In the Court of State
Commissioner for Persons with Disabilities
National Capital Territory
of Delhi
25-D,
Mata Sundri Road, Near Guru Nanak Eye Centre, New Delhi-2
Phone:
011-23216003-04, Tele fax: 011-23216005,
[Vested
with powers of Civil Court under the
Rights
of Persons with Disabilities Act, 2016]
Case No. 1046/1111/2019/07/ 6072-6081
Dated:25.09.2019
Case No.
1088/1111/2019/08/
Case No. 1126/1111/2019/09
In
the matter of:
Sh
Ravi Prasad and 3 Others
Institution
for the Blind,
Amar
Colony, Lajpat Nagar-4,
New
Delhi-110024. ....Complainants
Sh
Rahul Kumar Sharma and five others,
Institution
for the Blind,
Amar
Colony, Lajpat Nagar-IV,
New
Delhi-110024.
...Complainants
Sh.
Pankaj, Sh. Shivam and 57 others ....Complainants
Versus
The
Principal/ Vice Principal,
Institution
for the Blind,
(Andh
Vidyalaya)
Amar
Colony, Lajpat Nagar-IV,
New
Delhi-110024.
.…..Respondent No.1
The Station House
Officer,
Amar Colony, Lajpat
Nagar-4,
New Delhi-110024. ....Respondent No. 2
Sh. Deepak Sharma,
S31- C, Private
Colony,
Sri-Niwaspuri, New
Delhi-110024 ..... Respondent No. 3
The President /
Secretary,
Institution for the
Blind,
Amar Colony, Lajpat
Nagar-4,
New Delhi-110024. .....Respondent No. 4
The Director,
Directorate of
Education,
5 Shamnath Marg,
Old Sectt.,
Delhi-110054. ....Respondent No. 5
The Director,
Deptt. of Social
Welfare,
GLNS Complex, Delhi
Gate,
Delhi-110002. ..... Respondent No. 6
Last date of Hearing
: 16.09.2019
Present:
None for complainants
Sh.
Surendra Pal Singh (Vice-Principal)
Sh.
M.L. Mongia, Vice President, Sh. G.S.
Rathore (Joint Secretary)
Er.M.C.
Garg, Office Secretary, Sh. Alok Kain, Manager
for the Institution for the Blind.
Sh. Deepak
Sharma, respondent no. 3 in person
Dr. Sanjay
Chaturvedi, DDE (SE) and Dr. A.K. Bhatt,
DDE, Zone-25 for Respondent no. 5.
Dr. A.
Madhavi, Deputy Director (Disb.)for respondent no. 6.
ORDER
The above three complaints
relate to the Institution for the Blind, Amar Colony Lajpat Nagar-4, New Delhi.
The complainants and the respondents are common. Therefore, these have been tagged and are being
disposed of by this common order.
Case No. 1046/1111/2019/07/
2. Sh. Ravi Prasad, Sh. Raj Kumar, Sh. Mohan Lal
and Sh. Lal Singh, teachers with blindness in the Institution for the Blind
vide their joint complaint dated 17.07.2019 submitted that they have been
working in the Institution for the Blind which is a school for the blind boys at
Amar Colony, Lajpat Nagar-4, New Delhi-110024 since it started functioning in
1986. The school is providing education
and training as well as hostel facility to more than 100 students with
blindness totally free of cost. The school is recognised by the Directorate of
Education, GNCT of Delhi and is receiving 95% grand-in-aid for the teaching
staff since 2010. The other supporting
staff receives their salary from the Management Committee. For the past four years there has been a dispute
between the two groups each claiming to be the real Management Committee and the matter is pending in the Hon’ble
High Court. The entire staff is in support of the Committee that has the
signing authority and is registered with Registrar of Societies / Central
District with Sh. Sunil Khurana as its President and Sh. Rakesh Gambhir as its
General Secretary. They further submitted that the other group whose President
is Sh. B.P. Mandal and Sh. V.S. Negi is the General Secretary, is the bogus Management
Committee. The said committee is being
run by Sh. Bansi Lal Sharma, an 84 year old person with blindness who was an
employee of the school for more than 50
years. His elder son Sh. Deepak Sharma
was also a member of the staff but was terminated in 2014. He has many court cases pending against him
and was also imprisoned. Even after his termination,
he keeps visiting the school occasionally
and creates nuisance with the students and staff. Sh. Bansi Lal Sharma has also appointed his
another son Sh. Rajiv Sharma as Vice-President of the bogus Management
Committee. On 15.07.2019, Sh. Rajiv Sharma posted some unauthorised staff at
their school gate and also hired some paid workers to work in the school
kitchen and as sweepers and tried to take over the functioning of the
school.
