MADURAI: The Madurai Bench of the Madras High Court recently allowed a petition filed by a disabled woman seeking a direction to transfer her divorce petition from one court to another citing lack of accessibility.
Justice AD Jagadish Chandira noted that the Family Court in Tirunelveli is on the first floor of the court building and there is no lift facility. “As the petitioner has 80 per cent disability, she finds it difficult to climb the stairs. So she filed this petition to transfer the case to the III Additional District Court, Tirunelveli, which is on the ground floor of the building,” he added.
Citing Sections 44 and 45 of the Rights of Persons with Disabilities Act, 2016, which provide for mandatory observance of accessibility norms and a time limit for making infrastructure and premises accessible to persons with disabilities, the judge sought a report from the Principal District Judge of Tirunelveli on steps taken for the convenience and accessibility of disabled litigants and stakeholders in the Tirunelveli District Court Complex. He then allowed the transfer petition with a direction to the III Additional District Court, Tirunelveli to dispose of the case expeditiously.