The goal of the courts must be to eliminate obstacles that people with disabilities encounter: Language Testing for Speech and Hearing Impaired Engineers Is Offered by Madras HC
Last Updated on November 5, 2024 by Arti Kumari
Recently, the Madras High Court emphasized the court’s obligation to eliminate the obstacles that people with disabilities encounter on a regular basis.
According to Justice Anand Venkatesh, the obstacles that people with disabilities confront are ingrained in societal prejudices and preconceptions and extend beyond accessibility concerns. According to the court, constitutional courts must work to eliminate social, institutional, structural, legal, cultural, and environmental barriers that people with disabilities confront through their rulings.
A civil engineer with a 100% hearing and speech disability was therefore saved by the court, which also ordered the Tamil Nadu Housing Board to refrain from requiring a Tamil language test certificate from him. The court stated that the petitioner Vidyasagar should be given reasonable accommodations because he was unable to attend the viva voce test due to his 100% speech and hearing impairment. The court also praised Vidyasagar for persevering through his disability and finishing his degree in civil engineering.
After a protracted battle, the petitioner joined the Housing Board’s workforce, where he has been employed for the past ten years. Given his condition, he would be essentially abandoned on the streets without a job if he is now turned away. As a result, the court decided that the petitioner was entitled to this exemption in the current case.
Vidyasagar had petitioned the court to order the Tamil Nadu Housing Board’s Managing Director and Administrative Officer to give him the pending promotions and raises without requiring him to show proof of passing the Tamil Language Test.
Through GO Ms. NO. 1893 dated 24.03.1982, which permitted speech and hearing handicapped children to learn in any language, Vidyasagar told the court that he had finished his schooling in English. He further told the court that he was required to provide a certificate of Tamil language proficiency after being hired as an assistant engineer by the Tamil Nadu Housing Board in 2014. Even though he asked the Board to grant him an exemption due to his condition, the Board required that he pass the Tamil language exam or face termination from the service.
On the other hand, the TNHB argued that the government could not offer Vidyasagar an exemption in this regard and that, in accordance with GO MS. No. 89 dated 09.07.1996, the school was required to finish the Tamil language test and provide the certificate.
The court observed that Vidyasagar had indeed taken the written exam, which was one of the two components of the Tamil language test, along with a viva voce. The court further stated that he would not be able to attend the viva voce due to his infirmity.
The court also pointed out that exemptions could be given in worthy circumstances in accordance with Clause 5 of the Housing Board’s Regulation Book. As a result, the court ordered the Board to issue a particular order in this regard and award Vidyasagar an exemption. Additionally, the court ordered the Board to issue the necessary order within eight weeks to provide him with all attendant benefits to which he was entitled.
Case Title: B Vidyasagar v The Government of Tamil Nadu and Others
Citation No.:W.P.No.33673 of 2023
