New Delhi, Aug 17 The Delhi High Court has asked the Centre, the CBFC and film producers to consider concerns for including features to make films accessible to persons with disabilities.
The court has said the stakeholders should make an endeavour to arrive at an appropriate and workable solution and a decision should positively be taken within two weeks.
The court passed the order while hearing a petition filed by Rahul Bajaj, a practising lawyer and a visually-impaired person, raising concerns on accessibility of films released in theatres and on over-the-top (OTT) platforms.
Bajaj has said he is unable to access films on an equal footing with other members of the public in the absence of appropriate accessibility features, particularly audio description and same-language captioning or subtitling or Indian sign language.
The petitioner has said despite the statutory and regulatory framework mandating accessibility for persons with disabilities, films including "Pushpa 2: The Rule" continue to be exhibited without such features on a universal basis with accessibility, where provided, being restricted to a limited number of theatres.
Considering the nature and wider implications of the grievances raised, Justice Swarana Kanta Sharma felt it was appropriate to afford an opportunity to all the stakeholders to deliberate upon the issue and explore a mutually-acceptable resolution.
"Accordingly, a joint meeting of all stakeholders, including the petitioner and the respondents, shall be convened within a period of one week from today to consider the broader concerns regarding accessibility of films raised by the petitioner," the court said in an order passed on August 10.
The court listed the matter for September 11 and said it has to be informed about the outcome of the meeting on that date.
During the hearing, the counsel for the respondents submitted that the grievance raised by the petitioner in relation to the film "Pushpa 2: The Rule" has already been addressed and appropriate measures have been taken.
The petitioner submitted that the grievance raised in the petition was not confined to "Pushpa 2: The Rule" alone, but concerned the accessibility of films generally.
Similar difficulties continue to be faced by persons with disabilities in accessing other films, he said.
The petition has sought directions to the Union Ministry of Information and Broadcasting (MIB) and the Central Board of Film Certification (CBFC) to take measures to put in place accessibility features, assistive devices and technologies in theatres.
It has said films continue to be exhibited without the accessibility features mandated under the Rights of Persons with Disabilities Act.
