The Court Of Chief Commissioner For Persons With Disabilities (Divyangjan), Delhi has directed Delhi Public School (DPS), Srinagar to reimburse all medical expenses to a student who was injured in an accident involving the school bus in June last year.
Disposing of a plea by the parents of the student, Muhammad AyaanZaffar, the court also recommended full scholarship to the student till such time he continues to study in the institution.
Underscoring that the child was studying in the school since 2016 and was aged only 11 years at the time of the accident, the court said as per the disability certificate issued by the competent authority, the child was indeed 100% visually impaired and his condition was not likely to improve.
After hearing the parents of the student and Principal of the school through his counsel besides the officials, the court observed that the accident had happened in the premises of the school in the morning on June 19 last year during the school hours.
“It had been confirmed in the reply of the police headquarters, Jammu & Kashmir Police, Srinagar that the child got hit by the school bus while the driver was moving the bus towards bus yard,” the court said.
It noted that the school has been catering to special children like Ayaan on a regular basis. “This court finds merit in the contention of the (parents of the child) that the school has full responsibility to ensure the safety and security of all students and doubly so for those who are also having physically disability, in the premises of the school,” the court said.
It held that under no circumstances, the school can give “any excuse to evade such responsibility and is accountable for any accident caused due to an external source, leading to such an injury to a 100% visually impaired student.”
“The school bus driver was an employee of the school and it was the obligation of the school to ensure that there was no student in the way of the bus let alone a 100% visually handicapped student,” the court said.
The school, the court said, should have offered on their own to stand in support with the complainant’s son and render all necessary support and assistance in the matter including medical care. The Court directed that on no account “the child should be dismissed from the school or harassed by the school.”