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Mental illness can be included under ‘disability' by B Kolappan

Court directs State department to pay full salary to employee who was relieved from service

Says termination of his services clearly in contravention of Section 47 of the PWD Act

Mental illness or retardation can be brought within the term ‘disability' under sections of the Persons with Disabilities (Equal Opportunities, Protection of Rights and Full Participation) Act 1995 (PWD Act), the Madras High Court has said.

Directing a State government department to pay full salary, including annual increment and other monetary and service benefits, to an employee who was relieved from service on the ground of mental disability, Justice K. Chandru said the benefits should be given from the date of disability till the date of his retirement.

Allowing a petition filed by C. Narayanan, who worked as Assistant in the government Industrial Training Institute (ITI), Justice Chandru also said that the order of the Director of Employment and Training terminating Mr. Narayanan's services was “clearly in contravention” of Section 47 of the PWD Act. Section 47 clearly indicates “no establishment shall dispense with, or reduce in rank, an employee who acquires a disability during his service.”

“It is ironical that the respondents belonged to the Department of Employment and Training. They are expected to advise other departments about the rights of employees in such departments. If the Department of Employment itself is not aware of the provisions of the Act, that really is a sorry state of affairs,” the Judge said.

The authorities' action had betrayed their ignorance of the PWD Act, he said and directed them to pay case cost of Rs.5,000 to Mr. Narayanan for having made him run from court to court against the dismissal.

The case of Narayanan was that he was continuing his treatment for his illness and, therefore, there was no ground for relieving him from service. The government countered his argument saying he was subjected to medical examination and that the report from the Institute of Mental Health stated that he was suffering from dementia with mood disorder depression. On the strength of the finding, he was relieved from service. The government also said that since Mr. Narayanan had accepted the retirement on medical invalidation and also submitted pension proposals, no further action could be initiated.

Justice Chandru rejected the argument of the government, saying the fact that Mr. Narayanan had applied for pension need not stand in the way of his claiming relief or back wages from the date of disability till the date of his superannuation.

He might have agreed to accept the terminal benefits due to penury or ignorance, the judge said. Recalling the legal notice sent by Mr. Narayanan to pay full salary immediately after his discharge, Justice Chandru pointed out it was the officials who had in their reply and counter affidavit stated that his request was hypothetical and there was no need for retaining such a person in service.

Justice Chandru also pointed out that the medical board report had nowhere indicated that Mr. Narayanan had become unfit to remain in his job.

Arguing that that mental illness too could be brought within the term ‘disability' as found in the PWD Act, he said: “It is not due to any other misconduct but only due to the mental condition of the petitioner that the discharge took place. If that is so, then clearly the prohibition contained under Section 47 of the Act comes into operation automatically.”