Lagatar24 Desk
New Delhi, May 3: The Supreme Court has issued notice to the Centre and States in response to a petition seeking a directive that governments provide sign language interpreters at all official government press briefings.
In accordance with the Rights of Persons with Disabilities Act 2016, a bench comprising Justice Abdul Nazeer and Justice Vikram Nath issued the order in a PIL filed seeking directions to have in-frame Sign language interpreter in all official press briefings conducted by the Prime Minister, other Ministers of the Union Government, and Chief Ministers of the State Government.
Access to sign language, according to the petitioner, is a basic human right for deaf individuals, as well as a key to breaking down communication barriers and participating in society like everyone else.
According to the petition, the 2016 Act expressly forbids discrimination against people with disabilities, including denial of meaningful access to public benefits, programmes, or services. It has also been argued that Section 42 of the 2016 Act, in particular, states that it is the responsibility of the appropriate government, including the Union and/or the State Governments, to provide facilities, such as sign language interpreters, for people who are deaf or hard of hearing in order to make information and communication accessible to this group of people.
