A complaint was filed before the National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) to notify a severe and systematic violation of fundamental rights being done by the newly launched Census 2027 Self-Enumeration Portal.
The complainant alleged that the digital infrastructure used by the Office of Registrar General and the Census Commissioner actively disqualified Persons with Disabilities (PwD), linguistic minorities, and economically disadvantaged groups, violating Articles 14, 15, and 21 of the Constitution. It was asserted that the portal lacked essential assistive technologies, especially a built-in Text-to-Speech screen reader, high-contrast modes, and keyboard-only alternatives for its interactive mapping features. The complainant stated that this was a blatant violation of Section 42 of the Rights of Persons with Disabilities Act, 2016 and also alleged that the portal failed to meet the mandatory Guidelines for Indian Government Websites (GIGW 3.0) and WCAG 2.1 Level AA standards.
Further, the complainant asserted that the primary interfaces did not provide options for the 22 regional languages recognized under the 8th Schedule of the Constitution, compelling citizens to navigate an English/Hindi login barrier before accessing regional languages. It was stated that this locked out millions of non-Hindi and non-English speaking citizens. The complaint mentioned that the census portal’s design was in defiance of the Supreme Court’s decision in Amar Jain v. Union of India & Ors. (W.P.(C) 49 of 2025).
The complainant prayed for issuance of notices to the Ministry of Home Affairs, the Registrar General, and the Census Commissioner of India and to direct the authorities to make the portal compliant with the RPwD Act, GIGW 3.0, WCAG 2.1.
NHRC considered the complaint and held that the matter was such that it could be agitated before the court/appropriate forum. Thus, the matter was dismissed in limine.
The complainant announced that a comprehensive Public Interest Litigation seeking a writ of Mandamus for the present matter would now be filed before the Punjab and Haryana High Court.
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