Overview

Many of the current policies and practices “authorised” by the Indian state require wary assessment of the Human Rights perspective. The latest Human Rights Amendment Bill, 2018 and the ongoing process of forming a Central Government focused on leadership roles and the rights of a democracy, provide an opportunity for reflection regarding India’s human rights record. Maybe, there is a need for reappraisal as well. In the Indian context, framework and policies, shore up and determine many of its practices. India with the dramatic impact on its economic growth, adopted the capitalistic model pertaining to its success in the West, until the recent collapse. However, the middling improvement in the Indian economy actually increased the income inequality for the majority of those living in Bharat.

Poverty based on headcounts may have reduced, deprivation, defined as the disparity between base and mean consumption, has increased many fold. The non-inclusive nature of India’s recent growth has resulted in development without social and distributive justice for the majority.

A rising tide of violence has further marred already existing economic paradoxes. Ideological or religious dimensions seem to be the reason of conflict, but their underlying cause is more often social and economic. For example, the deprivation of basic rights for large sections of the population and the gross disparity between the rich and the poor over an extended period of time lead to the deprived becoming disillusioned with the democratic process. The Naxalite movement, with its philosophy of armed revolution spreading through many poor and deprived parts of India, is a clear indicator of such a trend.

Some of the legislations for protection and enforcement of various human rights are discussed here to illustrate the nature of commitment that our country has demonstrated towards protection of Human Rights. The Parliament has legislated Protection of Civil Rights Act, 1955 to curb the menace of untouchability. Also, the Parliament has ratified the SC and ST (Prevention of Atrocities) Act, 1989, with a view to prevent the commission of offences of atrocities against the members of the Scheduled Castes and the Scheduled Tribes. This Act provides for Special Courts for the trial of such offences and for the relief and rehabilitation of the victims of such offences. Another important legislation in this direction has been enactment of the Pre-Conception and Pre-Natal Diagnostic Techniques (PCPNDT) Act, 1994 to prevent female feticides by use of sex determination technologies. Further Parliament also enacted the Protection of Women From Domestic Violence Act, 2005, a comprehensive and singular legislation to protect women from abuse and harassment within the four walls of a home. Apart from that not only inside the homes, the Parliament has also sought to protect women at work places by enacting the Sexual Harassment of Women at Workplace (Prevention, Prohibition and Redressal) Act, 2013. With respect to sexual orientation and gender equality, a parliamentary committee acquiesced to a draft Transgender Persons (Protection of Rights) Bill, in August 2016. The Bill adopted a 2014 Supreme Court ruling, guaranteeing transgender people the right to self-determine their gender identity. Recently, the Union Cabinet chaired by Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi has given its approval to the Protection of Human Rights (Amendments) Bill, 2018 (“Bill”) for better protection and promotion of human rights in the country. The Amendment is expected to fortify the Human Rights Institutions of India for effective discharge of their mandates, roles and responsibilities. The amended Act will be in sync with the agreed global standards and benchmarks towards ensuring the rights relating to life, liberty, equality and dignity of the individual citizen and residents in India.

The Constitution of the Republic of India which came into force on 26th January 1950 with 395 Articles and 8 Schedules is one of the most elaborate fundamental laws ever adopted. The Constitution of India provides for Fundamental Rights, which include freedom of religion.  The Constitutional clauses also provide for freedom of speech, as well as separation of executive and judiciary and freedom of movement within the country and abroad. The Preamble to the Constitution declares India to be a Sovereign, Socialist, Secular and Democratic Republic. The term ‘democratic’ denotes that the Government gets its authority from the will of the people which means all are equal “irrespective of the race, caste, religion, language, sex and culture.” The Preamble to the Constitution pledges justice, social, economic and political, liberty of thought, expression, belief, faith and worship, equality of status and of opportunity and fraternity assuring the dignity of the individual and the unity and integrity of the nation to all its citizens.

India was a co-signer to the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. The Fundamental Rights are defined as basic human freedoms that every Indian citizen has the right to enjoy for a proper and symphonic development of personality. These rights universally apply to all citizens, irrespective of race, place of birth, religion, caste or gender. A number of fundamental rights assure the individuals that Part III of the Indian Constitution is similar to the provisions of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. The Supreme Court of India recognizes these fundamental rights as ’Natural Rights’ or ’Human Rights’. It is important to understand the basic difference between fundamental rights, which are granted by governments and are awarded by national constitutions while, human rights apply to each and every individual, regardless of their nationality, position, ethnicity, caste, sex and religion.

Everyone has the right to take part in the government of his country, directly or through freely chosen representatives. Article 21 of the Indian Constitution is of widest amplitude and several unenumerated rights fall within it. No doubt these rights have been assimilated in Indian Constitution; however, there are huge gaps in the implementation of the Human Rights principles. Human rights in India require the existence and protection of a well-regulated society. Only the society and the state can guarantee these human rights to the individual. Human rights violations make headlines regularly, and the violators often get away with impunity.

Current practices:

The policies in existence have resulted in many practices being authorised by the Indian state which do not conform to international law or uphold the Constitution of the country. The charge of sedition, when brought up by the government and the police acting in unison, often results in a paralysis within the already slow judicial system.

