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News: The article discusses the changes in India’s human rights record and its implications.
Facts:
- There are concerns raised by activists, academics and human rights organisations about deteriorating climate in relation to human rights.
- In January 2019, four UN Special Rapporteurs mandated to report on summary executions, torture, freedom of religion, and the situation of human rights defenders issued a statement drawing attention to “extrajudicial” killings in Uttar Pradesh.
- UN experts highlighted the “patterns of events”, including arrest, detention and torture prior to encounter of 59 individuals since March 2017.
- A total of 26 critical statements have been issued by the UN since 2010 and 9 were issued in 2018, highest number of negative statements on India in the period.
- The issues raised by UN include Assam National Register of Citizens process, online hate speech, the killing of Gauri Lankesh, jailing of human rights activists, deportation of Rohingya refugees, and excessive police response to protests.
Although the reports highlight human rights violations in India but India has consistently raised the issue of politicization of human rights issue as a foreign policy tool. For example usage of human rights issues by US to intervene in Iraq, Afghanistan and Syria.
Implications of the findings:
- India, world’s largest democracy, is embarking on an increasingly significant role in the world supported by its economic and military power.
- However, an important component of this enhanced stature is its ability to safeguard and protect human rights, which is a blind spot for India considering its human rights record.
What can be done?
- Primary consideration for India should be the welfare and rights of individuals within the purview of the state.
- India should be concerned about the perception and the place that it wants for itself in terms of stature and prestige. From both perspectives, the respect of the rights of individuals must be non-negotiable.
