Human Rights
Human Rights
• Enacting Legislation: Created under the Protection of Human Rights Act (PHRA),
1993.
• Primary Objectives:
Full-Time Members
• Judicial Members:
o One member who is or has been the Chief Justice of a High Court.
The institutional bench automatically integrates seven ex-officio heads of national welfare
bodies to ensure intersectional coverage:
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5. The Chairperson, National Commission for Backward Classes (BCs) (Added via 2019
Amendment)
6. The Chairperson, National Commission for Protection of Child Rights (Added via 2019
Amendment)
7. The Chief Commissioner for Persons with Disabilities (Added via 2019 Amendment)
• Appointing Authority: Formally appointed by the President of India under his warrant
and seal.
• Fixed Tenure: Held office for a term of 3 years or until attaining 70 years of age,
whichever occurs earlier (Reduced from a 5-year term to a 3-year term by the 2019
Amendment).
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• Re-appointment Clause: Members and the Chairperson are fully eligible for re-
appointment for subsequent terms subject to the 70-year age cap.
• Post-Employment Employment Bar: Upon leaving office, the Chairperson and Members
are strictly ineligible for further employment under either the Central Government
or any State Government, ensuring freedom from executive inducement.
• Salary and Service Parameters: Determined entirely by the Central Government and
cannot be altered or varied to their structural disadvantage after appointment.
Removal Mechanism
The President of India can remove the Chairperson or any member from office directly
under five specific circumstances if the individual:
• Engages in any paid employment outside official duties during their ongoing tenure.
• The Enquiry Rule: The President must mandatory refer the charges to the Supreme
Court of India for an independent judicial investigation.
• Final Execution: If the Supreme Court conducts the enquiry, confirms the charges,
and advises removal, the President then issues the formal executive removal order.
The Protection of Human Rights Act, 1993, entrusts the Commission with a wide array of
investigative, advisory, and educational functions:
• Judicial Intervention: Vested with the authority to intervene in any ongoing legal
proceeding involving allegations of human rights violations pending before a court
(subject to the court’s formal approval).
• Constitutional & Legal Reviews: Systematically reviews the constitutional and legal
safeguards designed to protect human rights and recommends measures for their
tight implementation.
• Research & Literacy Drives: Undertakes and promotes academic research in human
rights, spreads human rights literacy across society, and raises awareness regarding
institutional safeguards.
• Civil Society Collaboration: Actively encourages and builds alliances with Non-
Governmental Organizations (NGOs) and community groups working in the domain of
human rights.
• Headquarters & Procedural Autonomy: Headquartered in New Delhi, with the legal
authority to open regional offices across India. The Commission holds the absolute
power to regulate its own internal working procedures.
• Civil Court Status: Possesses all the powers of a standard Civil Court while conducting
inquiries. Its proceedings are deemed to have a formal judicial character, enabling it
to requisition information or records from the Central and State Governments.
• Investigative Infrastructure:
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• The Strict Limitation Clause: The Commission is completely prohibited from inquiring
into any matter after the expiry of one year from the date on which the alleged
human rights violation was committed. In short, complaints must clear a strict 1-year
limitation period from the date of the incident.
Upon concluding an active inquiry, the NHRC can initiate any of the following procedural
steps:
• Recommend the grant of immediate interim financial relief to the victim while final
proceedings are pending.
• Approach the Supreme Court of India or the concerned High Court directly to seek
necessary directions, orders, or constitutional writs.
• The Compliance Window: Its recommendations are not legally binding on the
government.
o In this domain, the NHRC cannot investigate independently; it can only seek a
report from the Central Government.
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o The 3-Month Armed Forces Rule: The Central Government must inform the
Commission of the action taken on those recommendations within three months.
• Legislative Oversight: The NHRC submits detailed Annual or Special Reports to the
Central Government and the respective State Governments. These reports must be
laid before the Parliament and State Legislatures, accompanied by a mandatory
Memorandum of Action Taken explaining the reasons for the non-acceptance of any
recommendation.
• Legal Standing: Established under Section 21 of the Protection of Human Rights Act
(PHRA), 1993, as a statutory body (not a constitutional body) via an Official Gazette
Notification.
• The 7th Schedule Matrix: The Commission can exclusively inquire into human rights
violations relating to subjects cataloged under the State List (List-II) and the
Concurrent List (List-III) of the Seventh Schedule of the Constitution of India.
• The Overlap Restrictive Proviso: If a case is already under active inquiry by the
National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) or any other statutory body, the State
Human Rights Commission (SHRC) is barred from initiating a parallel investigation.
• Union Territories Exclusion: The Central Government can delegate the human rights
functions of specific Union Territories to adjacent SHRCs.
o The Capital Exception: The human rights affairs of the Union Territory of
Delhi are handled exclusively by the NHRC.
The SHRC functions as a multi-member bench comprising one Chairperson and two
Members:
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• The 4-Member Selection Committee: The Governor acts on the binding, unanimous or
majority recommendations of an executive committee consisting of:
• Judicial Consultation Proviso: A serving High Court Judge or a serving District Judge
can be appointed only after formal, written consultation with the Chief Justice of the
State High Court.
• Fixed Tenure Cap: Under the 2019 baseline amendments, the term of office stands at
3 years or until attaining the upper age ceiling of 70 years, whichever occurs earlier.
• Post-Tenure Employment Bar: Upon leaving office, both the Chairperson and
Members face an absolute statutory bar from accepting further employment under
any State Government or the Central Government.
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• The Federal Safeguard: Although appointed by the State Governor, the Chairperson
and Members of an SHRC can only be removed from office by the President of
India (the Governor has no removal powers).