Human rights organizations, including Amnesty International, have been systematically studying these issues and have been recommending changes in policies and practice in India. The changes will require the acceptance of the principle that development has to be tempered with social justice, economic growth with inclusion. Human rights will have to receive high priority. It is mandatory that violence and terror be combated with the establishment of justice, especially for the poor and the marginalized. While the country’s security concerns are genuine and India has the moral and legal authority to protect its people, sole reliance on security measures, which often result in human rights abuses, will not achieve the goals of peace and prosperity. Indian policies should focus on social justice and on inclusive growth and development, which in the long term will provide greater security for its entire people.

These days mob violence has intensified. Official statistics released in November stated that more than 40,000 crimes against Scheduled Castes were reported in 2016 (though a portion of them may be frivolous complaints). Several incidents were reported of members of dominant castes attacking Dalits for accessing public and social spaces or for perceived caste transgressions. In fact the current controversy concerning the rights of a Dalit youth to ride a horse for his marriage in Indore is a case in point. The violation of Human rights of women and girls, take different forms, from being paraded naked, raped, to being taken to the “Khap Panchayats” which connotes an institution which controls a particular area where it has supremacy either in the name of the clan or the gotra, which either controls that area, or by the name of geographical area. The main criticism of Khap Panchayats is that rights of women are not respected. Khaps adhere to foist outdated concept of women’s dignity and submissiveness to men on the ground of patriarchal society. They enforce age old patriarchal notions of the society and punish those who violate them. Women are abused and their issues are never addressed. Most of the Khap rules are against law. Rule of men rather than rule of law prevails. Several survivors of rape, including girls, approached courts for permission to terminate pregnancies over 20 weeks, as required under Indian law. Courts approved some abortions, but refused others. In August 2017, the Central Government instructed States to set up permanent medical boards to decide such cases promptly. While we are finalizing this article, we come to know of the salutary amendments brought in by way of ordinance approving death penalty for rape of young children (See Criminal Law Amendment Ordinance, 2018). This is a quick reaction of the Government to various recent incidents involving barbaric child rape.

Rising issue of honor killing, corporal punishment, custodial death, fake encounter killing, etc. are objectionable. It is the responsibility of every Indian to respect the rights of another individual irrespective of race, color, sex, caste, language, religion, political or other opinion, national or social origin, property, birth or other status. To expunge human right violation may be impossible but it always possible to bring changes if we take individual responsibility on our own shoulder.

Salient Features of the Human Rights Amendment Bill, 2018:

The Bill proposed to include:

• The National Commission for Protection of Child Rights” as deemed Member of the Commission;
• A woman Member in the composition of the Commission;
• And enlarge the scope of eligibility and scope of selection of Chairperson, National Human Rights Commission as well as the State Human Rights Commission; and
• A mechanism to look after the cases of human rights violation in the Union Territories.
• And amend the term of office of Chairperson and Members of National Human Rights Commission and State Human Rights Commission to make it in consonance with the terms of Chairperson and Members of other Commissions.

It is not the sole but a very peculiar responsibility of the governments in every nation (according to the Universal Declaration of Human Rights) to protect and promote Human Rights.

A conclusive analysis:

 Over the years there have been many changes made in law with respect to protection of rights of human some of them being:

(a) The practice of ‘Triple Talaq’ was put to an end by an order of the Hon’ble Supreme Court.

(b) A new law with respect to mental health, which provides for mental health care and services for everyone and decriminalizes suicide.

(c) Equal rights for women were incorporated to strengthen the Fundamental Rights.

(d) It was declared by the Apex Court that the Right to Privacy is important and a fundamental right under the Constitution of India and emphasized on its protection (including protection of freedom of speech).

The Amendment will strengthen the Human Rights Institutions of India further for effective discharge of their mandates, roles and responsibilities. Moreover, the amended Act will be in perfect sync with the agreed global standards and benchmarks towards ensuring the rights relating to life, liberty, equality and dignity of the individual in the country. The amendment to the Protection of Human Rights Act, 1993 will make National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) and State Human Rights Commission (SHRC) more compliant with the Paris Principles concerning their autonomy, independence, pluralism and wide-ranging functions in order to effectively protect and promote human rights.

This amendment is aimed at strengthening the Human Rights institutions in the country for effective discharge of their mandatory roles and responsibilities. The most affected areas which require attention are Increasing violent protests, the ill treatment towards dalits/ tribal groups/ religious groups, rights of persons with disabilities, sexual orientation of an individual, etc.

The Bill is a welcome initiative of the government. The scope and eligibility of people manning it is yet to come out. The Chairperson of the National Child’s Rights will be a deemed member is a welcome step in the right direction. The Apex body wanting to work towards children’s rights is an assurance that 4 out of 10 children will no longer suffer from malnutrition or stunted growth. That is a victory for Human Rights.

With this amendment, the human rights institutions will be strengthened in India and will be able to do their best to perform their responsibilities. Not only this, the Human Rights Act will enable implementation of global standards to ensure the rights related to life, independence, equality and honor of individuals.