2023 Supreme(Del) 4901

IN THE HIGH COURT OF DELHI AT NEW DELHI
V. Kameswar Rao, Anoop Kumar Mendiratta, JJ.
Raju Ranjan – Appellant
Versus
Union of India & Anr. – Respondents
W.P.(C) 9255 of 2019
Decided On : 11-07-2023

The main legal point established in the judgment is that the stipulation in the recruitment rules requiring a candidate to qualify the typing test with a speed of 5000 KDPH must be read down to mean the same shall not be applicable to a candidate who has disability of one arm or both arms or one arm and one leg. The petitioner was entitled to equal treatment of waiving off the computer/typing test having disability of one arm, in view of the instructions issued by the Government of India from time to time.

Headnote:

Exemption - Recruitment Rules - Typing Test - [SOCIAL SECURITY ASSISTANT] - [EMPLOYEES PROVIDENT FUND ORGANISATION] - [Section 33 of the Right of Person with Disability Act, 1995, OM No.14020/1/2014-Estt.(D) dated 22.04.2015, OM No.14020/2/91-Estt.(D) dated 29.09.1992] - The court held that the stipulation in the recruitment rules that a candidate must qualify the typing test with a speed of 5000 KDPH must be read down to mean the same shall not be applicable to a candidate who has disability of one arm or both arms or one arm and one leg. The petitioner was entitled to equal treatment of waiving off the computer/typing test having disability of one arm, in view of the instructions issued by the Government of India from time to time. The benefit of those instructions have been given in favour of the LDCs, who were promoted to the post of SSA and there is no reason why the same benefit could have been denied to the petitioner herein which clearly violate the mandate of Article 14 and 21 of the Constitution of India.

Fact of the Case:

The petitioner challenged two orders passed by the Central Administrative Tribunal Principal Bench, New Delhi dismissing the petitioner's Original Application and Review Application. The petitioner, a Person with Disability (PwD), applied for the post of Social Security Assistant (SSA) with the Employees Provident Fund Organisation (EPFO) and qualified in the written test but was denied exemption from the typewriting test due to his one arm disability. The petitioner approached the Tribunal seeking exemption from the skill test or to declare the result based on the skill test taken by him. The EPFO contended that the skill test was an essential requirement for the post of SSA and certain vacancies were reserved for physically challenged candidates. The Tribunal dismissed the petitioner's application stating that the recruitment rules provided certain essential qualifications which included the skill test and that the selection process had been finalized.

Finding of the Court:

The court held that the stipulation in the recruitment rules that a candidate must qualify the typing test with a speed of 5000 KDPH must be read down to mean the same shall not be applicable to a candidate who has disability of one arm or both arms or one arm and one leg. The petitioner was entitled to equal treatment of waiving off the computer/typing test having disability of one arm, in view of the instructions issued by the Government of India from time to time. The benefit of those instructions have been given in favour of the LDCs, who were promoted to the post of SSA and there is no reason why the same benefit could have been denied to the petitioner herein which clearly violate the mandate of Article 14 and 21 of the Constitution of India.

Issues: The issues involved in the case were whether the petitioner should have been exempted from the skill test or the standard should have been relaxed for a Person with Disability (PwD) like the petitioner, and whether the delay in filing the writ petition should be a ground for denial of the petitioner's rights under the Act/instructions.

Ratio Decidendi: The court held that the stipulation in the recruitment rules that a candidate must qualify the typing test with a speed of 5000 KDPH must be read down to mean the same shall not be applicable to a candidate who has disability of one arm or both arms or one arm and one leg. The petitioner was entitled to equal treatment of waiving off the computer/typing test having disability of one arm, in view of the instructions issued by the Government of India from time to time. The benefit of those instructions have been given in favour of the LDCs, who were promoted to the post of SSA and there is no reason why the same benefit could have been denied to the petitioner herein which clearly violate the mandate of Article 14 and 21 of the Constitution of India.

Final Decision: The writ petition was allowed and the respondents were directed to treat the petitioner as exempted from the computer/typing test, declare the result of the petitioner, and proceed to take action on the appointment of the petitioner as SSA. The appointment was to be treated as an appointment of the year 2023 for all purposes. The respondents were directed to take action within a period of three months as an outer limit.