Joint Statement: India’s Membership at the Human Rights Council Should Reflect Commitment, Not Contempt, for Human Rights

India's record reveals serious and persistent shortcomings in both cooperation with UN human rights mechanisms and compliance with its international obligations. It maintains a standing invitation to UN Special Procedures but has accepted only two visits in the past decade, while at least 19 requests remain pending - including from the Special Rapporteur on Torture, first requested in 1999. India has rejected or ignored UN findings and reports concerning serious violations, including those on Jammu and Kashmir, Manipur, and against religious and ethnic minorities.

On 23 April 2025, the Global Alliance of National Human Rights Institutions recommended downgrading India's National Human Rights Commission from "A" to "B" status, citing concerns over independence and political interference. India has also failed to ratify key treaties, including the Convention against Torture (CAT) and the Convention on Enforced Disappearance (CED).

Equally serious are patterns of intimidation and reprisals. India has repeatedly appeared in the UN Secretary-General's reports on reprisals for targeting individuals cooperating with UN mechanisms. The Working Group on Arbitrary Detention found the detention of Kashmiri human rights defender Khurram Parvez to be arbitrary and called for his immediate release; he remains detained under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act.

Council membership carries substantive obligations. On both cooperation and compliance, India's record falls short. We urge Member States to seek explicit, time-bound commitments from India to:

• Accept all pending UN visit requests, including by the Special Rapporteur on Torture;
• Ratify the CAT and CED, and accede to the Optional Protocols to the CAT and the Interntational Covenant on Civil and Political Rights;
• Guarantee the independence of the National Human Rights Commission;
• Release Khurram Parvez and end all reprisalas against him and other human rights defenders
• Repeal or amend repressive laws, including the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act.

Membership in the Human Rights Council must serve as a spotlight - not a shield.