• Direct Executive Grounds: The President can remove an official directly if they are:
o Adjudged an insolvent.
• Establishment History: The State Human Rights Commission of Tamil Nadu (TNSHRC)
was formally constituted on April 17, 1997, under Section 21 of the PHRA, 1993, with
its headquarters located in Chennai.
• Judicial Intervention: Vested with the power to officially intervene in any ongoing
legal proceeding involving allegations of human rights violations currently pending
before a court of law (contingent upon that specific court's approval).
• Custodial Oversight: Mandated to visit jails, prison cells, and standard detention
centers under the control of the State Government to inspect the living conditions of
inmates and submit structural corrective reports.
• Safeguard Review: Reviews the functional and legal safeguards guaranteed under the
Constitution or provincial laws for human rights protection, recommending actions for
their airtight implementation.
• Advocacy & Research: Promotes and runs academic research in human rights, drives
public human rights literacy campaigns across all regional sectors, and actively
encourages the independent work of localized Non-Governmental Organizations
(NGOs).
• Procedural Autonomy: The Commission holds the absolute statutory power to regulate
its own internal working procedures and operational schedules.
• Civil Court Status: Wields all the enforcement powers of a standard Civil Court
during an inquiry. Its proceedings possess a formal judicial character, allowing it to
summon witnesses under oath, compel document discovery, and requisition any public
record directly from state departments.
• The Strict 1-Year Limitation Cap: The Commission is completely prohibited from
inquiring into any human rights violation after the expiry of one year from the
date on which the alleged incident occurred. Complaints must clear this strict 1-year
statutory limitation period to be legally maintainable.
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Upon concluding an investigation or formal inquiry, the Commission can recommend any of the
following procedural steps to the state authorities:
• Recommend the grant of immediate interim financial relief to the victim while formal
trials are pending.
• Approach the Supreme Court of India or the regional High Court directly to seek
necessary directions, judicial orders, or constitutional writs.
• The 1-Month Compliance Rule: While its recommendations are not legally binding, the
concerned State Government or authority is statutorily mandated to submit an official
statement informing the Commission about the action taken on its recommendations
within a strict window of one month.
• Legislative Tabled Reports: Submits its detailed Annual or Special Reports directly to
the State Government. The state is statutorily bound to lay these reports before
the State Legislature, accompanied by a mandatory Memorandum of Action Taken
fully explaining the reasons for the non-acceptance of any specific recommendation.
To operationalize a bottom-up framework for speedy trials, the Protection of Human Rights
Act, 1993, contains explicit mandates for grassroot judicial bodies:
• The Structuring Process [Section 30]: For every district, the State Government can
set up a dedicated Human Rights Court to provide rapid trials for offenses arising out
of human rights violations.
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• Judicial Concurrence: These courts are established via official notification by the
State Government, executed only with the prior formal concurrence of the Chief
Justice of the State High Court.
• Designated Venue: In practice, the State Government designates the existing Court
of Session in each district to act as the specific Human Rights Court.
• The Prosecution Machinery [Section 31]: For every designated Human Rights Court,
the State Government must provide matching legal personnel via notification:
o Formally appoint an advocate who has been in active legal practice for not less
than seven years as a specialized Special Public Prosecutor.
• Tamil Nadu’s Pioneer Status: Tamil Nadu historically stands as a pioneer in human
rights infrastructure, being among the early states to notify and set up designated
District Human Rights Courts across its districts by utilizing its Courts of Session in
concurrence with the Madras High Court.
The amendment significantly diversified the selection pool for the leadership positions to
prevent vacancies:
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The amendment broadened both full-time human rights experts and inter-commission
representation:
• Reduction in Term: The tenure for the Chairperson and Members of both the NHRC
and SHRC was reduced from five years to three years.
• Upper Age Limit: The maximum age cap remains unchanged at 70 years.
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The amendment formally designated the administrative heads as Chief Executive Officers to
streamline daily operational workflows:
• At the State Level (SHRC): The Secretary of the State Commission is similarly
authorized to exercise all administrative and financial powers, subject to the
absolute control of the SHRC Chairperson.
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• The Capital Exception: Human rights violations arising inside the Union Territory of
Delhi are carved out completely and are handled exclusively by the National Human
Rights Commission (NHRC).
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Human Rights
• World Human Rights Day: Celebrated globally every year on 10th December to
commemorate the formal adoption of the landmark Universal Declaration of Human
Rights in 1948.
• The UN Anchor Node: The Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights
(OHCHR) holds the lead operational responsibility within the United Nations system
for the global promotion and protection of human rights.
The structural foundation of modern international human rights law emerged after the
destruction of the Second World War (1939–1945). It consists of exactly three fundamental
pillars:
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• Adoption Date: Adopted by the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) on 10th
December 1948.
• Composition: Contains 30 distinct Articles that serve as the universal building blocks
for all subsequent international conventions, treaties, and legal instruments.
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In December 1966, the UNGA adopted two binding international treaties to translate the
UDHR principles into legally enforceable state commitments:
o Focuses on civil and democratic liberties (e.g., freedom of speech, voting rights,
fair trial).
• Core Role: A specific set of rules that seek to limit the devastating effects of armed
conflict for humanitarian reasons.
• Purview: Protects civilians and persons who are no longer actively participating in
hostilities (such as prisoners of war), while strictly restricting the means and methods
of combat. It runs complementary to international human rights law.
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2006 International Convention for the Protection of All Persons from Enforced
Disappearance
• Corporate Accountability Standard (2011): The United Nations Human Rights Council
(UNHRC) passed the Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights (UNGPs),
formally outlining global human rights requirements for corporate businesses and
commercial enterprises.
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