3. They alleged that bogus Management
Committee banned the entry of the Vice-Principal of the school and other
staff. The entire staff submitted a
joint complaint to the Police and also
informed Dy. Director of Education, South East Zone-25, Defence Colony on
15.07.2019. It is also alleged that Sh. Deepak Sharma had forcibly entered the school
and engaged in heated arguments with the staff.
Later on during the meeting with SHO, Amar Colony, Lajpat Nagar, he advised
them to maintain peace till the decision of the Court.
4. They also submitted that they are living
in a state of tension and fear. Blind
teachers are especially feeling threatened for their safety because of Sh.
Deepak Sharma and his associates. They
requested to intervene and help to create secure environment in the school.
5. The complaint was taken up vide Notice
dated 14.08.2019 with the Principal/Vice Principal of Institution for the
Blind, SHO (Amar Colony) and Sh. Deepak
Sharma.
6. Sh. S.P. Singh, Vice Principal, Institution
for the Blind (Andh Vidyalaya) vide his reply dated 30.08.2019 and Sh. Rakesh
Kr. Gambhir, General Secretary vide his reply dated 05.09.2019 made more or
less the same submissions that students with blindness between the age of 5-15
years are admitted to class 1st to 8th and are imparted education and vocational
training alongwith lodging and boarding,
medical facilities, transport totally
free of cost. Free hostel facility is provided to the students of class 9th
to 12th who study under inclusive education in the
nearby Hemu Kalani Sarvodaya Bal Vidyalaya.
After the students complete their 12th class, they leave the
school and take admission in various colleges in Delhi. All the students are receiving stipend and
scholarship from Government every year.
7. It has been also stated that the students
who have passed 12th class and those who are studying in class 9th
to 12th have access to alcoholic beverages,
cigarettes, tobacco products, gutka etc. and also freely mix up with minor
students in the hostel. There is already
one case under POCSO Act where one inmate was jailed for sexually assaulting a
minor child. Sh. Bansi Lal Sharma
alongwith his two sons Sh. Deepak Sharma and Rajiv Sharma and other associates
have been trying to capture power and use the school funds and donations
illegally.
8. Hon’ble High of Delhi granted a stay
against illegal Management Committee which was constituted by Sh. Deepak
Sharma. The case was later transferred
as CS ADJ No. 10919/16 titled “Institution for the Blind Vs Deepak Sharma &
Ors” which is pending disposal before the Ld. Court of ADJ-1 (South East),
Saket Court.
9. It was also inter-alia alleged that Sh.
Bansi Lal Sharma who claims to be the founder of the school, has allowed the
boys who have passed class 12th to continue to stay in the hostel which has
been done with the malicious and evil intent. Such permission has never been
granted. Stay of boys who have passed 12th
standard in the hostel is a threat to the security of young blind students of
class 1st to 8th which should not be compromised.
10. The enclosures of the replies for the said
respondents also include an order dated 29.07.2015 of Sh. K.S. Mehra, the former Commissioner
for the Persons with Disabilities. That case was filed by Chairperson, Child
Welfare Committee, Kalkaji and the respondents were Department of Social
Welfare, Department of Education, GNCT of Delhi and Land and Development Office, Ministry of
Urban Development, Govt. of India, and the Management Committee. The case was about removal of 30-40 blind
children from the hostel and assault of Master Uma Kant Shukla by the then
Caretaker Sh. Deepak Sharma in July 2007 and sexual assault case of 3 blind
students. The then Commissioner observed that there was no logical /
justifiable ground to stop the visually impaired students from staying in the
hostel. The outside sighted college
students were used to force the students to leave the hostel. The then Commissioner directed Principal
Secretary, Education and Principal Secretary, Social Welfare to intervene and
look into the issues ensuring that the visually impaired students did not
suffer and be provided the hostel accommodation and other facilities.
Case No. 1088/1111/2019/08/
11. Sh. Rahul Kumar Sharma, Sh. Raju Kumar Saha,
Sh. Dinesh Kumar, Sh. Manoj Kumar, Sh. Anjesh Kumar and Sh. Shivam Mishra, six persons
with visual impairment vide their complaint dated 13.08.2019 submitted that Sh.
S.P. Singh , Vice Principal of the Institution for the Blind had issued them an
Office Order dated 19.08.19 that the students of B.A. living in the hostel of
the Institution should vacate their rooms by 26.08.2019. They also enclosed copy of a Notice dated
07.01.2019 of Sh. Bansi Lal Sharma,
Founder which reads, “in the capacity of
the Founder of the Institution for the Blind, he allows the students of class
12th to stay in the hostel
till they complete their graduation”.
