Supreme Court of India Upholds the Right to Accessible Footpaths as a Fundamental Right under Article 21

Court: Supreme Court of India
Bench: Justice AS Oka and Justice Ujjal Bhuyan
Case Number: IA No. 50798 OF 2025 in W.P.(Civil) No.  295/2012
Case Title: S. Rajaseekaran v. Union of India & Ors
Date of Order: 14 May 2025

Cases Referred: 

• Olga Tellis & Ors. vs. Bombay Municipal Corporation & Ors  (1985) 3 SCC 545
• Bombay HC in High Court on its own Motion vs. State of Maharashtra & Ors 2018 SCC OnLine Bom 21221
• Karnataka HC in the case of D.S. Ramachandra Reddy vs. The Commissioner of Police, Bangalore & Ors  2021 SCC OnLine Kar 12223

Brief:

In a historic development for pedestrian safety and disability rights in India, the Supreme Court has affirmed that the right to unobstructed and disabled-friendly footpaths is a fundamental right protected under Article 21 of the Constitution — the right to life and personal liberty. This judgment, rooted in constitutional guarantees and grounded in empathy for the lived realities of persons with disabilities (PwDs), marks a significant leap forward in the recognition of accessible urban infrastructure as a legal and human right.

The Background

The Supreme Court was hearing a public interest matter that raised critical concerns about the lack of proper footpaths, rampant encroachments, and the resulting safety hazards to pedestrians — especially those with disabilities. The Court acknowledged the urgent and widespread nature of the problem, noting that without accessible and continuous footpaths, pedestrians are effectively forced onto the streets, putting their lives at constant risk.

Key Observations and Findings

The Bench, comprising Justice AS Oka and Justice Ujjal Bhuyan, made a series of pointed observations that reflect both the legal urgency and the human costs of inaccessibility:

• "Right to have unobstructed and disabled-friendly footpaths is guaranteed under Article 21," the Court unequivocally stated.
• The safety of pedestrians is not a luxury, but a constitutional obligation of the state.
• The absence of accessible footpaths disproportionately affects persons with disabilities, older persons, and others who rely on mobility aids.

Supreme Court's Directions

The Court issued a set of sweeping directions to ensure nationwide compliance and structural reforms:

1. Mandatory Accessibility: Footpaths must be designed and maintained to be accessible and usable by persons with disabilities.

2. Encroachment Removal: All encroachments from footpaths must be removed without exception.

3. Universal Footway Standards: Every public road must have proper, inclusive footpaths or walkways.

4. Policy Mandate: All States and Union Territories must evolve and implement policies for the construction, maintenance, and protection of accessible footpaths.

5. Compliance Timeline:

• States and UTs must frame guidelines in line with those issued by the Bombay High Court in High Court on its Own Motion v. State of Maharashtra and DS Ramchandra Reddy v. Commissioner of Police.
• The Union of India is directed to place on record existing or new national guidelines within two months.
• The matter is scheduled for further hearing on 1st August 2025, to review compliance.

Relevance of the Bombay High Court Model

The Supreme Court emphasized that States should refer to the Bombay High Court’s earlier directions, which already set a progressive precedent on footpath design, accessibility, and encroachment-free pedestrian zones. This reinforces the principle that access to infrastructure must be inclusive by design, not adjusted retroactively.

A Constitutional and Human Rights Milestone

This judgment is not merely about footpaths. It is a profound reiteration that urban design and infrastructure planning are constitutional issues. For persons with disabilities, accessible pedestrian infrastructure is not an amenity; it is a prerequisite for dignity, autonomy, and inclusion.

The Supreme Court’s order stands as a powerful reminder that accessibility is not optional — it is a mandated right under the Indian Constitution. The judgment sets the stage for a nationwide shift in how cities and towns approach pedestrian infrastructure to ensure accessible and dignified mobility for all people with disabilities.

Next Steps for Advocates and Stakeholders

• Monitor Compliance: Civil society organizations, disability rights groups, and urban planners must actively engage with State governments to ensure meaningful implementation.
• Participate in Policy Making: Stakeholders must demand participation in the framing of guidelines to reflect diverse accessibility needs.
• Use as Precedent: This order provides strong judicial backing to challenge inaccessible infrastructure in any city or district.

Taking note of standards laid down by the Indian Roads Congress and other authorities, the Court directed: All State Governments and Union Territories shall frame guidelines in line with the High Court directions and file compliance reports within two months. The Union of India shall also place on record the policy/guidelines issued for protecting the rights of pedestrians within two months. 

As we approach the next hearing on 01 August 2025, this judgment offers a foundation to push for inclusive, safe, and equitable urban mobility — not just as a policy goal, but as a constitutional promise.

Read the Order dated  14 May 2025 above.

Motor Vehicle Act 1988 doesn't prohibit PH to convert motor vehicles as invalid carriages

Dear Colleagues,

I had written in detailed earlier in my post titled  "Disabled and Driving - Can both exist together or at the cost of each other? about this issue and host of other issues troubling the disabled persons in India.

An adapted /altered Scooters or an adapted Car with suitable modification like hand brakes and gears provides an easy mobility to a user with orthopedic disabilities.

People with orthopedic disabilities (especially those with Post Polio Residual Paralysis and those with spinal injuries) often prefer a scooter with side-wheels which is an economic mode of transport. Since almost no major company produces such scooters (called an invalid carriage!!!) in India, people with disabilities have to get the fabrication done through local mechanics and fabricators etc.

Registration of modified car/scooter as "invalid carriage" is most difficult
Registering such vehicles and driving license to drive such (invalid carriage) is an uphill task as the rules and law do not specifically provide for this and leaves room for subjectivity and corrupt practices and it leads to exploitation of a user with disabilities at the hands of middlemen and RTOs.

Such an adapted vehicle is registered as ‘Invalid Carriage’ at the whims and fancies of the RTO. To harass the disabled applicants, the RTO often ask the user to produce a sale letter (form 21) of the Invalid Carriage. Now, since no automobile manufacturer in India supply company-fitted scooter with side wheels or produces an invalid carriage, such a sale letter can not be produced. Here starts the harassment to the user and malpractices in absence of laws due to subjectivity available with the RTOs.

Even when the carriage is registered, the user is given a driving license denoting the vehicle number on the license meaning that the user can not drive any other similar vehicle in case the vehicle goes out of order. This necessitates seeking a new driving license each time with a new vehicle (even if the vehicle is similar),

As per the Rule 126 made under Section 52 of the Motor Vehicles Act, 1988 (as amended in 2002) the prototypes of all vehicles including the one for the disabled should be approved by the Pune-based Automobile Research Association of India, otherwise no modifications on any vehicle can be permitted and one has to use a vehicle in the same shape and design as supplied by the manufacturing company. This puts an undue restriction on the persons with disabilities and takes away from them their right to free mobility.

Similar is the case for adapted Cars. Previously, Maruti Udyog Ltd. used to manufacture special type vehicles for handicapped persons with suitable modifications/ attachments. As the requirement of different persons with different disability varies, the modifications/attachments also have to be different. Since the prototype of each model has to undergo the test, under Rule 126 of CMV Rules, the manufacturer has stopped production of such vehicles. Hence it is desirable to allow modifications/alterations of vehicles enabling the handicapped to drive their own vehicles.

In such situations, several of our physically disabled friends who have been using their adapted / modified vehicles for their mobility and living a very active life despite their disability have faced harrassment from the RTOs.

Madras High Court provides a Ray of Hope
However, in the instant case, one C. Paulraj, a disabled farmer who modified a Maruti 800 to suit his needs was refused the registration of the vehicle as "invalid carriage" by the Local RTO. Paulraj had converted leg operated brake, clutch etc to hand operated ones since he can't use his legs for the purpose due to polio.

Justice D Hariparanthaman of Madras High Court has ordered that Motor Vehicles Act 1988 did not prohibit any person, including physically challenged persons, to convert motor vehicles as invalid carriages, so long as the alterations do not change the basic feature of the vehicle.

The Honb'ble Justice clarified that changing the leg operated brake, clutch and accelerator into one of hand operation, would not cause a change in the basic feature of the vehicle and asked the RTO to issue permanent registration to Paulraj's vehicle within four weeks.

This is a welcome judgement from the High Court and I am sure this would give much needed relief who suffer in silence due to car makers not providing these options in their designs and they are forced to go to local fabricators to get the modifications done.

Here is the news report:

HC raps transport dept for not certifying disabled man’s car

CHENNAI: It is the state's responsibility to make available 'invalid carriages' for the benefit of the disabled, the Madras high court has said, adding that curtailing the mobility of a disabled would amount to perpetuating inequality.

While directing the authorities to issue registration certificate to C Paulraj, a disabled farmer who modified his Maruti 800 to suit his needs, Justice D Hariparanthaman said, "If the mobility of physically-challenged persons is curtailed, it would result in perpetuating inequality and the object of the Persons With Disabilities (Equal Opportunities, Protection of Rights and Full Participation) Act 1995 would be defeated."

The matter relates to the rejection of Paulraj's request to the regional transport officer of Tirunelveli seeking registration certificate for his new car. Paulrak is paralysed below his hip. He had earlier an autorickshaw modified and duly certified. He then purchased a car, which was also modified and duly certified. The problem arose when the RTO refused to certify his new car, on the grounds that only company-manufactured vehicles, and not modified versions, could be certified.

Justice Hariparanthaman, rejecting the submission, said that the Motor Vehicles Act 1988 did not prohibit any person, including physically challenged persons, to convert motor vehicles as invalid carriages, so long as the alterations do not change the basic feature of the vehicle.

Pointing out that Paulraj had changed the leg operated brake, clutch and accelerator into one of hand operation, the judge said such changes would not cause a change in the basic feature of the vehicle. He then asked the RTO to issue permanent registration to Paulraj's vehicle within four weeks.