Disability News India (DNI)
Disability News India (DNI), is a disability News service dedicated to providing a quality up-to-date information to the Indian Disability. DNI's news section is updated two times a week, though we also add breaking stories as and when they occur.
DNI – August 2009 Issue
Person with schizophrenia moves High Court to get job back
MUMBAI, 31 Jul: A Goregaon person with schizophrenia has moved the Bombay high court in the hope of getting back his job with the Shipping Corporation of India (SCI). Edward DCunha claims he was forced to resign in 2000. A division bench of Justices Ranjana Desai and Amjad Sayed asked SCI orally on Thursday whether it could reconsider its decision and accommodate D'Cunha.
D'Cunha had joined SCI as a trainee nautical officer in 1993. D'Cunha
experienced his first episode of schizophrenia while serving on a ship
in 1997. He underwent treatment thereafter and rejoined SCI. This
pattern repeated itself until D'Cunha says he was forced to resign in
2000. Two years later, in 2002, D'Cunha approached the state's
disability commissioner with a plea that SCI should take him back
considering it had not complied with the provisions of the Persons with
Disabilities Act. Four years later, the disability commissioner
dismissed D'Cunha's plea.
D'Cunha's lawyer Pradeep Havnur says the law was not followed. Under the
PWD Act, mental illness is treated as a disability. "The Act has a
specific provision that bars discrimination against a person employed
with the government who acquires a disability during service,'' said
Havnur. The provision says that no establishment can sack or demote an
employee who acquires a disability during service. In case the employee
is found to be not suitable for the post he is holding, the authorities
have to shift him to another post with the same pay scale and service
benefits. If the authorities are unable to adjust the employee against
any post, the Act says he should be kept on a supernumerary post until a
suitable post is available or he attains the age of superannuation.
The disability commissioner, according to the petition, had rejected his
application on the ground that he had voluntarily resigned. Advocate
Havnur, however, contended that D'Cunha was incapable of taking a
decision at that time. D'Cunha, in his petition, said he is undergoing
treatment for the mental disability and urged the court to ask SCI to re
–employ him as a second officer on offshore supply vessel or any
suitable office job which he is fit enough to undertake.
Source: http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com
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