SC seeks govt's reply to plea on vacancies in NCSK

The Supreme Court today sought the Union government's response to a plea over non-filling of vacancies in the National Commission for Safai Karamcharis (NCSK), which it claimed was rendered "defunct" since April 2016.
A bench comprising Chief Justice J S Khehar, besides Justices D Y Chandrachud and S K Kaul asked the Centre to respond within four weeks to the plea which alleged that the government had not filled up the vacancies despite making an assurance to the apex court last year.
The government had on November 25 last year informed the court that vacancies in the NCSK would be filled within six weeks.

The court had then ordered the needful to be done "expeditiously but not later than two months from today".
Advocate Radhakanta Tripathy, who had filed the petition seeking a direction to the government to appoint the chairperson, vice-chairperson and other members of NCSK, had earlier told the court that as the commission was lying "defunct" since April 1 last year, grievances of the safai karamcharis were not being addressed.
The petitioner had approached the apex court contending that though the government had extended the tenure of NCSK for another three years from April 1, 2016, the posts were lying vacant after the retirement of the chairperson and other members.

"It is highly painful to inform this court that there is none in this commission including the chairperson, vice chairperson and five other members one of whom should be a woman.
As a result, the goal of the government to eradicate the practice of manual scavenging and uplift the standard of safai karamcharis was not being achieved, the petitioner had said.