Bombay HC threatens contempt proceedings if State didn't provide information about implementation of 5% reservation in land allotmment to persons with disabilities at concessional rates under RPWD Act.

Court: Bombay High Court 

Bench: Hon'ble Justice Gautam Patel and Hon'ble Justice Neela Gokhale

Case No.: Writ Petition No. 583 of 2020

Case Title: Rajendra Petrus Lalzare Vs. State of Maharashtra & Ors.

Date of Order: 31 July 2023

Next Date of Hearing: 21 Aug 2023

Case Brief:

The Bombay High Court has issued a stern warning to the Maharashtra government for its failure to provide a meaningful response to the court's query regarding the implementation of a 5 per cent reservation in land allotment at concessional rates for disabled persons under the Disabilities Act. The court has threatened to initiate contempt proceedings against government officials if a proper reply is not filed.

The bench expressed, "This is the most shameful state of affairs. We are not even on the merits of the Petition, but only on the failure of the Government to furnish a meaningful response."

The case was brought before the bench by petitioner seeking the enforcement of Section 37 (c) of the Rights of Persons with Disabilities Act. This provision mandates that the government should create schemes favoring disabled individuals and allocate 5 per cent reservation in the allotment of land at concessional rates for various purposes, including housing, shelter, occupation, business, and recreation centers.

The petition was filed in 2020, and since then, it has been listed for periodic hearings. However, on every occasion, the government has sought adjournments to submit its affidavit, resulting in delays. In June 2022, an additional government pleader orally informed the court about the government's contemplation of issuing general directions to reserve 5 per cent of land for persons with disabilities. Despite this assurance, the government has not taken the necessary action.

The bench pointed out that the government's response, citing the Maharashtra Land Disposal Rules, did not address the court's specific query. The court emphasised the government's obligation to file a proper affidavit outlining the steps taken under Section 37 (c) of the Disabilities Act.

The bench said, "Now we are making it clear that while we are accommodating the learned AGP on personal grounds, we will not grant further time on the next date under any circumstances. If the Affidavit that is said to be filed in purported or ostensible compliance with orders of this Court does not answer the question of steps taken under Section 37(c) of the Disabilities Act, we are putting all concerned in the Government to notice that we will have no choice but to proceed against those officers, if necessary, in suo moto contempt for disobedience of orders of this Court. If the matter is being stood over by two weeks to accommodate the learned AGP, that time should be better utilised to make amends and to clarify the stand of the Government in accordance with the orders of this Court."

The court has granted the state government a final opportunity to file a meaningful response and set the next hearing for August 21, 2023. If the government fails to comply with this directive, the court warned that it may take suo motu contempt action against the responsible officers for disobeying its orders.

Read the Court Order below:

Delhi HC directs Guru Govind Singh Indraprastha University to provide 5% reservation for persons with disabilities as per RPWD Act 2016.

Court: High Court of Delhi

Bench:  Hon'ble Mr. Chief Justice Satish Chandra Sharma, and Mr. Justice Saurabh Banerjee

Case No.:  W.P.(C) 6605/2023

Case Title: Justice for All  Vs. Govt of NCT of Delhi & Others

Date of Interim order: 17 May 2023 [PDF 1MB]

Date of Judgement: 25 July 2023 [PDF 967KB]

Brief:

Delhi High Court has taken a significant step towards promoting inclusivity and accessibility in educational institutions by instructing the city government and Guru Gobind Singh Indraprastha University to ensure a five percent reservation for specially-abled candidates.

This directive aims to uphold the provisions of the Rights of Persons with Disabilities Act, 2016, and ensure that individuals with disabilities have equal opportunities for education.

The order came in response to a public interest litigation that alleged the respondent university was not adhering to the provisions of the Act.

While the university claimed to have provided a five percent quota for specially-abled candidates in all courses, the court directed the Delhi government and the university to make further efforts to ensure seats designated for specially-abled persons are indeed filled by candidates from all categories of disabilities.

On 17.5.2023, the court passed an interim order directing the university to provide the appropriate reservations for candidates with disabilities in the ongoing academic session. The petitioner, brought attention to the fact that the university was only offering a three percent quota instead of the mandated five percent under the Act. In response, the university filed an affidavit, confirming that it was indeed implementing a five percent reservation for specially-abled individuals.

Access the Judgement dated 25 Jul 2023

Bombay HC- RBI says it is aware of concerns of visually impaired but issueing new banknotes a huge task (Ongoing matter)

Court: Bombay High Court (Mumbai)

Bench: Hon'ble Acting Chief Justice Shri Nitin Jamdar and Mr. Jusitce Shri Arif S. Doctor

Case No.: PIL/13/2019 (Original) [Previous references: WP lodging No. 2038 of 2016, WP No. 2420 of 2017]

Case Title: National Association for the Blind (India) Vs. Reserve Bank of India and 2 Others.

Subject:  Inaccessibility of bank notes and coins to blind and visually impaired.

Date of Order: 19 July 2023

Earlier Order: 28 June 2023

Next Date of Hearing: 11 October 2023

Case Brief:

The Reserve Bank of India in an affidavit tells the the Bombay High Court bench that while it acknowledges the concerns of visually impaired persons regarding identification of currencies, introducing new banknotes was a monumental task that is extremely complicated and time-consuming process extending over a period of 6-7 years and also entails heavy expenditure.

The affidavit was filed in response to a petition by the National Association ofthe Blind (NAB), claiming new currency notes and coins issued by the central bank posed difficulty for visually-impaired people in identifying and distinguishing them.

