थी जिसकी वो हक़दार सदा

थी सदियों से उसकी पुकार 
कि उसको अपना हक़ मिले। 
इस संघर्ष में थी आहत,
न किसी ने उसके ज़ख़्म सिले। 
उसकी हर मांग के बदले में,
थे हर सितम उसके लिए। 
थे ज़ख्म जो भी उसको मिले,
आंसुओं ने उसको बयां  किए। 
पर आंसुओं को पोछती, 
हक़ के लिए लड़ती रही। 
लांघ के हर दहलीज वो 
आगे ही बढ़ती रही। 

टूटे न उसके हौसले 
और पा लिया उसने वो सब,
थी जिसकी वो हक़दार सदा। 
थी जिसकी वो हक़दार सदा। 

थी बंद इकलौते कमरे में। 
न घूंघट उसका हटा कभी। 
पर उसके माथे के तेज से,
न अंधेरा टिका कभी। 
न किसी ने सोचा था कभी,
कि आसमां वो छू लेगी। 
और प्रजातंत्र के हर तपके को 
उसका सारा अब हक़ देगी। 
अंतरिक्ष में जाकर उसने,
कुछ रहस्य भी सुलझाए थे। 
और कभी बेघर बच्चों पे,
उसने आँचल फैलाये थे। 

जो था  सैलाब आंसुओं का 
फिर भी डाली कश्ती अपनी। 
घूंघट से बना के आसमां,
बसा गयी बस्ती अपनी। 

फ़िर रुका न उसका काफ़िला,
और जीत लिया उसने वो सब 
थी जिसकी वो हक़दार सदा। 
थी जिसकी वो हक़दार सदा। 

Finally they won the right to vote.

The Supreme Court recently, opened the doors for defence personnel in peace stations to get registered as voters in constitutency of their posting and pulled up the Election Commission for its "rigid stand" which was coming in the way of "right to vote of service personnel".

After an hour-long deliberation, the Election Commission budged from its stand and made a statement that those service personnel who have not made declaration till now to cast vote through postal ballot "may register themselves as 'General Voters' in respect of constituencies where election process has not yet commenced". The apex court in its interim order clarified that "this (order) is subject to such service personnel being posted at peace station on January 1, 2014 and continued to be posted till date". "We further record and accept the statement of the senior counsel (of EC) that in that situation the tenure posting of three years for such services personnel and their family shall not be insisted upon," a bench comprising justices R M Lodha and Kurian Joseph said in the order.

The bench asked the Centre to provide within two days from the date of verdict the data of such peace stations to the Election Commission and also take all necessary steps to make postal ballot effective. The apex court made it clear that the "Election Commission is within its power to issue instruction/guidelines prohibiting political parties from campaigning in peace stations". 

During the hearing, the bench asked the Commission to facilitate the process to allow defence personnel to caste their votes in coming general elections and raised questions on its reluctance for not allowing them to cast votes in the constitutency of their posting by putting in condition of working there at least three years and living with family. It said the EC should not take a hard and technical stand so that the statutory right of citizens is taken away. "What surprises us is that when the EC desires 100 per cent polling why should the Commission do anything which deprives a person his right to vote. There must be some reasons behind it. It is a very important Constitutional right and one should not be deprived of it," it said.

New legislation for Persons with Disabilities.

The Central Government is all set to introduce a new legislation replacing the law of 1995. Known as the  Rights of Persons with Disabilities Bill, 2014, seeks to repeal the Persons with Disabilities Act of 1995 and to replace it with a comprehensive rights based law in accordance with the provisions of the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (UNCRPD). The timeline of this bill is as follows:

1. 2007: India signed UNCRPD.
2. 2010: Ministry of Social Justice & Empowerment had, through its OM (PDF) constituted a Committee under the chairpersonship of Dr. Sudha Kaul, Vice Chairperson, Indian Institute of Cerebral Palsy, Kolkata, to draft a new legislation for persons with disabilities, replacing the present Persons with Disabilities (Equal Protection of Rights and Full Participation) Act, 1995.
3. 2011: The above Committee submitted its Report including a draft bill called The Rights of Persons with Disabilities Bill, 2011 and a note on its financial implications to the Ministry.
4. 2012: The Ministry released a Draft Bill in 2012, (which are both on the Ministry’s website). But this Draft Bill of 2012 is not as comprehensive and inclusive as the 2011 one, and there were certain serious issues raised before the Ministry on the notification of the 2012 Draft Bill.
5. 2013: Some version of this Bill was cleared by Cabinet in December 2013. Thereafter, organizations of persons with disabilities, confident that the 2012 Draft was intact, began protests for the speedy introduction and passage of the Bill. 
6. February 2014: Bill was criticised to be not in consonance with the UNCRPD.

