RPwD Act: Allahabad High Court Orders Redeployment of Teacher Who Suffered Brain Stroke
The Allahabad High Court directs District Inspector of Schools Barabanki to find suitable post for the assistant teacher who became disabled during service
The Allahabad High Court at Lucknow Bench has directed the District Inspector of Schools, Barabanki, to identify a suitable post for an Assistant Teacher who became disabled after suffering a brain stroke during service.
Court underscored that under the Rights of Persons with Disabilities Act, 2016, no government employee acquiring disability can be dismissed or demoted; instead, they must be accommodated through redeployment or continued on a supernumerary post.
"From perusal of the provisions of the Act, 2016 it is apparent that where an employee acquires a disability during his service, his services are not to be dispensed with rather efforts are to be made by the employer for shifting him to a suitable post and in the absence thereto, to continue him on supernumerary post until a suitable post is available", court said.
The bench of Justice Abdul Moin observed that the state’s obligation towards employees acquiring disabilities extends beyond compassion it is a constitutional and statutory duty.
The petitioner, Laljee, was appointed as an Assistant Teacher in 2013. However, in August 2016, he suffered a brain stroke that left him unable to speak or write. After years of medical treatment, he sought to rejoin service on August 20, 2024, but the authorities denied his request based on a medical committee’s finding that he was unfit for teaching duties.
The committee, constituted by the District Inspector of Schools in October 2024, included a senior physician nominated by the Chief Medical Officer, Barabanki, who confirmed the petitioner’s inability to perform teaching work. Citing this report, the education department refused to permit his rejoining.
Laljee challenged the decision before the High Court, arguing that his case was squarely covered under the Rights of Persons with Disabilities Act, 2016, which protects employees who acquire disability during service. He also referred to the Supreme Court’s judgment in Ch. Joseph v. Telangana State Road Transport Corporation(2025), where the apex court had held that employers must explore alternate roles for disabled employees rather than terminating their services.
The High Court agreed with the petitioner’s contention, noting that Section 20(4) of the 2016 Act mandates the government to retain employees who acquire disabilities.
Justice Moin emphasized that the law requires not dismissal but adjustment, either by transferring the person to a suitable post with equivalent pay and benefits or, if such adjustment is not possible, by retaining them on a supernumerary post until retirement.
“The law does not permit the severance of service by the stroke of a medical certificate without first exhausting the possibility of meaningful redeployment,” the judge noted, referring to the Supreme Court’s observations in Ch Joseph.
Accordingly, court directed the District Inspector of Schools, Barabanki, to identify a suitable equivalent post for the petitioner within four weeks. If no such post is available, he must be continued on a supernumerary post until a vacancy arises or he reaches superannuation.
Court further ordered that all consequential benefits be granted within six weeks of the DIOS’s decision and that the petitioner’s absence be regularized in accordance with rules.
Case Title: Laljee vs State of UP and 6 others
Order Date: September 22, 2025
Bench: Justice Abdul Moin