The Supreme Court today sought response of the Centre on a plea seeking grant of benefit of reservation in government jobs to persons suffering from thalassemia, sickle cell and hemophilia diseases.
A bench headed by Chief Justice Dipak Misra issued notice to the Centre on a plea which said that the union government was "unjustified" in not giving quota benefit in employment to persons suffering from thalassemia, sickle cell and hemophilia as they squarely fell in the category of differently-abled persons under the law.
"Issue direction in the nature of mandamus to the respondents central / state governments to give benefit of reservation in employment to disables of thalassemia, sickle cell and hemophilia falling in the category of disables with bench mark disabilities and bring them in the ambit of section 34 of the Rights of Persons with Disabilities Act, 2016," the plea said.
The bench, also comprising Justices A M Khanwilkar and D Y Chandrachud, considered the submissions of petitioner Reepak Kansal and directed his counsel to serve the copy of the plea to Additional Solicitor General (ASG) Tushar Mehta, representing the Centre in the case.
It asked the ASG to seek instruction from the government and apprise it of the response on August 31, the next date of hearing.
Haemophilia is an inheritable disease, usually affecting only male but transmitted by women to their male children, characterised by loss or impairment of the normal clotting ability of blood so that a minor wound may result in fatal bleeding.
Thalassemia is a genetic blood disorder. People with Thalassemia disease are not able to make enough hemoglobin, which causes severe anemia.
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Sickle cell disease is a hemolytic disorder characterised by chronic anaemia, and various complications due to associated tissue and organ damage.Hemolytic refers to the destruction of the cell membrane of red blood cells resulting in the release of hemoglobin.
The plea alleged flagrant violations of rights of disabled falling in the category of thalassemia, sickle cell and hemophilia by not providing reservation to them in employment under the Rights of Persons with Disabilities Act, 2016.
The plea said denial of reservation violates the basic human right as well as the fundamental right of the such disabled persons falling within the said benchmark disability.
"It is also important to mention that disabled persons falling in the category of Thalassemia, sickle cell and hemophilia, are getting the benefit of the reservation in education due to their benchmark disability under section 32 of the Act however, such disabled persons are denied the benefit of reservation in employment under section 34 of the Act which is arbitrary and illogical," the plea said.
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