The complainants further informed
that Sh. Alok, Smt. Krishna Nirvan and Sh. Sohan Singh were also misbehaving
with them.
12. The complaint was taken up with the
respondents vide notice dated 26.08.2019 and it was recommended that the six
students (Sh. Rahul Kumar Sharma and five others) should not be evicted from
the hostel till further orders.
Case No. 1126/1111/2019/09
13. Another complaint had been filed by 59
students with visual impairment including Sh. Shivam Mishra one of the six
complainants in Case No. 1088/1111/2019/08 on 13.08.2019 vide which they submitted
that the students from class 1st to B.A. are staying in the hostel. They had complained against the Manager of
the School and alleged that false allegations are levelled against them and
their videos had also been made. They
alleged that the police personnel did not listen to their complaints and children
of class 1st to 8th
were not getting proper education for
which the staff and teachers were responsible as they were busy in their own
meetings and politics.
14. In view of the multiple complaints and
counter complaints and as the education
and well being of young children with visual impairment was involved, I
personally visited the Institution on 07.09.2019 at around 1.30 PM without
intimating anyone. The classes were over by the time I reached the Institution. I went to all the hostel
rooms alongwith the Vice-Principal and other teachers and the staff available
in the school. Most of the children
except 2-3, said that they were happy with the school, teachers, studies and
the food.
15. Some
students of higher classes stated that the studies were getting affected due to
the dispute between the two Management Committees and involvement of some
teachers in it.
16. It was observed that most of the children, particularly the senior ones including those who
had completed 12th class had music systems in their rooms and I
found them playing music in high volume in the rooms of young children. The unclean environment in the rooms of
senior students was apparent. Some
senior students had kept unauthorized articles like dining table, cupboards and
other items in their rooms, though essential items like almirah have been
provided to each student / hosteller. The
occupants appeared to be unconcerned about the cleanliness of the premises,
their books, clothes and other belongings.
A few students of senior classes appeared to be completely bereft of
common etiquettes. For example, despite being aware of the entry of the
Vice-Principal, the male and female teachers in the room and myself duly introduced,
one of the students kept talking while lying on his bed. Some of the students
of class 11th and 12th did not seem to have attended the
classes or missed some periods as they were in the hostel during the school
time. It was also found that some senior
students had been accommodated in the rooms of young children. I found the CCTV Control room locked. The teachers informed that it was done by
some students. While the Institute has the infrastructure, it
is poorly managed.
17. On 09.09.2019, a team comprising three
Officers of the Office of State Commissioner for Persons with Disabilities was
deputed for another surprise visit without prior intimation to any party. During their visit, the teachers and other staff were available in
the school. They were told that senior
students had persuaded younger ones to boycott the classes. No class was going on during the
school time. The cleanliness of the
kitchen, wash-rooms, surrounding areas was found to be satisfactory. The team did not interact with the children
to avoid any untoward incident in view of the tense environment prevailing in
the school.
18. On 11.09.2019, the Vice-Principal of the
School called to inform that the students had locked all the class rooms including
his room. They were not able to conduct
any academic activity in the school. The matter was also reported by them to
the SHO, Amar Colony. In the afternoon,
I alongwith an officer visited the Institute and interacted with all the
children studying / staying in the school hostel. The students, except the smaller children
studying in 1st and 3rd standard had a list of issues
against the teachers and the present Management Committee. 2 to 3 students from each class were given the
opportunity to express their difficulties or complaints. During the interaction, it was observed that
there was complete distrust, mismanagement and chaos in the school. The students were not prepared to unlock the
class rooms unless the Vice-Principal admitted that the teachers did not teach
them properly and unless an assurance was given in writing that the teachers will
not miss the classes and come regularly and will not organize any
meetings, talk on telephone and use abusive language against them. They also
demanded that the warden of the hostel be appointed and that the bed kept in
the library room should be removed. It
seemed that there was complete breakdown of the school administration and
academic environment.
19. The matter was also brought to the notice of
Directorate of Education who took necessary action to get the class rooms and
other rooms unlocked.
20. In view of the emergent situation and indisciplined
environment in the school, Director
(Education) and Director (Social Welfare Deptt.) were impleaded as
respondent no. 5 & 6 in Case No. 1046/1111/2019/07 and Case No. 1088/1111/2019/08.
21. The complaint dated 13.08.2019 of the
students was also tagged and a common hearing was scheduled on 12.09.2019.
