Disability Rights : Supreme Court Seeks Union's Affidavit On State-Wise Implementation Of Rights Of Persons With Disabilities Act

Supreme Court bench comprising Chief Justice DY Chandrachud and Justice PS Narasimha issued notice to the Union of India and the Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment in a plea seeking enforcement of rights of persons with disabilities by constituting District Level Committees for each district to implement the Right of Persons with Disabilities Act 2016 [“RPwD Act”].

The petitioner in the case is a member of a group called “Together We Can” which is forum for parents, professionals, and other stakeholders working for rights of children with disabilities. Advocate K. Parameshwar assisted by Akshay Sahay and A. Karthik, AoR appeared for the petitioners in the matter. CJI Chandrachud while dictating the order stated –

"Petitioner has highlighted that diverse provisions of RPwD Act 2016 haven't been implemented by the States. Petitioners have placed on the record a copy of the fifth meeting of the Central advisory board of disability held on 24 June 2022 under the auspices of the Ministry of social Justice and empowerment."

As per the order, the minutes of the meeting indicate that as of the date of the meeting -

1. Only 10 states had constituted separate departments for dealing with entitlements of persons dealing with disabilities;

2. 12 states have independent commissioners;

3. The States of Andhra Pradesh, Maharashtra and Union Territories of Dadra and Nagar Haveli, Daman and Diu, and Ladakh are yet to notify rules under the statute. They have not constituted the state advisory boards.

The petitioner also submitted that Section 72 of the act which envisaged a District level Committee for each State for the purpose of ensuring that the needs of persons with disabilities are met was yet to be fully implemented. Further, though Section 101(2)(a) empowers the State governments to frame rules regarding the functions of the district level committees, without the formulation of specific rules, the committees would remain ineffective.

Accordingly, CJI DY Chandarchud stated–

"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." 

The petition argues–

"The RPwD Act inter alia recognise the need to have a micro level self- check mechanism to ensure the needs of persons with disabilities are met and the Act is properly implemented at the lowest level. Section 72 of the RPwD Act envisages constitution of a ‘District-Level Committee’ [“DLC”] for each district for this purpose. These DLCs are meant to comprise of not just state officials but also respectable members of the local community. DLCs give teeth to the RPwD Act. Having a grassroot-level supervisory body like the DLC in place can be the safest way to ensure enforcement of the provisions of a statute."

CASE TITLE: Seema Girija And Anr. v. UoI And Ors. Diary No. 29329/2021

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