Anchal Bhateja, blind advocate, marks historic first SC appearance in landmark disability rights case.
Case in NewsVisually Impaired Lawyer Appears in Supreme Court challenging exclusion of disabilities in judicial recruitment. |
Case Overview
Case Name: Sravya Sindhuri vs. Uttarakhand Public Service Commission & Ors .
In a historic first, Anchal Bhateja a visually impaired lawyer appeared in the Supreme Court on June 6, 2025 representing a petitioner with 100% visual impairment . She urged the bench of Justices Sanjay Karol and SC Sharma to list the case urgently against a recruitment notice by the Uttarakhand Judicial Services . The Court agreed to hear the case on June 9 .
Key Aspects
The key facts relating to the case has been explained as under –
- Anchal Bhateja a graduate from NLSIU is the first visually impaired woman advocate to argue in the Supreme Court .
- The plea challenges Advertisement dated 16.05.2025 for Uttarakhand Civil Judge recruitment .
- The notification restricts Persons With Disabilities reservation to only 4 subcategories .
- The petitioner, blind and non-domiciled in Uttarakhand was denied eligibility and scribe support .
Legal Insights
The legal insights relating to this case has been explained as under –
- Section 34 of Persons With Disabilities Act, 2016 – mandates 4% reservation for benchmark disabilities including blindness .
- Violation of Articles 14, 19(1)(g), 21 of the Constitution.
- Contradiction with SC ruling in Re: Recruitment of Visually Impaired in Judicial Services vs. Registrar General, MP HC (2023) .
- Reliefs sought: quashing restrictive advertisement, revision of eligibility, compliance with SC guidelines .
Court’s Verdict
The Supreme Court listed the matter for urgent hearing on June 9, 2025 acknowledging the serious rights concerns raised .
Source- Supreme Court of India
Read also – Article 14 of Indian Constitution