22. During the hearing on 12.09.2019, a copy of
the order dated 02.07.2015 of Hon’ble High Court of Delhi in CS (O.S.) No. 1845
of 2015 in the matter of Institution for the Blind and Others (Plaintiffs)
Versus Deepak Sharma & Others (Defendants) was produced in which the memo
of the parties is as under:
Memo of Parties
1. Institute for the Blind
having its regd. Office at Punchuian Road,
Near R.K. Ashram Metro Station Pillar No. 24
New Delhi-110001
Also having its
branch office at
Amar Colony, Lajpat
Nagar-IV,
New Delhi.
Through its President
Sh. Sunil Khurana
2. Sh. Sunil Khurana
S/o Late Sh. Somnath
President of Institute for the Blind
R/o, R-665, New Rajinder Nagar,
New Delhi.
3. Sh. R.K. Kakkar
S/o Late Sh. Lajpat Rai Kakkar,
General Secretary of Institution for the Blind
R/o, E-77A, South Anarkali,
P.O. Krishna Nagar, Delhi.
4. Sh. Bansi Lal Sharma
S/o Late Sh. Ram Chand Sharma,
R/o 22A, Pocket-II, Double Storey,
Pashim Puri, New Delhi
Converner and Sole Founder
Institution for the Blind
5. Sh. Brij Mohal Upreti
S/o Late Sh. Bal Kishan Upreti
Vice President of Institution for the Blind
R/o F-21, Punchkuian Road,
New Delhi-110001
6. Sh. Rakesh Gambhir
S/o Late Sh. Roshan Lal
Jt. Secretary of Institution for the Blind
R/o D-57, East of Kailash,
New Delhi-110065
7. Sh. R.K. Sharma,
S/o Sh. Bansi Lal Sharma
Jt. Secretary of Institution for the Blind
R/o 22A, Pocket-II, Double Storey
Paschim Puri, New Delhi …..
Plaintiffs
Versus
1. Sh. Deepak Sharma
S/o Sh. Bansi Lal Sharma
2. Smt. Prerna Sharma
W/o Sh. Deepak Sharma,
Both R/o S-31/C, Pvt. Colony,
Shri Niwas Puri,New Delhi
3. Er. M.C. Garg,
S/o Late Sh. K.C. Garg
R/o E-180, Harmoni Apartment,
Pocket-1, DDA SFS Flats,
Sector-IV, Dwarka,
New Delhi-110063.
4. Sh. B.P. Mandal
S/o Not Known
R/O D-71, Amar Colony,
New Delhi-24
5.
Shri R.P. Bhatia
S/o not known
R/o 3/62, double storey,
Lajpat Nagar-IV, New Delhi
6.
Sh. Nirdesh Sharma,
S/o not known
R/o A-4/54, Paschim Vihar,
New Delhi.
7.
Sh. Girish Gautam
S/o not known
R/o S-30, Pvt. Colony,
Shri Niwas Puri,New Delhi-110065
8.
Sh. Vinod Kumar
S/o not known
R/o F-57, B.K. Dutt Colony
Ground floor,Near New Khanna Market,
New Delhi
9.
Sh. Raghav Pal
S/o not known
R/o D-71, Terrace Floor
Amar Colony, New Delhi
10.
Smt. Sujata Bhatia
W/o
not known
R/o
5/40, Nirmal Puri,
New
Delhi -110024.
11.
Sh. Harpal Singh
S/o
not known
R/o 110, Old Gupta
Colony
New Delhi
12.
Sh. Raj Kumar
S/o not known
R/o 230, Sunlight
Colony
New Delhi
13.
Naresh Kashyap,
S/o Not Known,
R/O 198/19, Ramesh
Mkt,
Garhi,
New Delhi
14. Harish Kumar
Deep Sweet Corner
At 74, Bharat Nagar,
New Delhi – 110025
15. Smt. Neelam Kumari
W/o not known
J-3, House No.62
IInd
Floor, Sujan Singh Park,
New Delhi – 110003
16. Sh. Vineet Kumar Sharma
S/o Sh. G.C. Sharma
R/o C-1/3, 3rd
Floor,
Phase-I, Budh Vihar,
Delhi
17. M/s Santosh Singh Facilities Services Pvt.
Ltd.
Office at:177, Okhla
Phase-II
New Delhi-110020
Through
its A.R.
Sh.
Santosh Singh …. Defendants
23. Hon’ble High Court vide interim order dated
02.07.2015, restricted the defendants from disturbing the functioning of the
ongoing Management Committee and the Institution for the Blind / School being
managed and run by the Plaintiff No. 1 i.e. the Institute for the Blind at Amar
Colony through the present Management Committee headed by Plaintiff No. 2 to 4
i.e. Sh. Sunil Khurana, President; Sh.
R.K. Kakkar, General Secretary and Sh. Bansi Lal Sharma, Convener and Sole
Founder. The parties did not produce any order
quashing or staying the said order dated 02.07.2015 of Hon’ble High Court of
Delhi.
