Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU) has been ordered by the Delhi High Court to allow a blind student to reside in the university’s guest home without having to pay any money. After the student filed an appeal. The case before the court concerned Sanjeev Kumar Mishra. He is a JNU graduate student studying for an MA in sociology who filed an appeal asking the university to give him housing in a dorm.
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The appeal filed by the student
In his appeal, the student claimed that even though he had been living in the same dorm during his MA studies. The university had refused to provide him with housing. when he applied for admission to the second postgraduate program because the regulations did not allow for the housing of a student enrolled in two PG courses at the same time.
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Due to his complete visual impairment and limited financial resources, the petitioner is unable to live off-campus in a rented home. Over the previous year, he has made several requests to the university administration for a place in the residence halls. The plea stated, “The petitioner stays at the library night and day. He gets his meals with coupons from the dorm mess or the university canteens due to the lack of an affordable and accessible place to stay.”
In his argument, Mishra further argued that the university’s policy of not housing students enrolled in second postgraduate programs violated the 2016 Right to Persons with Disabilities Act. “The regulation cannot be implemented in every situation, regardless of the physical impairments that specific pupils may experience,” the appeal stated.
Indeed, the JNU promised the court on January 4 that it would give Mishra a reprieve till the next date.
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The court order on the appeal
On January 22, Mishra, represented by attorney Rahul Bajaj. He stated that even though the university had given him a room in the guest house on campus, the daily fee of ₹100 was too much for him to pay.
A bench of justice C Hari Shankar stated in a January 22 ruling that “Given the peculiar circumstances of the case, JNU is instructed to allow the petitioner to remain in the designated room until the following hearing date without assessing any expenses.”
