Five-year-old Inika Sharma, who has cerebral palsy, wanted nothing more than to enjoy the playground swing like any other child during a weekend visit to Delhi's Sunder Nursery, a restored heritage park in Nizamuddin.
What followed instead was a confrontation with security staff and an insensitive remark captured in a viral video - a painful reminder of the hurdles children with disabilities face.
While the parents claim Inika was denied access to the swings, Sunder Nursery authorities tell a different story.
According to the family's account, Inika approached the swings or children's rides. A guard intervened, allegedly telling them to move her away and saying, "Inko hatao, inka dimag thik nahi hai ("Remove her, her mind is not right)."
Father Raman Sharma confronted the guard immediately.
"How can they degrade her like that? Have you received any training? You know what you're doing is illegal?" he asked in the heat of the moment, as captured in the video his wife recorded. "It's not only ignorance but also arrogance."
Mother Mona Misra's heartbreak was palpable.
"I couldn't believe it. It broke my heart," she said. "All those supervisors came, but he continued to say the same thing 'bacche ka dimag thik nai hai'."
The family alleges they were "ganged up on," asked to leave, and experienced some physical pushing ("thoda hathapai hui").
No apology came, the parents say.
Support arrived only from other parents at the park who stepped in to question the guards.
The video, posted by Mona on @inika_unstoppable, exploded online.
Netizens expressed fury: "Kicking a disabled child out of a playground is not a policy failure; it is a moral collapse."
Comments highlighted the broader issue: roughly 2.5 lakh children with disabilities live in Delhi alone, and attitudes like this reinforce exclusion.
The family has not filed a formal complaint, citing the demands of hands-on caregiving. Instead, they demand justice through awareness, stronger enforcement of the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (RPwD) Act, and mandatory sensitisation for staff in public spaces.
Ratish Nanda, CEO of Aga Khan Trust for Culture, which built and manages Sunder Nursery, told NDTV that he has apologised to the family for the guard's language. He added that the intent of the guard was to ensure safety for the child, and that sensitisation training is underway for all the staff, with outreach to relevant NGOs.
The CCTV footage accessed by NDTV shows the family was welcomed without obstruction: the guard assisted entry, both parents were allowed (despite the usual one-parent rule) due to Inika's needs, and she enjoyed the swing facilities with her mother present.
The family spent over an hour in the Children's Playhouse undisturbed.
The only restriction, Nanda said, was on the zipline-a high-risk activity barred for safety reasons, applied uniformly to everyone. He added that the parents later manhandled and abused the guard.
Sunder Nursery reiterated its commitment to being "an inclusive, safe, and family-friendly space for all visitors, including children with special needs, within reasonable safety guidelines."
Inika's Journey
Born after a traumatic delivery, Inika spent her first days fighting for life in the ICU. Doctors diagnosed her with severe Hypoxic-Ischemic Encephalopathy (HIE Stage 3), the gravest form of brain injury, and gave her parents, Raman Sharma and Mona Misra, a stark prognosis: zero chance of survival, or - if she lived - a lifetime of being bedridden, unable to walk, talk, eat, or interact meaningfully with the world.
Her parents refused to accept that verdict.
"We didn't lose hope," Mona Misra recalls, her voice steady despite the emotion. "She was blue, in pain, stuck. Doctors said if she survives, she will be vegetative. But she defied everything."
What followed was years of relentless effort: 5-6 hours of daily therapy, including hippotherapy (horse riding), hydrotherapy, rock climbing, swimming, and specialised treatments. The family even travelled to Singapore in October last for advanced medical intervention.
Doctors called her progress a "miracle" and encouraged outdoor exposure: "Let her cherish what she fought to learn."
Today, Inika walks with a distinctive gait due to her condition, cycles, runs short distances, rides horses, and climbs. Father Raman told NDTV, "Her sheer willpower, more than muscle strength limited by cerebral palsy, has carried her forward".
Her Instagram page, @inika_unstoppable, with around 5,000 followers, chronicles this journey and inspires thousands.
Yet that hard-won freedom to simply be a child in a park was challenged this weekend.
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