24. Dr. Sanjay Chaturvedi, Dy. Director of
Education, District South East informed that all the class rooms and other
facilities which were locked by the students had been opened and restored and
an enquiry committee of three principals was also constituted to enquire into
the matter.
25. After hearing the children of various
classes studying in the school and those staying in the hostel and the
representatives of the parties, the following recommendations were made for
immediate action:
(i)
Proper
and quality education of children of class 1st to 8th should be ensured by the Head of School /
Principal/Vice-Principal by ensuring deployment and strict supervision of the
teachers during the school hours.
(ii)
HOS/
Principal/ Vice-Principal should ensure that the children have enough
opportunity to play during the fixed hours and also for extracurricular
activities.
(iii)
Dy.Director,
Education, (South East District) should ensure
regular monitoring and compliance
with the relevant rules / guidelines in connection with teaching and
learning.
(iv)
Children
of class 1st to 5th
and class 6th to 8th should be accommodated on one portion of the
hostel. The students of Class 9th
to 12th should be accommodated on other portion of the
hostel. The hostel should be run on the
standard practices followed by residential schools like Navodaya Vidyala
Samiti.
(v)
Six
students who have passed 12th
Class should be accommodated with the students of Class 11th & 12th till 30.09.2019 by which
date they should make their own arrangement. Department of Social Welfare may
consider accommodating them in the Sewa Kutir Complex.
(vi)
HOS/Principal/Vice-Principal
was directed to issue Notices to Sh. Rahul Kumar Sharma, Sh. Raju Kumar Saha, Sh.
Dinesh Kumar, Sh. Manoj Kumar, Sh. Anjesh Kumar and Sh. Shivam Mishra to vacate the hostel by 30.09.2019 as Sh.
Banshi Lal, had no authority to provide the facility of the hostel in the
Institution for the Blind to the students who have passed 12th Class. The purpose for which the Institution for
the Blind was set up also does not provide for such facilities.
(vii)
Sh.
Deepak Sharma who claimed that order dated 02.07.2015 of Hon’ble High Court of
Delhi has since been quashed is directed to submit a copy of such order by 12
Noon on 13.09.2019.
(viii)
All
the concerned parties namely Vice-Principal of the School, current Managing
Committee, Directorate of Education and Department of Social Welfare should
submit copies of the constitution of the Institution for the Blind at Amar
Colony / any other papers indicating the purpose for which that institution was
set up and the decision of the competent authority to use the premises as
hostel for students of class 9th to 12th studying in other schools so that the matter
can be disposed of.
(ix)
HOS/
Principal / Vice- Principal should issue a circular to all the teaching and
non-teaching staff to perform their duties and also to students for
concentrating on their studies and well being.
(x)
HOS
should get CCTV control room unlocked.
In case the students who have the key of the lock, do not hand over the key, the lock may be
broken and the system be made functional and monitored regularly .
(xi)
It
should be ensured that all the CCTV Cameras are
functional and strict vigil by security guards must be ensured.
Anybody fiddling with the instruments should be proceeded as per the
law.
(xii)
Keys
of the vehicles stated to have been retained by the students be also taken back
and they should be advised not to repeat such unlawful activities in future.
(xiii)
The
cases of any incidents which are against the interest of the students studying
in the school, should be brought to the notice of Directorate of Education.
(xiv) If required, Child Welfare
Committee should be involved in connection with any issues relating to the
welfare of children with visual impairment studying / staying in the school.
26. An action taken report on the above
recommendations was sought to be submitted on or before the next date of
hearing on 16.09.2019 at 3.00 PM.
27. Sh. S.P. Singh , Vice President filed an
action taken report dated 16.09.2019 which reads as under:
“Sub: Action Taken Report on your
recommendations.
Respected Sir,
With Reference to the
recommendations by you after hearing our case on 12.09.2019 at 03.00 pm, I have
taken the following actions:
1.
I read out your recommendations to the 6 students who
have out of 12th standard this year issued notices to them to vacate
the school hostel by 30th of September-2019.
2.
The CCTV control room has been opened by the staff
since the students who had the key to the lock were not willing to return
it. The CCTV cameras are being made
functional and they will be monitored on a daily basis.
3.
I took along with me some teachers and other staff to
the hostel to supervise the shifting of children into 3 separate sections-
students of classes 1st to 5th in first section, students
of classes 6th to 8th in section and students of 9th
to 12th and B.A. in third section.
