Supreme Court Issues Notice On Plea Seeking Inclusion Of Persons Affected Ay Autism Spectrum Disorder Under RPWD Act, 2016

The Supreme Court today issued a notice in the Public Interest Litigation seeking formulation of guidelines under the Right of Persons with Disabilities Act, 2016 for inclusion of persons who are affected by Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) and appropriate facilities for inclusion of such persons.

The Bench of Chief Justice DY Chandrachud, Justice PS Narasimha and Justice J.B. Pardiwala noted that the Petitioner has raised a significant issue relating to the formulation of guidelines to include the people suffering from ASD under the 2016 Act. The Bench issued a notice returnable in eight weeks. 

The Petition filed by Shaurya Foundation Trust aiming to further the interest of persons suffering from Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD), a form of Intellectual Deficiency Disorder, states that the Rights of Persons with Disabilities Act, 2016 has failed to address the issues relating to persons suffering from ASD and their education as well as employability while providing for Skill Development and Employment.

As per the petition, the NGO provides holistic development to neurodiverse persons as well as persons with special needs and runs several programs for differently-abled persons. The trust is working for the rehabilitation and empowerment of persons with intellectual challenges and has moved the present petition through Advocate-on-Record Gaurav Kejriwal.

The Petition states that the 2016 Act, lays the entire burden on the Government while failing to lay enough emphasis on the participation and involvement of the Private Sector which is covered by the definition of “establishment” under Clause (i) of Section 2 of the said Act. The NGO highlights that despite the 2016 Act and UN Convention on Persons with Disabilities, 2006 persons suffering from ASD have been marginalized.

The NGO has stated that the Government alone may not be in a position to provide opportunities for a large number of persons and that the private sector should be joined to provide employment and that Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) funds be earmarked for setting up special centres for skilling and upskilling so that persons with ASD could be imparted training to make them productive, employable and also self-sufficient to lead their own life, with dignity even beyond the life of their parents.

The Plea also states that "However, the Act fails to recognize the distinction between “divyang” and “Divyanjan” and seeks to paint them with the same brush.". It reads that "under the Act, reservation has been made for persons with ‘benchmark disability’ but not for persons with disability of the kind faced by persons affected by ASD. The disability in the case of ASD cannot be ‘benchmarked’ or identified with precision. Further, such persons may also face learning disabilities making it difficult for them to undergo minimum educational instructions."

The Plea seeks to formulate guidelines under the 2016 Act for the inclusion of the persons who are affected by ASD and also to create special and appropriate facilities for the inclusion of the persons affected by ASD by creating special zones wherein skilled, semiskilled and unskilled persons affected with ASD can be given the opportunity to be employed and earn a livelihood so that such person can live a life of dignity by earning their livelihood and/or be self-dependent.

"Said step is necessary as a large number of persons suffering from disability are in the rural areas who are deprived of such advanced skilling and training centres and also due to lack of trained therapists" and that "given the increasing number of people with disabilities and also given the need for inclusion of such persons with disabilities into the community in furtherance of the avowed objectives of the U.N. Convention as well as the 2016 Act, it is incumbent that the private sector also roped into the efforts keeping in line with the sub-clause (i) of Section 2 which defines “establishment” to include Government establishment and private establishment" reads the plea.

Cause Title: Shaurya Foundation Trust v. Union of India & Ors. [W.P.(C) No. 000491 - / 2023]