Delhi HC Directs DU To Reimburse Blind Students For Costs Incurred In Procuring Accessible Textbooks and Assistive Devices [Read Order]

The Division Bench of Justice Rajiv Sahai Endlaw and Justice Asha Menon has also directed the University to render all such assistance as required by the visually impaired students.

The order has come in a writ petition filed by the National Federation of the Blind seeking the following reliefs:

1. Direction to be issued to DU to assess the performance of visually impaired and other students with disabilities, of final semester/term/year for academic session 2019-2020, on the basis of their performance in the previous semester as well as internal assessment, on the same basis as has been decided to be done for other intermediate semester students
2. Direction to be issued to DU to permit visually impaired and other students with disabilities of final semester/term/year of both UG and PG programmes, to appear in the entrance test for the course/programmes of their choice and grant them admission provisionally for academic session 2020-2021, if their results are not declared by the time the admission process is commenced.

During the proceedings, Senior Advocate SK Rungta, who appeared for the Petitioner, informed the court that the costs of acquiring text books in accessible form and assistive devices for the visually impaired students of final semester/term/year and who are without the same, will not be more than Rs. 2 lakhs.

After assuring the Petitioner that the said amount incurred by the students shall certainly be reimbursed, the court directed the Delhi University to file a counter affidavit within 2 weeks.

The court further directed that:

'As and when a second round of open book examination is held, which as per the University is to be held in September 2020, the visually impaired students, even if have participated in the open book examination commencing from 2nd July, 2020, would be again entitled to appear in such examination, including to improve their score in the said examination.'

The court also made it imperative for the Colleges affiliated to DU to provide necessary material and assistive devices as and when they are approached by the visually impaired students demanding the same.

The University is further directed to make best efforts to provide scribes to visually impaired students who ask for the same.

The court will next take up the matter on July 13.

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[Read Order]