Human Rights and NHRC Notes for UPSC: UDHR, Protection of Human Rights Act 1993, NHRC, SHRC, National Commissions for SC, ST, OBC, Women, Children and Minorities Explained

Human rights are the basic rights and freedoms to which every person is entitled just because he or she is a human being: the right to life, to equality, to dignity, to freedom from torture and to a fair trial. In India, these rights are protected by the Constitution, the laws and the institutions: the courts, the National Human Rights Commission (NHRC), the State Human Rights Commissions and the specialised commissions for the women, the children, the minorities and the weaker sections. For UPSC, this topic is a regular part of the Prelims (the NHRC composition and powers, the international instruments and the commissions) and of the Mains (GS II: the role of the statutory and quasi-judicial bodies, and the issues of the human rights). These notes explain the international framework, the Protection of Human Rights Act, 1993, the working and the limits of the NHRC, the SHRCs, the other national commissions, the key issues and the reforms, in an exam-friendly format.

Why Human Rights Institutions Are Important for UPSC

These institutions test the quality of governance and the protection of liberty. They are also the favourite of the Prelims because they have many facts such as the year, the composition, the appointing committee and the powers. In the Mains, they connect with the Polity, the Social Justice and the Ethics. Read this with our notes on Fundamental Rights, Constitutional Bodies and Women Empowerment.

International Framework

The UN Human Rights Council (Geneva, replaced the Commission on Human Rights in 2006) has 47 members elected by the General Assembly, and uses the Universal Periodic Review (UPR) to review the human rights record of every UN member state. India has been elected to the Council several times. The UN High Commissioner for Human Rights heads the OHCHR.

Human Rights in the Indian Constitution

The Fundamental Rights (Part III) are the justiciable human rights: equality (Articles 14 to 18), freedom (19 to 22), against exploitation (23 and 24), religion (25 to 28), the cultural and educational rights (29 and 30), and the constitutional remedies (32). The Directive Principles (Part IV) reflect the economic and social rights. The Supreme Court has widened the right to life under Article 21 to cover the dignity, the privacy, the livelihood, the clean environment, the education and the health. The Protection of Human Rights Act, 1993 defines the human rights as those relating to the life, liberty, equality and dignity guaranteed by the Constitution or embodied in the international covenants and enforceable by the courts in India.

National Human Rights Commission (NHRC)

The NHRC was set up on 12 October 1993 under the Protection of Human Rights Act, 1993 (amended in 2006 and 2019), following the Paris Principles. It is a statutory body, not a constitutional one, with its headquarters in New Delhi.

Functions and Powers

• To inquire, on a petition or on its own (suo motu), into the violation of the human rights or the negligence in preventing it by a public servant.
• To intervene in the court proceedings involving the allegations of the human rights violations.
• To visit the jails and the other institutions where the persons are detained, to study the living conditions.
• To review the constitutional and legal safeguards and the factors that inhibit the enjoyment of the rights, including the terrorism, and recommend measures.
• To study the international treaties and promote the research and the awareness of the human rights.
• It has the powers of a civil court while inquiring, and can use the investigating staff and the services of the central or the state government officers.

Limitations

• The NHRC's recommendations are not binding; it can only recommend the compensation, the prosecution or other action. The government must report on the action taken within one month.
• It cannot normally look into a complaint made after one year of the incident.
• It has limited power in the case of the armed forces: it can only seek a report from the Central Government.
• It does not have its own investigation agency for all the cases, and it depends on the cooperation of the governments.

State Human Rights Commissions (SHRCs) and the Human Rights Courts

The Act allows the states to set up the State Human Rights Commission. The Chairperson is a former Chief Justice or a former judge of a High Court (a former District Judge can also be a member), the appointment is made by the Governor on the recommendation of a committee headed by the Chief Minister, and the removal needs the inquiry by the Supreme Court. An SHRC looks at the violations in the subjects of the State List and the Concurrent List. The Act also provides for the Human Rights Courts in each district for the speedy trial of the offences arising out of the human rights violations.

Other National Commissions for the Vulnerable Sections

Major Human Rights Issues in India

• Custodial violence and the extrajudicial killings: Deaths in the police and the judicial custody, and the "fake encounters", which the NHRC and the Supreme Court have criticised (the D.K. Basu guidelines on the arrest).
• Manual scavenging (prohibited by the Act of 2013), the child labour and the bonded labour, and the human trafficking.
• Violence against the women and the children, the honour crimes, and the caste atrocities.
• Freedom of expression and the privacy, the internet shutdowns and the surveillance.
• Rights of the refugees, the displaced people and the persons in the conflict areas, and the use of the special security laws.

Reforms and the Mains Angle

A balanced answer notes that the NHRC has played a useful role, with the suo motu cases, the visits to the jails, and the awareness, but it suffers from the non-binding recommendations, the shortage of the staff and the funds, the limits on its jurisdiction and the concerns about the transparency of the appointments and the diversity. Suggested reforms: make the recommendations stronger or give the commission the power to prosecute, give the NHRC its own independent investigation team, widen the jurisdiction on the armed forces (with the safeguards), ensure the transparent and the pluralist appointments (as the Paris Principles require), strengthen the SHRCs and the Human Rights Courts, reform the police and the prisons, and spread the human rights education. The aim is to make the human rights a lived reality, and not only a legal promise.

Previous-Year Style Practice

• In which year was the NHRC established? Answer: 1993 (12 October).
• Who appoints the Chairperson of the NHRC? Answer: The President, on the recommendation of the six-member committee.
• After how long can the NHRC not normally inquire into a complaint? Answer: After one year from the incident.
• Which Article provides for the National Commission for Scheduled Castes? Answer: Article 338.

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)

When was the NHRC established?

On 12 October 1993, under the Protection of Human Rights Act, 1993.

Is the NHRC a constitutional body?

No, it is a statutory body.

Who can be the Chairperson of the NHRC?

A former Chief Justice of India or a former judge of the Supreme Court.

Who appoints the NHRC Chairperson?

The President, on the recommendation of a committee headed by the Prime Minister.

What is the tenure of the NHRC members?

Three years or until the age of 70, whichever is earlier.

Are the NHRC recommendations binding?

No, they are recommendatory in nature.

What is the time limit for the complaints to the NHRC?

The NHRC does not normally entertain a complaint made after one year of the incident.

What is the Human Rights Day?

10 December, the day on which the UDHR was adopted in 1948.

Which Article provides for the National Commission for Backward Classes?

Article 338B, added by the 102nd Amendment (2018).

Which body reviews the human rights record of the UN members?

The UN Human Rights Council, through the Universal Periodic Review.

What are the Paris Principles?

The international standards for the national human rights institutions, such as their independence.

How is this topic asked in UPSC?

As the composition and the powers of the NHRC and the commissions in the Prelims, and as the analysis of the institutions in the Mains.