What has govt done for us, ask differently abled
PROTEST Interrupt minister’s speech, seek answer on 21 demands
JAIPUR: Minister for social justice and empowerment Arun Chaturvedi was heckled by some differently abled people at a felicitation programme for them in Jaipur on Saturday. The protesters wanted the minister to listen to their demands.
It happened so when a programme to honour outstanding differently abled people and the organisations working for them was being held on the International Day of Persons with Disabilities at the Officer Training School.
While the minister, present as chief guest at the function, was giving away the awards, a differently-abled person from the audience started shouting. He said the demands of differently-abled people should be heard. “We ran a 27-day campaign in MayJune this year. Which of those demands have you accepted?” shouted Ratan Lal Bairwa. His words followed a loud applause from the audience comprising mostly of the community people. “What has the government done for the specially-abled?” shouted another one. The minister asked them not to interrupt the programme and that he would hear their demands after the programme was over.
Meanwhile, a smaller group started opposing the protesters and the two groups got into a minor scuffle.
The minister later said that a high-power committee comprising 15 senior officers of concerned departments and five representatives of differentlyabled has already been formed to find solutions to the problems of differently abled. “The government is always willing to listen to the problems of the specially-abled at proper forum,” he added. Bairwa said, “None of the 21 demands that we made during our campaign have been accepted.”