JUSTICE SUNANDA BHANDARE FOUNDATION Vs. UNION OF INDIA

JUDGEMENT

(1.) This Court, vide order dtd. 15/4/2026, recorded submissions advanced by Mr. Colin Gonsalves, learned senior counsel appearing for the appellant in Civil Appeal No. 11938 of 2016 regarding non-compliance by several States and Union Territories with the directions issued in the judgment dtd. 12/9/2025, particularly concerning the appointment of Nodal Officers. It was noted that despite the lapse of seven months, multiple States and Union Territories[States of Kerala, Jharkhand, Odisha, Sikkim, Arunachal Pradesh, Manipur, Meghalaya, Tripura, Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh and Telangana, as well as the Union Territories of Puducherry, Lakshadweep Islands, Ladakh, Delhi, Chandigarh, and Andaman and Nicobar Islands.] had failed to act, thereby impeding the effective functioning of National Law Universities in discharge of the mandate of this Court and undermining the implementation of statutory mandates affecting vulnerable Sec. of the society. Expressing serious displeasure at such inaction, this Court granted a final opportunity to the defaulting States and Union Territories to ensure compliance before the next date of hearing, failing which senior officials, including Chief Secretaries and concerned departmental Secretaries, were directed to remain personally present with affidavits explaining the delay.

(2.) Further, this Court took note of the submissions advanced by learned counsel appearing for the petitioner in Writ Petition (Civil) No. 116 of 1998 concerning the broader implementation of the Rights of Persons with Disabilities Act, 2016, and granted time to the counsel for petitioner to file a status report. The Court also expressed concern over the continued failure of the Union of India to respond to a specific query raised in paragraph 53 of the judgment dtd. 12/9/2025, relating to the provision of upward movement of meritorious candidates in reserved categories. Noting the lack of response/representation on behalf of the Union of India, the Court granted a final opportunity to file the requisite response before the next date of hearing. The matter was accordingly directed to be listed on 28/4/2026 for further consideration. For ready reference, the relevant portion of the said order is extracted hereinbelow: -

(3.) For the sake of clarity and to facilitate a structured consideration of the issues involved, the present order is being addressed under three distinct heads, which are being considered seriatim: