Court Orders

Scribes not to be paid for by examinees

The Madras High Court has directed the Vellore–based Voorhees College to engage scribes for two visually impaired students without insisting that the fee be paid by the students themselves. An interim direction to this effect was given by the First Bench, comprising Chief Justice A.P Shah and Justice V. Ramasubramanian, on public interest litigation petitions filed by R. Senthil and A. Raja.

In his petition, Mr. Senthil said he was an orphan and totally blind. In a hall ticket issued to him, the impugned condition No. 8 mentioned that he should pay the scribe fee for engaging a scribe to writ examination on his behalf. When he submitted a request to waive the condition, Thiruvalluvar University rejected the plea and reiterated that he should pay the scribe fee.

Pointing out that he did not face any difficulty in getting the scribe appointed at government expense till he completed his school education, the petitioner said the Government paid the fee for the visually impaired candidates writing the Tamil Nadu Public Service Commission examinations.

He said the impugned condition was opposed to the very spirit and object of the Persons With the Disabilities Act 1995, and said while wider relief were available under the provisions of the Act, the university and the college should meet his basic need to complete his education. He said a Government Order dated December 31, 1997, issued by the Higher Education Department, waived the payment of examination fee in respect of visually impaired students of colleges/universities. “This waiver, invariably, includes the scribe's fee. Otherwise, the waiver makes no sense,” he contended.

Source : College directed to engage scribes for visually impaired, The Hindu, Chennai, 13 December 2007.

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Reservations in promotion

In a judgment which holds promise for government employees with disability, the Delhi High Court has held that they are entitled to benefits of reservation in promotion. A Division Bench comprising Justice A K Sikri and Justice Vipin Sanghi held that it would be against the spirit of the Disability Act if the disabled people were deprived the benefit of reservation in promotion.

“We have to ensure that persons suffering from disability also grow in stature and for this reason reservation is provided in the employment, limiting the same only at the induction level and not in the promotion would be totally unjust,” the Bench said.

The court was hearing a matter related to Jagmohan Singh, with 55 percent disability, employed in the Railways since 1972 but was denied promotion to the post of Chief Office Superintendent despite repeated representations by him. The railway authority turned down his plea by saying that reservation cannot be granted in promotion and it was only provided at the initial stage of recruitment. It further said that in view of the safe carriage of goods and passengers, the disabled employee cannot be promoted to the post.

Singh, then approached Central Administrative Tribunal (CAT) which pulled up the government for its discriminatory approach and directed it to consider his promotion.

The Centre challenged the CAT's order in the High Court which upheld the Tribunal's order. The Court, while dismissing Centre's petition, termed the decision of the Government as “arbitrary” and “irrational”.

“If selection by promotion to such a post under normal channel is available to person like Singh, and his handicap in that eventuality does not come in way of the discharging the duties, the reason for not providing on this ground is contradictory in terms and cannot be sustained,” the Court said.

Source : Disabled staff is entitled to reservation perks: HC, Political & Business, New Delhi, 14 December 2007.

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