But we could not complete this work because within 10 minutes of our
reaching the hostel, the older students started shouting and creating ugly
scenes. They started arguing about
trifles and would not allow us to proceed in our work. Some children tried to snatch our mobiles and
one of them (Saif Ali, 11th Class) caught the collar of the Hostel
Warden saying that they would not allow anyone to take photographs or videos in
the hostel. Later when we came back to
the Principal’s room, some of the leaders of the students came to meet us and
told us that the students had unanimously rejected the orders of the
Commissioner and they would not allow anyone to shift students in the hostel.
They raised objections about the use of the word “Recommendations” in the order
issued by the Commissioner. According to
them, the Commissioner had only given recommendations and not issued any orders
and therefore they are not bound to obey the recommendations. I had noted down the names of some of the
leaders of the mob of unruly students among whom are the following:
1.
Pankaj Modi, 12th Class, DOB: 15.01.2002
2.
Shivam Mishra, B.A 1st Year, DOB:
05.10.2000
3.
Deepak Pal, 11th Class, DOB: 22.05.2002
4.
Shankar Mandal, 12th Class, DOB: 12.01.1999
5.
Ankur Kumar, 12th Class, DOB: 13.07.2001
6.
Rahul Kumar, 8th Class, DOB: 16.06.2005
7.
Rajesh Kumar Mandal, 7th Class, DOB:
17.02.2008
8.
Arvind Kumar, 7th Class, DOB: 27.03.2005
9.
Nawab Khan, 9th Class, DOB: 01.04.2005
10.
Saif Ali, 11th Class, DOB: 10.05.2000
These leaders of the older
students have been creating nuisance and defying the school administration for
the past one year and more so during the last one month. My request to you is that suitable action may
be taken immediately so that your orders may be carried out in full.
Thanking you,
Yours faithfully,
(S.P.Singh)
Vice Princiapl
(HOS)”
28. A written submission dated 16.09.2019 on
behalf of Sh. Bansi Lal Sharma, Founder
and Er. M.C. Garg, Office Secretary were also filed claiming to be the
Management Committee of the Institute.
29. During the hearing on 16.09.2019 Dr. Sanjay
Chaturvedi DDE (SE) and Dr. A.K. Bhatt, DDE (Zone-25) on behalf of respondent
No. 5 informed that the monitoring of the school is being ensured and the
Principal / Vice-Principal has been directed to strictly follow the
guidelines.
30. Dr. A. Madhavi, Dy.Director (Disability), who
appeared on behalf of respondent No. 6, informed that the Institution for the
Blind, Amar Colony was registered under the erstwhile Persons with Disabilities
Act, 1995 and it has yet to be registered under the Rights of Persons with
Disabilities Act, 2016. She informed that
the Department is also facing difficulty in managing the hostel for the
students with blindness. As per the Agreement
for Lease between the President of India and Secretary, Institution for the
Blind, signed by the then Dy. Land & Development Officer, Land and
Development Office, New Delhi, 0.776 acre of land was allocated for a building
for Institution for the Blind.
31. The representatives of the two groups
claiming to be the real Management Committee members reiterated their
respective submissions most of which are the subject matter of the cases
pending before various courts.
32. After perusal of the record and hearing the
parties, it is observed that neither the
constitution of the Institute mentions about providing hostel facilities nor has any party produced any guidelines for
the same.
33. It is also apparently clear that the
institution was being run in a very informal and adhoc manner without following
any rules / guidelines. The concerned
authorities also seem to have turned their eyes away and ignored the
mismanagement for the reasons best known to them. It is also observed that after the order
dated 02.07.2015 of Hon’ble High Court of Delhi restraining Sh. Deepak Sharma,
Smt. Prerna Sharma, Sh. MC. Garg and others from disturbing the functioning of
the ongoing Managing Committee headed by
Sh. Sunil Khurana, Sh. R.K. Kakar and Sh. Bansi Lal Sharma, the said ongoing
Managing Committee in its meeting on 09.02.2017, decided that the election of
the Managing Committee may be conducted on 06.03.2017 for the following posts:
i)
President 1
ii)
Vice-President 2
iii)
General Secretary 1
iv)
Joint Secretaries 2
v)
Treasure 1
vi)
Executive Member 10
Total 17
34. Sh. Santosh Kumar Rungta (Sr. Advocate) was
appointned as election officer and the following
office bearers and members were elected for the period of 06.03.2017 to
05.03.2020 at Amar Colony, Lajpat Nagar-IV, New Delhi:
|
S.No.
|
Designation
|
Name
Replaced
|
New
Name
|
|
1.
|
President
|
|
Sh.
Sunil Khurana
|
|
2.
|
Vice
President
|
|
Ms.
Vidya Chauhan
|
|
3.
|
Vice
President
|
Sh.
R.K. Kakar
|
Sh.
M.L. Mongia
|
|
4.
|
General
Secretary
|
|
Sh.
