Delhi High Court Issues Notice On Plea Alleging Swiggy, Zepto Mobile Apps Are Inaccessible For Persons With Disabilities

The Delhi High Court on Wednesday (April 23) issued notice on a plea alleging that the mobile applications of Swiggy and Zepto platforms are inaccessible for Persons with Disabilities (PwDs).

Justice Sachin Datta sought response of the Union Ministry of Electronics & Information Technology, Swiggy and Zepto.

The matter has been fixed for hearing on May 28.

The petition has been filed by Mission Accessibility, an NGO advocating rights of PwDs. Advocate Rahul Bajaj appeared for the petitioner.

The plea submits that the mobile applications in question are inaccessible for PwDs, particularly those with visual impairments, as such people are prevented from using essential services such as food delivery, grocery shopping, and restaurant reservations.

It adds that both Zepto and Swiggy platforms have failed to ensure compliance of accessibility requirements under Sections 40 and 46 of the RPwD Act and Rule 15 of the RPwD Rules, 2017.

As per the plea, the lack of accessible search features, unlabelled interactive elements, absence of essential product details, and the inability of visually impaired users to position their device cameras for necessary transactions, such as returning items, create severe barriers to independent digital access.

The petition seeks a direction on the two platforms to submit a detailed accessibility audit report from a government-empaneled auditor identifying all existing barriers faced by persons with disabilities on their digital platforms.

A direction is also sought on Zepto and Swiggy to provide a long- term strategy to ensure that all future updates, modifications, and newly introduced features remain fully accessible and compliant with established accessibility standards.

It further seeks that mandatory sensitization and training programs be conducted for their developers, designers, and customer support teams of the platforms regarding accessibility requirements and best practices.

Further, the plea seeks a direction on Zepto and Swiggy to make their return and refund process accessible for customers with blindness and to integrate accessibility considerations into the design and development process for all new features introduced on their digital platforms at launch.

Title: MISSION ACCESSlBILITY v. SWIGGY LIMITED & ORS