers' recruitment. While dealing with a contempt petition against education department officers alleging non–provision for 5per cent reservations during 2005 recruitments despite a HC order, the Bench headed by Justice Chidananda Ullal gave the oral direction.

Source : Quota for disabled, Deccan Herald, Daily, Bangalore, 5 December 2007.

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PIL on reservation

The Madras High Court has ordered notices on two public interest litigation petitions seeking three per cent reservation for disabled candidates and 3.5 per cent each for Backward Muslim and Christian Categories in the ongoing process to recruit 3,875 typists and steno typists in the State.

While Mahamood Basha of Vellore filed the petition to direct the authorities to reserve 3.5 per cent posts each for BC Muslims and BC Christians in the proposed recruitment, Prof. I. Elangovan of Voorhees College in Vellore filed the second petition for allocating a total of 116 seats for disabled persons.

The first Bench comprising Chief Justice A.P. Shah and Justice V. Ramasubramanian, ordering notices to the authorities including the Tamil Nadu Public Service Commission, adjourned the matter to December 7 for further proceedings.

In his petition, Mr. Bash contended that the Tamil Nadu government had promulgated an Ordinance on September 15, providing for 3.5 per cent reservation for BC Muslims and BC Christans. In accordance with it, the Government issued a Government order on October 29 extending quota for these sections within the 30 per cent reservation for the BCs.

While so, the impugned notification dated November 15 did not extend full reservation benefits to the eligible candidates, he said. There was a total shortfall of 89 seats.

He said depriving the eligible candidates of appointment was illegal, and sought a direction to the authorities to provide adequate number of seats to fulfill the constitutional mandate.

Prof. Elangovan, in his petition, said that while a total of 116 seats ought to have been reserved for the disabled, there was a shortfall of 80 seats in the impugned notification. Also, the notification had failed to extend application fee and examination fee concessions to the disabled, he said.

Noting that such conditions would defeat the very purpose of the persons with Disability Act, he prayed for a direction to the authorities to issue applications to the disabled persons free of cost and exempt them from paying examination fee as well.

Seeks direction: He also wanted a direction to the authorities to reserve 116 seats, fulfilling the constitutional mandate of allocating three per cent reservation for disabled persons.

Source : PIL petition seeks quota for disabled, The Hindu, Chennai, 4 December 2007.

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Visually impaired women exempt from AAI written tests

The Delhi High Court has exempted a visually impaired women candidate from attending written tests for appointment with the Airport Authority of India (AAI), saying “there is no level playing field if she is made to compete with others who are able, both mentally and physically”.

Anubha Bhargava, a former ad hoc staffer with the AAI for almost two years, was terminated from her job along with 129 others after their recruitment was found “irregular” and on the basis of recommendation by the civil aviation minister and various VIPs.

A dispute over the terminations had reached the high court but was later amicably settled, after the AAI offered to take back the employees, provide they clear written exams on general knowledge and current affairs, interviews and a typing test. A government advertisement was issued in this regard after the high court issued directions on April 30, 2007.

Bhargava again approached a division bench led by Justice A K Sikri, this time seeking an exemption from written tests because of her impairment. Though a convent–educated, commerce graduate from Allahabad, she told the court that neither could the read nor watch TV and was thus “deprived of the benefit of programmes that could enhance her general knowledge”.

She also said the National Institute for the Visually Handicapped, Dehradun, which publishes books in Braille, has not till date published such tomes to combat objectives tests. On her AAI, she submitted she had joined under the “physically handicapped category” as there was no reservation for the visually impaired. “During this period (of employment) her eyesight deteriorated and she is now virtually blind… Moreover, this blindness is at least partially the result of her performing duties and had there been a regular appointment, she would have been entitled to protection against termination,” the court said.

The bench took into consideration the advertisement was in violation of the Disability Act, which demanded at least three percent reservation for handicapped persons, including one per cent for visually impaired candidates.

“To add insult to injury, the respondents (Centre) in the advertisement, have not reserved any post for visually handicapped persons,” the court said, directing the government to “adjust” Bhargava's appointment from posts available in the general category. “The AAI is a massive organization, it would not be difficult to find suitable work for her,” the court said.

Source : No test needed: HC aids blind candidate, Indian Express, New Delhi, 6 December 2007

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DDA to furnish report

The Delhi high court has asked the DDA to furnish a report detailing how many shops or commercial units in the city have been allotted on a freehold basis to disabled persons under the tender policy since it came into force three years ago.

The court also asked the ministry of urban development to urban development to file its response by December 19, besides asking the DDA to explain the manner in which the allotments, if at all, were made to the handicapped persons.

Under the 2004 tender policy, five per cent of the total number of shops were to be allotted to the persons suffering from disability. A division bench headed by Justice A.K. Sikri, in his order, said, “DDA shall indicate as to how many shops/commercial units allotted after coming into force the policy of reservation dated April 19, 2004… The figures will be necessary to find out whether five per cent of such shops are allotted to persons suffering from disability”.

“In case there is a short fall in making the allotments to disabled persons, the DDA shall take immediate steps for making up the deficiency,” the bench directed. It ordered the agency not to issue fresh tender for allotment in general category. The bench was hearing a plea filed by Sugam Singh alleging the DDA allotted shops “discriminatingly”.

Source : Details sought on shops allotted to disabled, Asian Age, New Delhi, 10 December 2007.

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