Why did the Puja Khedkar case cause a ruckus over the disability quota? | In Focus podcast

Published: July 26, 2024, 10:31 a.m.

The case of a probationary IAS officer Puja Khedkar has exploded in the news recently. While a lot has been said and written with regard to Ms. Khedkar\u2019s alleged demand for privileges and her use of a red-blue beacon on her private car made headlines, what has also come under the scanner is the disability quota in the All India Services \u2013 Ms. Khedkar has been accused of falsely claiming to have disabilities to use the quota. This was followed by India\u2019s G20 Sherpa Amitabh Kant calling for a \u201creview\u201d of the reservations for persons with disabilities, as he claimed they were being misused. And then, Telangana IAS officer, Smita Sabharwal questioned the need for this quota. Even as this continues to rage on social media platforms, what is not making the news quite as much is that there are candidates with disabilities who have qualified in the civil services exams but are yet to be placed.\xa0\nSo why is the disability quota \u2013 and this quota alone \u2013 being targeted? What do the rules say with regard to this reservations? What is the certification process like and does this need changes or loopholes to be plugged? And why do there continue to be barriers for persons with disabilities who qualify in the exams?\xa0\n\nGuest: Rahul Bajaj, practicing lawyer, co-founder at Mission Accessibility, Senior Associate Fellow at the Vidhi Centre for Legal Policy and adjunct faculty at BML Munjal University School of Law\xa0\nHost: Zubeda Hamid\xa0\nEdited by Sharmada Venkatasubramanian.