SHC orders Sindh government to fill disability quota jobs within two months

KARACHI: The Sindh High Court (SHC) on Monday directed provincial authorities to complete, within two months, the process required for appointing differently-abled persons against the quota reserved for them.

A two-member constitutional bench headed by Justice Adnan-ul-Karim Memon also instructed the heads of district recruitment committees (DRCs) to move swiftly and process the cases of the petitioners and interveners in line with the law and the binding rulings of the Supreme Court.

Dozens of individuals filed around 15 petitions between 2022 and 2026, while several others submitted applications seeking to intervene in those matters. The petitioners and interveners said they were differently-abled persons and sought appointments under the five per cent quota reserved for them in terms of an order of the Supreme Court.

During the hearing, an assistant advocate general (AAG) for Sindh told the court that a mechanism existed through a digital job portal and an integrated grievance redressal system to ensure timely resolution of complaints related to the matter. The law officer further submitted that the initiative was based on the Sindh Empowerment of Persons with Disabilities Act, 2018, which provides for the protection of rights and equal opportunities for such persons in education, employment, healthcare and public life.

After hearing arguments at length, all sides agreed that the petitions could be disposed of in terms of a common order passed by the Supreme Court in March last year. That order had directed the Sindh government to ensure appointments of differently-abled persons in accordance with the quota prescribed under the law.

Court cites constitutional protections

In its order, the SHC said the grievance raised in the petitions was fully covered by authoritative pronouncements of the Supreme Court as well as the consistent view taken by the high court in other petitions on the same subject.

The court observed that the right of differently-abled persons to be considered for public employment against the prescribed quota was no longer res integra and was rooted in the principles of equality contained in Articles 4, 18, and 25 of the Constitution.

It further held that propriety required the candidature of the petitioners to be reassessed for appointment with meaningful consideration and without fail. The bench also observed that the relevant DRCs must not create any obstacle in that reassessment, noting that the Supreme Court had unequivocally reaffirmed that the quota reserved for such persons was not directory but obligatory, and that the government was under a legal duty to implement it in letter and spirit.

The order also asked the district recruitment bodies to act expeditiously in dealing with the cases of the petitioners and interveners in accordance with the law and the Supreme Court’s binding dicta.