Fill up post of state commissioner for persons with disabilities: HC to Delhi govt

The Delhi High Court on Wednesday instructed the city government to take steps to fill the post of State Commissioner for Persons with Disabilities (SCPD).

This directive came in response to a plea by the National Federation of the Blind, which alleged non-compliance with last year’s order directing a special recruitment drive to address the backlog of vacancies in various posts reserved for persons with disabilities.

Senior counsel SK Rungta, representing the organisation, stated that no action had yet been taken regarding the recruitment drive. In the absence of a state commissioner, he suggested the matter be referred to the chief commissioner.

“SCPD is not there. Let it be sent to the chief commissioner,” Rungta said.

A bench of Acting Chief Justice Manmohan and Justice Manmeet PS Arora issued a notice on the plea and asked the Delhi government to respond.

“The respondent, Delhi government, is directed to take steps to fill the post of State Commissioner for Persons with Disabilities for Delhi before the next hearing,” the court ordered.

On March 6, 2023, a division bench led by the then chief justice had directed the Delhi government to undertake a special recruitment drive to fill the backlog of vacancies in posts reserved for persons with disabilities in a timely manner.

The court had instructed the SCPD to monitor the drive and stated that once the process was complete, the commissioner should review the “vacancy-wise roster” from 33 departments that reported zero vacancies and address any backlog.

The petitioner organisation noted that despite Supreme Court orders, the vacancies had not been filled, prompting them to file the petition in 2017.

The next hearing is scheduled for July 15. (With inputs from PTI)