UPSC 2014 topper faces online trolling over disability
What's the story
In a shameful incident, Deputy Commissioner (Keshavpuram), North Delhi Municipal Corporation, Ira Singhal was recently trolled on social media over her disability. On Sunday, Singhal, who became the first disabled person to top Union Public Service Commission (UPSC) in 2014, shared screenshots of comments from her Instagram profile to highlight an incident where she faced verbal abuse. Here's what went down.
Details
Singhal, who suffers from Scoliosis, addressed by slur
"For anyone who thinks people with disabilities don't have to face anything, as the world is nice and kind," Singhal wrote on Facebook, sharing the screenshots. The screenshots highlighted one of the comments on her posts where Singhal was addressed as kubdi - a Hindi slur for someone with a crooked back. Singhal suffers from a spine-related disorder called Scoliosis, with 62% locomotor disability.
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"This is why we need Inclusive Schools"
Singhal further added, "This is probably a person who wants to be a Civil Servant. This is why we need Inclusive Schools and this is why we need our education system to focus on producing better human beings more than anything else."
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Singhal says she 'cannot be bullied'
However, Singhal said that he "picked someone who cannot be bullied" as "being disabled- andha, behra, kubda, etc.- are not bad things." Saying that she doesn't want him to be punished as that wouldn't change his mentality, she said criticizing the incident is fine, but "if we think he's wrong because that word is bad, then we need to make that word become ok."
Facebook Post
Check out Singhal's Facebook post here
History
In 2010, Singhal barred from posting despite clearing UPSC
Notably, Singhal had faced ableism even being in civil services. She had first cleared the civil services examinations in 2010, securing an all-India rank of 815, but she was refused a posting due to her "inability to push, pull and lift." Not only did she win a case when she moved the Central Administrative Tribunal (CAT) over the discrimination, in 2014, she topped UPSC.