Rakesh Gambhir
|
|
5.
|
Joint
Secretary
|
|
Sh.
G.S. Rathore
|
|
6.
|
Joint
Secretary
|
|
Sh.
Govind Singh
|
|
7.
|
Treasurer
|
Sh.
Vinay Diwan
|
Sh.
R.K. Kakar
|
Member:
1. Ms.
Megha Khanna
2. Sh.
Anil Ghai
3. Sh.
Gurmeet
4. Sh.
Amar Kumar
5. Sh.
Rohit Jain
6. Sh.
Rakesh Kumar
7. Sh.
Gagan
35. The fresh Managing Committee did not include
Sh. Bansi Lal Sharma and Sh. Rakesh Gambhir
was elected as General Secretary in place of Sh. R.K. Kakar who was
elected as the Treasurer. I am not going
into the question whether election of the office bearers was appropriate when
Hon’ble High Court of Delhi had passed the order dated 02.07.2015.
36. In view of the fact that the education and
well being of the children with visual impairment of class 1st to 8th is being
adversely impacted and its restoration is paramount, the following directions /
recommendations are made for
implementation by the concerned authorities / parties:
(i)
In view of the order dated
02.07.2015 of Hon’ble High Court of Delhi and there being no stay on the said
order, Sh. Sunil Khurana as President, Sh. R.K. Kakar as General Secretary and Sh. Bansi Lal Sharma
should run the affairs of the school, hostel or any other activity going on in
the premises of the land allotted by the Land and Development Office, Ministry
of Urban Development, Govt. of India to the Institution for the Blind. They should take decisions by consensus
failing which by the majority decision but must not delay any decision to the detriment
of the children with visual impairment studying in the school. They should also ensure efficiency and
complete transparency in the functioning of the school, hostel and other
activities. If they do not wish to carry
out their duties, they should resign and Directorate of Education and
Department of Social Welfare shall take appropriate action to ensure education
and wellbeing of the children with visual impairment in the Institute.
(ii) The other group, as already
restrained by the Hon’ble High Court of Delhi, should not interfere or disturb
the functioning of the institute in any
manner whatsoever including by visiting the institute or deploying any staff in the premises of the Institute for the
Blind.
(iii) The present Managing
Committee should report any incident of disturbance / interference by anyone to
the SHO (Amar Colony) / DCP, South East District, who should take prompt action as per the
law.
(iv)
The education and well being
of the children with visual impairment studying in class 1st to 8th is of paramount importance and therefore the present
Managing Committee headed by Sh. Sunil Khurana and other concerned authorities
namely Directorate of Education and Deptt. of Social Welfare must concentrate
on ensuring the quality of education and well being of those children.
(v)
The present Managing
Committee through the Principal/Vice-Principal
and other employees of the Institute must ensure that regular classes
are conducted and quality teaching and learning happens alongwith extra-curricular
activities strictly in accordance with the norms / guidelines of the
Directorate of Education, GNCT of Delhi.
(vi)
The present Managing
Committee should ensure appointment of
warden(s) within one month from the date of receipt of this order if not
already appointed, to ensure peaceful
stay, security and well being of the children of class 1st to 8th as per their placement in the hostel vide
Para 4 of the RoP dated 12.09.2019.
(vii) As
none of the parties has produced copy of any decision allowing students of
class 9th to 12th studying outside, to stay in the hostel
within the premises of the institute, Director, Social Welfare should
constitute a committee comprising an officer from Department of Social Welfare,
an officer from Directorate of Education to be nominated by Director of
Education, one of the members of the
present Managing Committee, Principal / Vice Principal of the School, the
present / past warden(s) as one of the members, an officer with relevant
experience to be nominated by Director, National Institute for the Empowerment
of Persons with Visual Disabilities (NIEPVD), Dehradun and a senior functionary
of National Association for the Blind, R.K. Puram, New Delhi who also run a
School and Hostel for students with visual impairment to make recommendations whether
the facility of hostel for students of 9th to 12th class
should be continued. If it is
recommended to provide the facility, the committee should also frame guidelines
for running of the hostel. The Committee should submit its recommendations and the
guidelines by 15th October,
2019 and Department of Social Welfare should issue the guidelines to be
followed by the Institute.
(viii) On
the recommendations of the Committee a decision whether to continue the hostel
facility for the students of class 9th to 12th who are not studying in the School, should be taken by the present Managing
Committee by 31.10.2019. If it is
decided to continue to provide the facility of the hostel to students of class
9th to 12th, then
the present Managing Committee shall make arrangement for a separate entry and
exit to the hostel for those students and the warden must ensure that the
senior students of class 9th
to 12th do not
enter the hostel rooms of the students
of class 1st to 8th. They could interact during the extra-curricular
activities, in the library and dining hall.
The well being of the hostellers and purpose of the provision of the
hostel must be fulfilled. It should not
be used just as shelter.
(ix)
The present Managing
Committee is also directed to approach all the concerned Court(s) where the
issues concerning the Institute for the Blind (Andh Vidyalaya) are pending, for
an early hearing and disposal of the cases and convey the request of this Court
for the same to the concerned courts so that the education and well being of
the children with visual impairment of class 1st to 8 is not adversely
affected due to infighting between the groups wanting to have the control of
the affairs of the Institute.
(x)
Warden(s) must function
under the supervision of the Principal / Vice-Principal and multiplicity of the
command and control must be avoided.
(xi)
Parents of senior students
who locked the class rooms in the school and instigated young children to boycott
the classes, should be immediately
contacted and called / informed to counsel their wards. The school and the hostel as already recommended
vide RoP dated 12.09.2019, must be run
strictly as per the guidelines issued by
the Directorate of Education, the
practices followed by the residential Navodya Vidyalayas and other well known
residential schools and the recommendations that may be made by the Committee
recommended vide Para 36(vii).
(xii) The
present Managing Committee and the Principal / Vice-Principal should obtain the
correct name and contact details of the parent / guardian / local guardian of
each student studying / staying within the premises of the Institute for the
Blind within a week of the receipt of this order and verify the same by
contacting them on telephone by 15.10.2019 and submit a confirmation to this
effect to this Court, the Directorate of Education and Department of Social
Welfare by 20.10.2019.
(xiii) The
students who do not comply with the direction to shift to the rooms allotted to them in the hostel, should be counselled and advised to comply, if
necessary with the help of their parents before resorting to any disciplinary
action. All concerned are directed to
ensure compliance.
(xiv) Status
after vacation of the hostel by the students who have passed 12th class be submitted by
03.12.2019.
(xv) The
academic functioning of the school should continue to be monitored by DDE
(South East), Defence Colony and DDE (Zone-25), Directorate of Education and
any laxity on the part of the staff should be dealt as per the prescribed
rules.
(xvi) The
Directorate of Education may also consider taking over the Institute on top
priority in view of the fact that the school has not been functioning properly for
a very long time and the education and lives of young children with visual
impairment are at stake. Possibility of
appointing an Administrator should also be considered by the Directorate of
Education as per rules.
(xvii) Dy.
Commissioner of Police (South East), who was also contacted on phone during the
hearing on 12.09.2019 and the SHO (Amar Colony) who appeared during the hearing
on 16.09.2019, are advised to take
action on the complaints, if and when received, strictly according to the
law. This recommendation is being made
as it is observed that the police try to avoid taking action because children /
staff with disabilities are involved. I
would like to make it clear that the rule of law must prevail irrespective of
who is involved. Therefore, while the
police should use best of their counselling skills, they should not hesitate to take action as
per the law to ensure that the rights of the other children / staff with
disabilities are not infringed and protected at all cost.
(xviii) Department
of Social Welfare shall constitute as early as possible, a Committee comprising
a Psychologist, Special Education Teacher (VI) from a Special School for the
Blind / Inclusive School having students with visual impairment and one officer
each dealing with school administration in the Directorate of Education and the
Department of Social Welfare which shall counsel the children studying /
staying in the school / hostel and submit by 15th October,2019 a
report alongwith recommendations if any
to the Directorate of Education and Department of Social Welfare who
shall take immediate action on such recommendations.
37. The action taken on the above
recommendations / directions be informed to this Court within three months from
the date of receipt of this order as required under Section 81 of the Act.
38. The complaints are disposed of
accordingly.
39. Given under my hand and the seal of the
Court this 25th day of September,2019.
(T.D. Dhariyal)
State Commissioner for
Persons with Disabilities
Copy to: Director, National Institute for the Empowerment of Persons
with Visual Disabilities (Divyangjan), NIEPVD (Under Department of Empowerment of Persons with Disabilities,
Ministry of Social Justice & Empowerment, Govt. of India),
116, Rajpur Road, Dehradun – 248001, Uttarakhand, India Tel.: 0135-2744491
Email ID: director@nivh.org.in
with the request to nominate an officer of
appropriate level as one of the members of the Committee as recommended vide
Para 36(vii)and provide his / her contact details to the Director, Social
Welfare, GNCT of Delhi, GLNS Complex, Delhi Gate, New Delhi-110002 by
30.09.2019. The TA/DA of the nominated
Officer may be borne by NIEPVD.
(T.D. Dhariyal)
State Commissioner for
Persons with Disabilities
