English
English
English
Supreme Court urges the central government to create strict laws to protect the dignity of differently-abled individuals. The court suggested a law similar to SC/ST Act, making mocking or insulting people with disabilities or rare genetic disorders punishable.
Supreme Court
New Delhi: To protect the dignity of persons with disabilities, the Supreme Court on Thursday directed the Central Government to consider enacting a stringent law that criminalizes mocking or insulting persons with disabilities or rare genetic diseases. The Supreme Court stated that this law should be as stringent as the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes (SC/ST) Act, with clear punishments for insults.
A bench comprising Chief Justice Surya Kant and Justice Joymalya Bagchi asked the Central Government why a law similar to the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act, 1989, could not be enacted for persons with disabilities. They stated that this Act criminalizes casteist remarks, discrimination, insults, and violence and makes them non-bailable. Similarly, insults and jokes against persons with disabilities also need to be criminalized.
Solicitor General Tushar Mehta, appearing for the Central Government, said that humor against someone's dignity is unacceptable. The bench further stated that a neutral, independent, and autonomous body is needed to regulate obscene, offensive, or illegal content on online platforms. The court stated that this body could play a crucial role in preventing abuses against persons with disabilities online.
The Ministry of Information and Broadcasting informed the court that it was developing guidelines to address derogatory comments against persons with disabilities. The Supreme Court directed the ministry to release these guidelines for public discussion to raise awareness in society. The next hearing in the case has been listed after four weeks.
The Supreme Court was hearing a petition by the SMA Cure Foundation, an organization that works with people with spinal muscular atrophy (SMA). The petition objected to the jokes made on persons with disabilities by "India's Got Talent" host Samay Raina and other social media influencers.
The bench directed Raina and other comedians to be cautious in the future and to organize two events a month to share success stories of disabled individuals. This would help raise funds for their treatment, especially for those suffering from SMA. The court, considering this a form of social punishment, granted relief from other punishments.
