Srinagar, Apr 11: The High Court of Jammu & Kashmir and Ladakh directed the Centre and J&K government to file affidavit regarding the steps taken to discontinue words like “mentally retarded,” “sick,” “unfortunate,” “handicapped person,” “abnormal” etc. while referring to specially abled persons in official internal and external communications.
Hearing a public interest litigation (PIL), a division bench comprising Chief Justice N. Kotiswar Singh and Puneet Gupta directed the authorities to furnish an affidavit regarding the steps taken to meet the
grievance of petitioner raised in the plea.
In a previous hearing, the court observed that the specially abled persons be treated properly by the language recognized internationally.
“We expect that the respondents shall ensure full respect and honour to all citizens in terms of their personality without letting them suffer any impression that the society and State sees and address the physically and mentally challenged persons as liabilities carrying personalities and, as such, sensitivity has to be in full operation,” the bench had said.
The court had directed all the government authorities to ensure expeditious recognition of the claim of the petitioner for the specially abled persons.
“We also hope and trust that the society as a whole shall recognize their rights as guaranteed under the Constitution,” the bench said.
The government authorities were also directed to ensure that the facilities as identified in the plea are provided and developed, if not, already existing.
The PIL filed by a lawyer, Badrul Duja has sought directions to the respondents along with general public to refrain from mentioning or referring specially abled persons as “mentally retarded, sick, unfortunate, handicapped person, abnormal, mental, poor, unfortunate person, crippled, deformed, mad person, dwarf, wheelchair bound, dwarf, albino, disabled, mongoloid, midget, deaf and dumb, troubled person” in official internal and external communications, judicial orders, notifications, circulars, newspapers, textbooks, and court orders.
Petitioner has also sought to declare words such as mentally retarded, sick, unfortunate, handicapped person, abnormal, disabled etc used to name or refer persons with disability as “undignified” and violative of Article 14,15 and article 21 of Indian Constitution.
Duja submitted that the respondents should use the language guidelines already introduced universally as prescribed and the list of words and their alternate words enumerated, mentioned, illustrated so that internal and external communications must be respectful physically as well as mentally.
He sought a direction for suitably amending the laws, using the words mentally retarded in the Multiplicity Disability Act, 1999, as also some other laws on the subject.
He also prayed for a direction for declaring words such as mentally retarded used in Section 2(g) of The National Trust for welfare of persons with autism, cerebral palsy, mental retardation and Multiple Disabilities Act 1999 as violative of Article 14, 15 and article 21 of Indian Constitution.
He also pleaded for a direction upon respondents for establishing and implementing disability accessible infrastructure across Trial Court and Principal District and Sessions Judge Courts of each district in Jammu, Kashmir and Ladakh.
The court, while seeking response of the government authorities on the PIL, noted that the issue raised by the petitioner needs to be addressed by the respondents, so as to value the universal conventions and the sentiments of the specially abled persons for giving them full support humanly and socially.