The affidavit said the process adopted before introducing new series of banknotes involves multiple considerations, including incorporation of visually impaired-friendly features, security, and design features to make them counterfeit deterrent.

"The RBI is aware of and acknowledges the concerns of the visually impaired persons regarding identification of banknotes. The work on the next series of banknotes has been underway since 2017," it said.

"Introducing a new series of banknotes is a monumental task. This has to be thought through carefully because having multiple series of banknotes of different sizes and features of the same denomination would cause more confusion than resolve the problem," the affidavit noted.

The central bank pointed out that the expenditure that would be incurred in introducing a new series of currencies would be high. The affidavit said the annual expenditure towards security printing was pegged at Rs 4,682 crore.

"This annual amount was not for introducing a new series but merely for printing notes to replace old, soiled, damaged notes and to meet the incremental demand of banknotes," it said.

The cost of introducing a new series of banknotes will be much higher and will include expenditure towards adaptation of paper production, printing machines and the entire currency dispensation and processing eco-system to any proposed changes, the document said.

The RBI urged the HC to dismiss the NAB's petition with cost claiming it has taken all necessary steps in studying the grievance highlighted in the plea and was examining the matter with due seriousness.

On Wednesday, NAB advocate Uday Warunjikar sought the court to not dispose of the plea and said the RBI has not made a positive statement in its affidavit.

RBI counsel Venkatesh Dhond said the petitioner has a unipolar thought but the central bank has to consider several points. Dhond sought further time from the HC for the banking regulator to consider the issue. The division bench headed by Acting Chief Justice Jamdar then posted the matter for further hearing after 12 weeks.

The RBI affidavit pointed out that central banks across the world generally change the design of banknotes and introduce new security features once in a decade primarily to make counterfeiting difficult.

The RBI also follows the same policy but the periodicity is not fixed and is dependent upon several factors such as number and quality of counterfeit notes detected, existence of other perceived threats to the security of the national currency and changes in national policies, it said.

The affidavit maintained the last time a series of banknotes were introduced was in 2016 and this was preceded by an elaborate process of consultation among various stakeholders.

"This process included the constitution of a design committee in 2010 comprising field experts to make recommendations on the design/size of the new series of banknotes, including making them sensitive to the requirements of the differently abled persons," it said.

"Considering the needs of the visually impaired persons, features such as intaglio, identification marks, bleed lines and so on have been included in the banknotes in addition to the difference in size of various denominations though the same were reduced from the earlier series to make them aligned with international norms and to make them more wallet friendly," the RBI said.

The process also involves taking feedback from representatives of two national-level associations of visually impaired and to "the extent feasible, their concerns will be factored in the next series of banknotes", said the affidavit.

Read the Order dated 19 July 2023 below:

In a bid to make inspection of digitized court records accessible Delhi HC notifies rules applicable to all district courts and Tribunals under its control

Dear Colleagues,

The Delhi High Court has notified rules providing for electronic inspection of the digitized Court record of the High Court as well District Courts and Tribunal under its control and supervision. This will help litigants, lawyers alike in not only savinv their time and energy but also make it more accesssible to diverse group of users with disabilities.

These Rules shall govern the procedure related to the electronic inspection of the digitized Court record of the High Court as well District Courts and Tribunal under its control and supervision and shall be called “The Delhi High Court Rules for Electronic Inspection of Digitized Court Records, 2023”. The facility of electronic inspection of court record shall be in addition to the existing facility of physical inspection.

Below is the Gazette notification dated 18 July 2023 on the subject:

Supreme Court directs appointment of independent Disability Commissioners in all states by 31 Aug 2023

Court: Supreme Court of India

Bench: Chief Justice of India DY Chandrachud ; Mr. Justice PS Narasimha and Mr. Justice Manoj Misra 

Case Title: Seema Girija Lal And Anr. v. Union of India And Ors. 

Case No.: Writ Petition (Civil) Diary No(s). 29329/2021 

Date of Order:  17 Jul 2023 

Previous Order: 13 Jan 2023

Next Date of Hearing: 18 Sep 2023

Brief:

Please refer to the brief write up on the previous order passed by the court dated 13 Jan 2023 in this PIL seeking the formation of district-level committees to enforce the Rights of Persons with Disabilities Act, 2016, when the Hon'ble supreme court was pleased to issue a notice, without even admitting it or the registry allocating it a Writ petition number.  The petition stated that India’s basic infrastructure to meet the needs of its nearly 3 crore persons with disabilities is 'visibly absent', and that the top court should take judicial notice of this concern. 

The bench had then specifically passed the following order:

"We direct that notice shall be issued to Union of India and Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment. The Ministry shall file counter affidavit within a period of a month. The affidavit shall indicate state wise the implementation. Union of India shall convene a meeting with all concerned states and state advisory boards with a view to eliciting the present status of compliance. We request Ms. Divan, ASG to assist. At this stage we're not issuing notice to state govts. Based on affidavits, we'll decide."

During the hearing on 17 July 2023, the Chief Justice expressed the concern that the current state of implementation of the RPWD Act 2016 revealed a distressing situation throughout the country. 

Pertinently, the bench noted that disability commissioners were entrusted with several statutory duties under Section 75 and Section 80G of Act. However, a report before the Court indicated that several States and Union Territories had failed to appoint such independent commissioners as required under Section 79 of the Act. And thus it direted the appointment of such commissioners by August 31, 2023.

The Court further ordered the concerned Union Ministry to coordinated with the relevant ministry of all State governments to file an updated affidavit by September 17. The States were asked to upload relevant details on the dashboard of the Central government.

The matter has now been listed for further hearing on September 18, 2023.

Read the Order dated 17 July 2023 below: