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Synopsis

A Plea has been filed by a Class 10 student, Shivam Singh before the Delhi High Court, seeking directions against the New Delhi Municipal Corporation (NDMC) to provide him with a Special Educator.

The plea stated that Shivam suffers from a 50% Mental disability, since 2014, and is having a difficulty grasping education, so he has been requesting the respondent school to provide him with a Special Educator to give him proper attention since 2019, but all is in vain.

The petitioner boy has requested that the NDMC recruit or post at least two special educators in each of its schools. Further, the plea also claims that after failing to persuade the respondent school to provide him with a Special Educator, the petitioner served the New Delhi Municipal Council with a legal notice dated October 11, 2022, with copies to the school and the Director of Education, but no response has been received so far.

The plea filed through Advocate Ashok Aggarwal and Kumar Utkarsh also stated that the actions/inactions of the school, Atal Adarsh Vidyalaya, Kidwai Nagar East, violates his fundamental right to education, as guaranteed by Articles 14, 21, and 21A of Indian Constitution, as read with the provisions of the Right of Children to Free and Compulsory Education Act, 2009, and the Rights of Persons with Disabilities Act, 2016 and also contrary to the laws laid down by the Delhi High Court in various cases.

“Section 3 of the Right of Children to Free and Compulsory Education Act of 2009 states that children with disabilities also have the right to free and compulsory elementary education”, the plea added.

Furthermore, the plea stated that the school's impugned inaction would not only discourage the boy who has a 50% mental retardation disability, from continuing his studies, but would also discourage children with disabilities from enrolling in schools run by NDMC.

Case Title: Shivam Singh v. New Delhi Municipal Corporation & Ors.