Speech defect is a disability, says HC

Thanks to the efforts of a determined teenager, speech and communication defects will now be recognised as a disability.

The Bombay High Court on Monday directed the state government to follow an order issued by the disability commissioner directing issuance of a disability certificate to Rahul Reddy, who has a speech defect owing to a deep cleft palate and a bilateral lip.

Reddy, 19, had moved HC, after he was denied a disability certificate as his speech defect did not come under any recognised disability. A disability certificate will entitle Reddy to benefits provided by the Persons with Disability Act, 1995, including helping in securing a job. Born with a deep cleft palate, Reddy’s speech is unclear even after six surgeries.

His lawyer Jamshed Mistry had told the court that Sion Hospital had rejected Rahul’s application for a disability certificate on October 3, 2008.

On March 25, the disability commissioner, who sits in Pune directed the Ali Yavar Jung National Institute and superintendents of Sion Hospital, JJ Hospital and St George Hospital to examine Reddy and issue him a disability certificate.

The high court on Monday directed the authorities to implement the commissioner’s order. “The high court has taken a proactive stand and expanded the law on disability,” Mistry said.