New Delhi: Senior Congress leader Shashi Tharoor, who sprained his left foot last week, on Tuesday took to Twitter to complain about the “poorly equipped” facilities in Parliament for people with disabilities as he reached the Lok Sabha in a wheelchair.
When you need to enter Parliament in a wheelchair, there’s only one entrance with a ramp, at door 9, a good four minute trip (with the assistance of helpers) to the Lok Sabha. This temporary disability has taught me how poorly equipped we are to support people with disabilities pic.twitter.com/X6WyS9Ivvp
— Shashi Tharoor (@ShashiTharoor) December 20, 2022
The incident, according to him, showed him how “poorly equipped” the nation is to support those with disabilities. The Congress leader and MP is recovering from a sprained foot after falling in the Parliament. The 66-year-old has been advised to rest his foot. Tharoor tweeted, “When you need to enter Parliament in a wheelchair, there’s only one entrance with a ramp, at door 9, a good four-minute trip (with the assistance of helpers) to the Lok Sabha.” “This temporary disability has taught me how poorly equipped we are to support people with disabilities,” he added.
A lot of netizens related to the incident and tweeted in favour of the incident. “Well, no one really understands these issues 100% until it happens to them. Not to blame you or anyone, but atleast you had the assistance who helped you. Imagine a disabled teacher who worked for 25 years. Everyday walking up the stairs to take classes on the first floor ….,” a user wrote. Another user wrote, “I see 3 people supporting you, and yet you find facilities poor. You will never have an idea of how a ‘common’ disabled person copes with life. So stop shedding crocodile tears. Get well soon.” “Sad that you had to through this to get a reality check. This is ‘Parliament’, imagine the plight of the common man who has to commute through local transport to earn a livelihood. No public transport has access for disabled people including people with other physical disabilities,” added Alka Arora. Last week, Tharoor had an accident after skipping a step in the Parliament. He posted photos of himself lying in bed wearing a cast on his left ankle. He was forced to miss a meeting of parliament because the doctor advised him to rest his foot.
