Assam - Where constitutional rights mean nothing

Imagine the plight of physically disabled persons who want to vote but cannot, due to their condition. It is therefore necessary to make special provisions for them. Sadly, in Assam, this is not the case.

“PERSONS WITH disabilities are among the most disenfranchised sections of society. Although the Constitution of India guarantees equality to all its citizens and the ‘Persons with Disabilities Act’, 1995, guarantees equal opportunities, protection of rights and full participation for all persons with disabilities, the reality is something quite different,” said Ms. Anju Talukdar, Coordinator, Disability Law Unit-NE, Human Rights Law Network (HRLN), while addressing the media in Guwahati.

The Disability Law Unit-NE is a project of Shishu Sarothi, an NGO working for the empowerment of persons with disabilities. HRLN is a group of lawyers and social activists fighting for the rights of vulnerable sections of society, that is, persons with disabilities, women and children.

Talukdar said that it (the neglect shown towards the North East) was glaringly apparent in every election held in the country and the Lok Sabha elections held in Assam recently were no exception. The law of the land mandates that all polling booths in India be made disabled-friendly; unfortunately, most of the polling booths in Assam were not so.

The Supreme Court, in the year 2007, directed that all polling booths in the country should be made accessible for persons with disabilities. This was followed by a notification issued by the Election Commission directing all Electoral Officers in the state to ensure that all polling stations are also made disabled-friendly.

As the law stands, the requirements should be met with to ensure that the rights of voters with disabilities are not violated during elections; these requirements being, ramps for the convenience of the loco-motive disabled, Braille Electronic Voting Machines (EVMs) for visually impaired voters, persons with disabilities not being made to stand in queues, visually impaired voters being permitted escorts, and publicity about the accessibility of polling booths being provided in electronic and print media well in advance, so that persons with disabilities are encouraged to vote.

In a clear departure from the requirements of law, most of these were flouted; stated Talukdar, adding that in a survey conducted across the state by HRLN, Shishu Sarothi, and other activists, it was found that many of the polling stations did not have ramps, only stairways.

Braille EVMs were almost completely absent, and no publicity was provided to encourage disabled voters to come out and exercise their franchise.

However, she mentioned that the polling officials were by and large helpful and sympathetic to disabled voters. Many of them acknowledged that the amenities that should have been provided for persons with disabilities had not been made available and they lamented the lack of infrastructure facilities.

It is unfortunate that in many cases the polling booths were situated in highly inaccessible places, such as high up on hills, or in rooms requiring climbing of several steps. In some cases, the steps were too steep or too numerous to even attempt the building of a ramp. Inaccessible polling booths make voting very difficult for many, particularly the disabled and the elderly, and for persons with severe loco-motive disabilities, it becomes impossible.

Thus, so many people willing to vote are barred from doing so, which is unacceptable; something must be done with immediate effect to remedy this situation.