E-Paper
Solicitor General to lead Indian team for review of human rights record at UNHRC
Solicitor general Tushar Mehta will be heading the Indian delegation that is set to participate in a periodic review of the country’s human rights record at the UN Human Rights Council (UNHRC) in Geneva on Thursday
Solicitor general Tushar Mehta will be heading the Indian delegation that is set to participate in a periodic review of the country’s human rights record at the UN Human Rights Council (UNHRC) in Geneva on Thursday.
The Indian side’s national report will be reviewed during the fourth Universal Periodic Review (UPR) of the country’s human rights record by a UN working group.
The group will also examine the records of several other countries during November 7-18.
The last such review for India was conducted in May 2017.
A number of issues, such as the protection of fundamental rights of citizens and the situation of the country’s minority communities, are expected to come up at the review, people familiar with the matter said.
Also Read: Solicitor General Tushar Mehta tests Covid positive, regrets missing ‘historic oath’ of Murmu
The UPR is an “important mechanism that India fully supports”, and it is a “unique peer review process” of the Human Rights Council under which UN member states review the human rights performance of fellow states, the external affairs ministry said in a statement on Wednesday.
India’s national report, submitted on August 5, outlines the country’s steps for the promotion and protection of human rights, including the implementation of recommendations accepted during India’s third UPR in 2017.
The national report was prepared in collaboration with the National Law University in New Delhi after a series of consultations with stakeholders, including representatives from the judiciary, national human rights institution, academia, civil society organisations and the public.
“India has been engaged constructively with the members of the UNHRC and other fellow UN member states to promote and protect human rights globally. We have laid emphasis on dialogue, engagement and cooperation among various stakeholders,” the statement said.
“We have underlined the primacy of states in fulfilling their human rights obligations. We have endeavored to build consensus in the Council on various issues on its agenda and we participate in the deliberations in the council in a constructive manner,” it added.
India also plays an active role in the global promotion and protection of human rights.
“Our strong commitment for the welfare of entire humanity, inspired by our civilizational ethos of ‘Vasudhaiva Kutumbkam’ or ‘the World is one family’, provides a foundation on which our constitutional and legal framework for human rights has been built,” the statement said.
The UPR has emerged as “one of the successful human rights mechanisms, due to its universal character, constructive and consultative approach, and the importance it places on dialogue and cooperation amongst member states”, the statement noted.
The mechanism reinforces the centrality of states in fulfilling their human rights obligations and India has actively participated in the review of other countries and, in turn, welcomes the 131 UN member states that have registered to engage in the country’s peer review.
Countries undergoing the review have to take a position on all UPR recommendations, by either supporting or noting them.
India’s UPR outcome report will be adopted at a session of the UNHRC in March 2023.
Besides the solicitor general, the Indian delegation includes Sanjay Verma, secretary (West) in the external affairs ministry, Indra Mani Pandey, India’s envoy to the UN in Geneva, additional solicitor general KM Nataraj, senior officials from the ministries of external affairs, home affairs, women and child development, social justice and empowerment, minority affairs and rural development and NITI Aayog, and the vice chancellor of the National Law University.
