Daijiworld Media Network - Mumbai
Mumbai, Apr 8: The Bombay High Court has stayed notices issued by several zilla parishads directing students of special schools for the physically disabled to shift to regular schools.
A division bench comprising Justices Ravindra Ghuge and Abhay Mantri passed the interim order after hearing a petition filed by Namdevrao Mohol Vidya and Krida Pratishthan, which runs a special school in Pune.
The trust had challenged a notice issued by the local zilla parishad following a directive from Maharashtra’s Divyang Welfare Department in February. The directive was based on the inclusive education provisions under the Rights of Persons with Disabilities Act, 2016.
During the hearing, the petitioner’s counsel, advocate Dr Uday Warujikar, submitted that authorities were directing the transfer of physically disabled students, particularly those with locomotor disabilities, from specialised institutions to mainstream schools under a policy promoting universal accessibility.
Expressing concern, the bench observed that such measures, if implemented without a clear roadmap, could prove counter-productive. “There cannot be a compulsion of uprooting students from such special schools and relocating them to general schools. The will of parents must also be considered,” the court noted.
The court stayed the notices, emphasising that authorities cannot force parents to shift their differently abled children without proper planning and safeguards.
The petitioner also raised concerns about the possible discontinuation of the licence of its institution, Kakasaheb Bamre Niwasi Apang Kalyan Kendra. The bench directed the state government not to take any adverse action in this regard.
The government pleader assured the court that the licence of the institution would be renewed shortly. The bench further directed the state to renew licences of all such special schools with pending applications by April 15.
The court has sought a reply affidavit from the state government and posted the matter for further hearing on June 17.