PARDEEP SINGH Vs. STATE OF HARYANA

JUDGEMENT

(1.) "Although the world is full of suffering, it is also full of overcoming of it", said Helen Keller. Her life was even more difficult than the blind petitioners. She was not only blind but also deaf. Among the many things she is famous for, she was a Lecturer. She was the first woman in America to Graduate, to earn a degree of Bachelor of Arts. The petitioners are blind persons. The petitioners teach in Government schools and are Lecturers. By separate orders all passed on August 06, 2016 by the Additional Chief Secretary, School Education, Government of Haryana they have been transferred against clear vacancies and one of them against a "deemed vacancy" created by transfer of a colleague. Three of them teach Political Science while one teaches English. The first and fourth petitioner belongs to Ambala, the second to Jind while the third petitioner lives in District Jhajjar.

(2.) They have approached this Court in a joint petition filed under Articles 226 of our Constitution. They pray that their transfer and posting orders be annulled by a writ of certiorari. They pray for a mandamus to forbear the respondents from transferring them out to other schools in the districts of Ambala, Jind and Jhajjar.

(3.) The Central Government has enacted The Persons with Disabilities (Equal Opportunities, Protection of Rights and Full Participation) Act, 1995 (for short "1995 Act"). Sec. 2 (ii) defines blindness as a disability. Even as per section 2 (u) persons with low vision with impairment to the extent are covered by the provisions of the 1995 Act. It is the statutory duty of the State Governments to formulate State Coordination Committees in accordance with Sec. 13 of the 1995 Act. The Secretaries to Government and the Minister-in-charge are also part of such Committees. State Governments are also enjoined to constitute State Executive Committees to promote the cases of disabled persons. Sec. 33 of the 1995 Act mandates every Government in every establishment covered to provide such percentage of vacancies not less than 3% for class of persons with disability out of which one per cent is to be reserved for persons suffering from blindness or low vision, hearing impairment, locomotor disability or cerebral palsy respectively.