Excelsior Correspondent
JAMMU, Dec 7: In a Public Interest Litigation (PIL) seeking directions to restrain the Government as well as general public from mentioning or referring persons with disabilities or 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, Division Bench of High Court comprising Chief Justice Ali Mohammad Magrey and Justice Rahul Bharti has issued notice to the respondents with the direction to ensure expeditious recognition of the claim of the petitioner for the specially abled persons.
“The concern of the petitioner is that the respondents who 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”, the DB said, adding “it is submitted that across the world respectful language, disability communication, disability etiquette have been prescribed, mentioned and used during communications, pleadings, judicial orders, academic writings, official work, educational textbooks, pamphlets, across public and private offices”.
“The petitioner, as stated, has approached all the respondents for ensuring adherence to the inclusion strategy launched at international level for having reference to language guidelines so introduced in the terminology used in the office/courts etc. The petitioner is also seeking discontinuation of such words while referring to persons with disability or specially abled persons, which will otherwise not affect the functioning, scope, nature, operation and enforcement of Disability Act as the same words are not mentioned in Disability Act”, the DB said.
Moreover, the petitioner has also sought 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.
“The issue raised needs to be addressed by the respondents, so as to value the universal conventions and the sentiments of these specially abled persons for giving them full support humanly and socially”, the DB said, adding “the petitioner has also highlighted the difficulties faced with the specially abled persons while approaching the different offices/courts in the UT of J&K and UT of Ladakh. He makes reference that it is very difficult to pursue the cases in the offices/courts while having no facility of even constructed ramps, lifts, providing wheel chairs along with hand raised and special washroom facilities also”.
DB issued notice to Union of India and UT and directed all the respondents 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 specially able persons be treated properly by the language recognized internationally. We also direct the respondents to ensure that the facilities as identified are provided if not already existing”, the DB added.
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