Reason behind the present legislation.

The need for bringing about amendments was soon felt after its enactment in December 1995. Amendments Recommended by High Level Committee 1999 was constituted by the Government under the chairmanship of Prof. Amita Dhanda to suggest appropriate amendments in the Act. The Committee, accordingly, submitted its report to the Government and thereafter the report gathered dust in the government offices. The Government revived the amendment process around 2006 , when UNCRPD was being negotiated, but yet not adopted by the UN General-assembly.

The government organised series of a few consultative meetings which were conducted by the Government before the ratification of the UNCRPD, and only one (in Goa) post ratification were merely symbolic, ritualistic, and of no use at all. They lacked informed and systematic participation of persons with disabilities. While requests calling for suggestions were posted on its website by the Ministry of Social Justice and Empowerment, Government of India, this is far from being enough, more particularly, in the face of the fact that not too many persons with disabilities have access to websites.

It goes without saying that the UNCRPD, particularly, vide its Article 4.3 enjoins it upon the states parties to consult and actively involve persons with disabilities in respect of making any laws and policies, and also in respect of any matter which affects their lives, or which concerns them. Hence, active participation by persons with disabilities is amongst the core and non-negotiable principles which the UNCRPD envisages. It is therefore of paramount importance that the Government honours and respects the compulsions which was undertaken for fulfilment.
The PDA has been constructed by adopting a medical perspective wherein disability is perceived as an individual deficit which has to be socially compensated. UNCRPD looks not individual impairments but social discrimination that results from disability. This therefore mandates the State to formulate policies and law by adopting the social model of disability.

Provisions in the Bill.

• Broadening the ambit of disability from seven to 19 sub-categories such as sickle cell disease, thalassemia and muscular dystrophy besides autism, spectrum disorder, blindness, cerebral palsy, chronic neurological conditions, mental illness and multiple disabilities.
• Increasing reservation for the disabled in public sector jobs from only 3% in the ratio of 1% each for the physically, visually and hearing-impaired persons to 5% (extend the quota by 2%, covering two new additional categories - mentally disabled and people with multiple disabilities).
• The Bill also provides for setting up National Commission for Persons with Disabilities, which will have statutory powers and also for establishing a dedicated National Fund for Persons with Disabilities.
• Besides making provisions to prevent people with disabilities from harassment while getting disability certificates, the proposal legislation also provides for stringent punitive measures under which anyone violating the provisions could face from six months to five years of imprisonment and a fine from Rs 10,000 to five lakhs.

(PDF file that opens in a new window)(PDF file that opens in a new windo

Rights of Persons with Disabilities Bill, 2014

अपने मकसद पे अड़ते हैं

जिस देश की नींव रखी उसने

दी जिसने क्रांति की परिभाषा  

उस देश पे मिटने वालों में  

दिखती नहीं कल की अभिलाषा 

क्या वजह है कि वो कहते हैं 

इस देश में अब कुछ रहा नहीं 

जब लुटने लगी थी आबरू 

क्यों किसी ने कुछ भी कहा नहीं

चुप खड़े हैं सब ये सोचते हैं  

कि बाकी क्यों चुप रहते है  

जब बात उठे इल्ज़ामों की 

अगले को दोषी कहते हैं 

होकर उस कल पे न्योछावर

लिखी जिन्होंने नयी कहानी 

ये देख निराशा उन्हें मिली

कि व्यर्थ गयी हर कुर्बानी

किस बात है अब अकड़ बची

सब कुछ तो अपना बिखर गया

हम सोच के फिर क्यों रोते हैं 

कल का हर सपना किधर गया

थी जिनके लिए ये कुर्बानी

वो खुद में अक्सर लड़ते हैं

जब बात उठे इस देश की फिर 

मतलब की सोच में सड़ते हैं 

जनहित से पहले अपना हित 

ये उसूल अब दिखता है 

है जिसको अधिकार मिला 

वो इतिहास को लिखता है 

ये उसूल भी बदलेगा 

जब नयी सोच का वस्त्र मिले 

अपना ये कल फिर संवरेगा  

जब अधिकारों का अस्त्र मिले 

संग मिलकर कल की सुबह की 

सोच में अब हम पड़ते हैं 

लेकर अधिकारों का तर्कश 

अपने मकसद पे अड़ते हैं