SRINAGAR: Even as the Jammu and Kashmir administration appointed him as a government advocate in the high court, visually impaired lawyer Suraj Singh claimed that he was entitled for senior positions. Singh, who has been practising law since 2011, is not satisfied with the post offered to him at Jammu. According to Singh, there was a gazette notification last year stating that the visually impaired practicing lawyers could be appointed as Advocate General and Additional Advocate Generals.
“I am the lone visually impaired lawyer in J&K High Court and I have been practising since 2011. It is my right that I should be appointed as Additional Advocate General. Instead the government has appointed me as government advocate,” he asserted.
Singh said his work would be hampered given that the required infrastructure was not available. “The infrastructure and technological support I needed to prove myself is not available,” he said, adding that the support he needed was available with the two senior posts of Advocate General and Additional Advocate Generals.
According to Singh, justice has not been done to him. “I was entitled for the post of AAG and instead I have been offered a government lawyer’s post.” Singh has twice gone on protest to demand the AAG post, special recruitment drive for the specially-abled persons and implementation of disability law in J&K. ‘‘ (But) there has been no development in J&K for the rights of disabled people. They continue to suffer.”
Singh said the Supreme Court passed an order on October 8, 2013 directing governments to advertise all backlog vacant posts for the disabled persons and recruit people on merit. Unfortunately, he said, nothing has happened in J&K. “I urge the government to start a special recruitment drive for the disabled people... The educated disabled persons should be appointed as per their merit.”