Despite the Law Commission's 2015 recommendations, discriminatory laws against persons affected by leprosy persist. Examine the reasons and suggest a way forward.

The Law Commission's Report No. 256 (2015) found that Indian laws "directly and indirectly" discriminate against persons affected by leprosy, and it proposed a model anti-discrimination law [1]. Some reform has followed, but repeal is only partial. Leprosy is curable, yet the law still punishes it.

Reasons for persistence

• Federal spread of the problem: In 2019, 108 discriminatory laws were identified: 3 Union laws and 105 State laws [2]. Parliament cannot repeal State laws, and in 2025 the NLEP was still urging States/UTs to abolish them [3].
• Piecemeal reform: The Personal Laws (Amendment) Act, 2019 removed leprosy as a ground for divorce in five personal laws [4]. Municipal, transport, local-body and other rules were left untouched.
• Model law not enacted: The Health Minister asked for the EDPAL Bill, drafted in Report No. 256, to be expedited [2]. It has not been passed.
• Advisories are not binding: The NHRC's 2022 advisory flagged discriminatory provisions in 97 laws [5]. It can only recommend, not compel, repeal.
• Outdated beliefs written into law: The 2019 Act's Statement of Objects admits these laws came from the myth that leprosy is incurable [4]. Stigma rooted in deformity still shapes official attitudes [3].
• Low political priority: Prevalence has fallen to about 0.57 per 10,000 [3]. Leprosy now looks like a "solved" problem, so legal reform gets little attention.

Way forward

• One overriding central law: Enact the Law Commission's model law with a non-obstante clause [1], so all remaining discriminatory provisions fall in a single step.
• Time-bound State action: Use the NHRC list of 97 laws [5] as a checklist, with action-taken reports and monitoring through the Centre-State health forum.
• Use existing rights law: Apply the RPwD Act, 2016, which covers persons cured of leprosy, and the Article 14/21 guarantees of equality and dignity.
• Stigma reduction tied to case-finding: Link the Sparsh campaign and IEC (public awareness) work under the LCDC to legal awareness [3]. Replace derogatory terms in official language [5].
• Global alignment: Treat "zero discrimination" as an NLEP goal on par with zero transmission and zero disability [6].

Legal exclusion has outlasted medical cure because of federal fragmentation, piecemeal amendment and lingering stigma. A single overriding law with State accountability would complete what Report No. 256 began. That would honour constitutional dignity, advance SDG 3 and SDG 10, and support India's goal of a leprosy-free 2027 [3].