HC to enforce quota in promotion for ‘disabled employees’

Saurabh Malik

Tribune News Service

Chandigarh, November 4

The Punjab and Haryana High Court has decided to enforce reservation in promotion for its “disabled employees”. A decision to this effect was taken by the High Court’s Departmental Promotion Committee and approved by the Chief Justice before being communicated to the Bench during the hearing of a related matter.

As a petition filed by Umang Paul and others against the HC through its Registrar-General came up for hearing before the Bench of Justice Rajiv Narain Raina, HC Registrar (Rules) BBS Teji produced minutes of the promotion committee meeting held on July 22.

Among other things, the committee considered request of HC’s disabled staff for reservation at the time of promotion. The meeting note said: “This committee resolves that in principle, reservation in promotion for disabled employees working in the establishment of this court has to be enforced/ applied in view of the statutory obligation and judicial pronouncements”.

It was added that an exercise be initiated for implementing the policy for reservation in promotion for disabled employees working in the HC establishment and also for identification of the posts for the subcategories. The Bench was also told that the HCChief Justice accorded its approval to the resolution on July 25.

Taking note of the submission and after going through the documents placed before the Bench, Justice Raina said: “This will satisfy the claim of the petitioners in due course of time. The identification of posts is in process. This court has no doubt that at the time of making promotions in different cadres, the decision will be implemented according to reservation quota prescribed under the Rights of Persons with Disabilities Act, 2016, as soon as practicable and as expeditiously as possible”.