MISSION ACCESSIBILITY Vs. UNION OF INDIA

JUDGEMENT

(1.) The measure of a just and inclusive society lies not merely in the freedoms it proclaims, but in the opportunities, it ensures for all its citizens to realize their fullest potential. Equality, in its truest sense, demands not uniformity but the removal of barriers that prevent individuals from standing on equal footing. The Constitution of India envisions a Republic where every person, regardless of physical or sensory limitation, can participate with dignity in the nation's collective journey. The law, as an instrument of justice, must therefore move beyond formal equality to ensure substantive inclusion, transforming rights from written promises into lived realities. It is in this spirit that the present writ petition comes before this Court, seeking not privilege, but parity; not indulgence, but the rightful fulfilment of the constitutional vision of equal opportunity for all.

(2.) The instant writ petition has been instituted by Mission Accessibility [Hereinafter, beingreferred to as "petitioner"], an organisation engaged in the advancement of the rights of persons with disabilities, for enforcing the rights of persons with disabilities to equal opportunity guaranteed to them under the Constitution of India and the Rights of Persons with Disabilities Act, 2016. The directions sought by way of this writ petition include, inter alia, the modification of the timeline for scribe registration in the Civil Services Examination conducted by Union Public Service Commission [Hereinafter, referred to as "respondent No. 2-UPSC"] and for permitting the use of laptops equipped with Screen Reader Software along with accessible digital question papers for eligible candidates. For the sake of ready reference, the reliefs sought in the writ petition are reproduced hereinbelow: -

(3.) This Court vide order dtd. 6/5/2025 allowed the impleadment of Department of Personnel and Training (DoPT) as respondent No. 3 and directed the counsel representing respondent No. 2-UPSC to have a dialogue with counsel representing respondent No. 3-DoPT regarding the apprehensions and concerns of the candidates appearing in Civil Services Examination. Learned counsel representing respondent No. 2-UPSC was also directed to file an appropriate affidavit of the competent officer with respect to the change of scribe. The said order is extracted hereinbelow:-