By Scroll Staff
The United Nations Human Rights Committee on Thursday expressed concern about the violence and discrimination faced by minority groups in India, including Muslims, Christians and Sikhs, and called for comprehensive legislation to prohibit such discrimination.
“While appreciating the measures adopted by the state party [India] to address discrimination, the committee was concerned about discrimination and violence against minority groups, including religious minorities, such as Muslims, Christians, and Sikhs, Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes, and LGBTI people,” the committee said.
The expert body made the remarks in a report on its findings on Croatia, Honduras, India, Maldives, Malta, Suriname and the Syrian Arab Republic after examining the seven nations in its latest session.
The report conveys the expert body’s concerns and recommendations on the implementation of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, among other aspects, within the nations.
The covenant is a multilateral treaty that elicits commitments from nations that they will respect the civil and political rights of individuals.
The expert body called on India to adopt “comprehensive legislation prohibiting discrimination, raise awareness among the general public, and provide training to civil servants, law enforcement officers, the judiciary and community leaders to promote respect for diversity”.
It also noted with concern that certain provisions of India’s Armed Forces Special Powers Act and other counter-terrorism legislations do not comply with the covenant.
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