Chaini Parwani –
Published On: December 18, 2021 at 16:30 IST
The Supreme Court observed that initiation of Disciplinary Proceedings against Mentally Disabled is an ingredient of Indirect Discrimination.
The Court so held that a person with a disability is entitled to protection under the Rights of Persons with Disabilities Act (RPwD) as long as the disability was one of the factors for the discriminatory act.
A Bench comprising Justices D Y Chandrachud, Surya Kant and B V Nagarathna noted that the Disciplinary Proceedings initiated against an Employee with Mental Disabilities are Discriminatory and Violative of the provisions of the Law.
The Appeal was filed by Ravinder Kumar Dhariwal, an Assistant Commandant in Central Police Force who was confronted with a series of inquiries and suspension for alleged use of unparliamentary language, appealing in TV channels without the preliminary approval of the Department, and trying to deliberately cause an accident, and assaulted a Deputy Commandant.
Further, the Bench overruled the Disciplinary Proceedings against him in the First Inquiry, stating that the Appellant was entitled to the protection under the RPwD in the incident he is found unsuitable for his current employment duty.
Furthermore, the Supreme Court noted that while re-assigning the Appellant to an alternate post, his pay, emoluments and conditions of service must be protected.
Also Read: Disciplinary Rules for Public Servants