Pakistan Chief Justice says government will not discriminate against disabled people in employment

From The International News:

ISLAMABAD -- Chief Justice of Pakistan Justice Iftikhar Muhammad Chaudhry on Thursday said that no government department would be allowed to refuse promotion to any person on the grounds of disability.

The chief justice was heading a three-member bench hearing an appeal filed by the Directorate of Special Education, Punjab, against the decision of the Lahore High Court, Rawalpindi Bench, favouring a schoolteacher.

During the course of the proceedings, the chief justice expressed displeasure over denial of the post of headmaster to a blind schoolteacher and directed for strictly observing the quota for disabled persons.

Other members of the bench included Justice Raja Fayyaz Ahmed and Justice Jawwad S Khawaja. Appearing on notice, Additional Advocate General Punjab Khadim Hussain Qaiser submitted that Liaqat Ali was appointed as teacher in a special school in 1986.

He said that after the Punjab government announced 90 more special schools in the province, Liaqat applied for the post of headmaster but his application was rejected on the grounds that he was blind and could not perform his duty properly.

The chief justice rejected the Punjab government’s stand and said that he knew a number of disabled persons who were making miracles in various fields. The chief justice said that he had met a Pakistani student, Aqil, in Harvard University who was doing PhD, so how would the said teacher not be able to perform as headmaster. Meanwhile, the court dismissed the appeal of Directorate of Special Education, Punjab, against the decision of Lahore High Court, Rawal-pindi Bench, favouring the schoolteacher.