Protecting human rights

Protecting human rights

At a time when the issue of human rights violation is assuming more and more importance, it is rather disquieting that the functioning of the Assam Human Rights Commission (AHRC) has, of late, left a lot to be desired. While lack of sufficient infrastructure, amenities and manpower has hampered its working, things have not been helped by the long absences of the Commission’s chairperson. The media has reported how the continuous absence of the chairperson has affected not just the functioning of the Commission but the morale of the staff as well. Disposal of cases has been adversely affected as have been other day-to-day functions. And the most serious fallout has been that the number of pending cases is piling up. As the adage goes, justice delayed is justice denied, and any slackness in the Commission’s functioning is bound to result in untold suffering for the litigants, for whom the AHRC is often the last hope to get their grievances redressed. Given the growing incidence of human rights violation by police and security forces in an insurgency-affected State like Assam, one would have expected the Commission to be more proactive in protecting the people’s human rights. Disposal of cases apart, the Commission has to play a crucial role in disseminating information on human rights and enhancing awareness among the masses. The Protection of Human Rights Act-1993 requires the Commission to perform a host of functions such as promoting research on human rights, periodical review of the living conditions of prison inmates and making recommendations to the State Government, encouraging the efforts of NGOs working in the field of human rights, intervening in any proceeding involving any allegation of violation of human rights pending before a court, etc. In view of the poor track record of Assam and the North-East vis-à-vis human rights, the State Government should have given every possible assistance to the Commission for its smooth functioning. But in reality, the Commission has been getting a raw deal from successive governments. Factors like manpower shortage, inadequate infrastructure at its disposal, lack of facilities to its staff, etc., have remained unaddressed for long. The apathy meted out to the Commission is regrettable, as it puts in poor light the Government’s commitment to protection of the fundamental rights of the people. The Commission is not an ordinary institution; it is in fact indispensable for safeguarding the people’s right to life, liberty, equality and dignity, as enshrined in the Constitution of India. Source: Assam Tribune