Justice Sunanda Bhandare Foundation v. Union of India 2026 INSC 441 - Rights of Persons with Disabilities Act
Rights of Persons with Disabilities Act, 2016 - The Supreme Court accepts the Union of India’s clarification, through DoPT instructions, that PwBD candidates who qualify on their own merit without relaxed standards must be adjusted against unreserved vacancies, with reservation operating horizontally and “upward movement” permitted. Persistent non‑compliance with the 2016 Act across the country - National Law Universities (under “Project Ability Empowerment”) to carry out a detailed, substantive assessment of implementation in all States/UTs, with National Law University, Delhi specifically tasked to map Union of India’s compliance.
Case Info
Case Information Extracted
Case name: Justice Sunanda Bhandare Foundation v. Union of India & Ors.Neutral citation: 2026 INSC 441
Coram:Justice Vikram Nath and Justice Sandeep Mehta
Judgment/order date:28 April 2026 (Order passed at New Delhi)
Caselaws and citations referred
The extracted text of the order does not mention any other decided cases by name or citation. It mainly refers back to this Court’s own earlier orders in the same proceedings:
- Judgment and order dated 12 September 2025 (in the same matter, including para 53).
- Order dated 15 April 2026.
- Judgment and order dated 25 April 2017 (earlier stage of the same long‑running litigation on disability rights).
No external case-law citations (like SCC, AIR references, or other party names) appear in the provided text.
Statutes / laws referred
The order repeatedly refers to:
- Rights of Persons with Disabilities Act, 2016.
- Persons with Disabilities (Equal Opportunities, Protection of Rights and Full Participation) Act, 1995(as the earlier regime).
It also refers to policy instruments of the Union of India:
- Office Memoranda of the Department of Personnel and Training (DoPT) dated 15 January 2018, 17 May 2022, and 27 September 2022 on reservation and “own merit” for persons with benchmark disabilities (PwBD).
Three‑sentence brief summary
This order in Justice Sunanda Bhandare Foundation v. Union of India & Ors. records that almost all States and Union Territories have now appointed Nodal Officers for monitoring implementation of the Rights of Persons with Disabilities Act, 2016, with a final deadline of 15 May 2026 for the remaining Union Territories of Lakshadweep and Ladakh. The Supreme Court accepts the Union of India’s clarification, through DoPT instructions, that PwBD candidates who qualify on their own merit without relaxed standards must be adjusted against unreserved vacancies, with reservation operating horizontally and “upward movement” permitted. Recognising persistent non‑compliance with the 2016 Act across the country, the Court assigns National Law Universities (under “Project Ability Empowerment”) to carry out a detailed, substantive assessment of implementation in all States/UTs, with National Law University, Delhi specifically tasked to map Union of India’s compliance, and lists the matter on 22 September 2026 for updated status reports.