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Diaspora in Action for Human Rights and Democracy (DAHRD)Diaspora in Action for Human Rights and Democracy (DAHRD)

India News Updates Archives

Every month, we send a newsletter with news updates containing an overview of politics and human rights in India. You can read the archives here.

India in the World  

  • On the 11th of July, PM Modi returned to India after concluding his three-nation visit to Indonesia, Australia and New Zealand, during which he reaffirmed India’s commitment to strengthening Indonesia Comprehensive Strategic Partnership, expanded cooperation with Australia on clean energy, trade, investment and critical minerals, and India and New Zealand elevated their strategic partnership. 
  • On the 21st of July, India summoned a Russian diplomat regarding the killing of four Indian nationals on board of a vessel, off the coast of Ukraine. The commercial vessel came under attack as departing the port of Odesa in Ukraine, as four citizens were killed and one person remains in critical condition. India strongly condemned the strike, and further stated that targeting commercial vessels and endangering civilians was deplorable and should be avoided.  

Civil society, human rights defenders, and journalists 

  • On the 4th of July, Delhi High Court has denied bail to Umar Khalid and Sharjeel Imam, after they had filed new bail applications, arguing that their continued detention without trial or formal charges violates their fundamental right to personal liberty. The two activists were arrested due to alleged links to the 2020 Delhi riots under the Unlawful Activities Prevention Act, and they have since spent nearly six years in custody without trial. 
  • On the 6th of July,  a delegation of NDA leaders submitted a complaint alleging “mass irregularities” in the state of Karnataka on the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) exercise of the electoral rolls. The delegation demanded thorough inquiry and strict legal action amongst others, and alleged “undermining the very spirit of democracy”. Karnataka chief minister Shivakumar rejected the allegations and said the government wouldn’t interfere in the SIR exercise.  

Hate Crimes and Hate Speech against Minorities 

  • On the 12th of July, after convicting 14 men for lynching a man to death in a cow vigilantes’ case, an Muslim judge faces online death threats. The online campaign of abuse began after many protested the judgement, with one warning of “bloodshed” across the country if the convicted aren’t freed.  
  • On the 16th of July, a Dalit migrant worker was lynched to death after being labelled as “Bangladeshi”. His family and Kerala have urged the government to ensure fair investigation. The family claimed that the chargesheet filed by the police had deficiencies showing repeated lapses in the investigation and urged exemplary punishment for the accused. The police arrested five people, including four BJP workers in connection to his death. 
  • On the 28th of July, a 29-year-old Muslim man died following alleged custodial torture in Kerela. His family claimed that he was brutally assaulted by the police before being taken to custody, and suffered fractured ribs leading to severe lung infection. Police denied custodial assault allegations. 

Religious Freedoms and Minority Rights 

  • On the 19th of July, Chhattisgarh Deputy Chief Minister Vijay Sharma announced that, following the completion of the necessary procedural formalities, the Chhattisgarh Freedom of Religion Bill 2026, will be implemented as law in the state. Sharma stated that the bill is intended to address what he described as the issue of forced religious conversions in Chhattisgarh, which he argued has contributed to social tensions and conflicts. 
  • On the 22nd of July, the Supreme Court agreed to gear the Kamal Maula Mosque case after Muslim petitioners missed two Friday prayers due to the Court barring Friday namaz. The complex is claimed both by Hindus as a temple dedicated to Goddess Saraswati and by Muslims as the Kamal Maula Mosque. Petitioners argued that the Madhya Pradesh High Court overlooked disputed factual issues and urged the Supreme Court to restore order.  

Internet and Technology 

  • On the 21st of July, the partial internet shutdown imposed by the government in Delhi has been confirmed by Telecom companies, even though no copy of the suspension order was placed in public domain. The Supreme Court directed that such order, imposed on the account of the Cockroach Janta Party’s ‘Chalo Sansad’, must be published and recorded in writing.  

 Political Parties    

  • On the 22nd of July, India’s opposition parties have shut down the parliament in solidarity with the protesters. Opposition politicians stood outside the parliament calling on Minister of Education Dharmendra Pradhan to quit. Proceedings were suspended inside the parliament, as politicians demanded the government to address police violence against protesters. Congress accused BJP of refusing to address the issues alleged police brutality on students. On the same day, opposition parties rallied behind students protesting, and called the government “insensitive” and “authoritarian” slamming police use of force against protesters. Leader of the Congress, Rahul Gandhi, Congress president Kharge, Karnataka Chief Minister Shivakumar, Congress leader and MP Priyanka Gandhi were among those who got detained by the police. 
  • On the 25th of July, the Cockroach Janta Party (CJP) said to follow up on five-point education reform charter after four weeks. Government representatives are to examine the proposals and discuss them with CJP. According to government representative, all demands were accepted, while CJP said agitation will be withdrawn in good faith, trusting in the agreed-upon. CJP’s demands include resignation of Pradhan, compensation to families of deceases students and scrapping cases against protestors. Later that day, Dharmendra Pradhan resigned following weeks of protests by the youth-led Cockroach Janta Party (CJP).  

 Police and authorities 

  • On the 22nd of July, Outlook magazine reported that one of its reporters was injured by “pellet-like projectiles” while covering CJP protests in Delhi. Injuries described by the journalist resembled wounds that were previously documented in the case of Shaikh Irshad Mansoori, a 25-year-old man who alleged that a member of the Rapid Action Force fired at him during a police crackdown on 20th of July. 
  • On the 22nd of July, hundreds marched to Lok Bhavan against “Modi government’s war on students” and Bihar Police cracked down on activists of the All India Students’ Association (AISA) protesting over the NEET paper leak. Demonstrators marched despite heavy deployment of security personnel and police using water cannons, tear gas and baton-charge on protesters. Despite police action, the march reached the vicinity of Lok Bhavan, and many sustained injuries from the police forces. 
  • On the 22nd of July, the police have beaten up students protesting. People were detained by the police, even before reaching the protest site. Police took names, phone numbers, addresses, and showed up at homes without warrants or summons. 1,400 people were taken into custody and hundreds detained. 
  • On the 23rd of July, the Delhi High Court sought to assess alleged police brutalities against protestors. The Supreme Court Bar Association condemned the attacks, urged conducting inquiries and act accordingly to the law while expressing solidarity to the people seeing human dignity, law and the constitution. 

 Judiciary 

  • On the 2nd of July, the Gujarat High Court ruled the demolition drive in Surat of the 30th of May which left 100 families homeless, illegal. Allegedly, the demolition took place during the intended demarcation exercise and was entirely unauthorized. The Court ordered the Surat Municipal Corporation to rehabilitate 100 displaced families and directed the Gujarat government to file an affidavit on its stand on the incident.   
  • On the 2nd of July, a Bombay high court ruled that a citizen has right to protest, and the police are public servants not “servants of the chief minister or prime minister”. Slogans like “BJP government murdabad and “Amit Shah murdabad” is allowed to say by protestors according to the judgement.  
  • On the 24th of July, the Supreme Court proposed setting up dedicated courts to hear cases regarding the 2023 Manipur violence. The idea is to run trials on a continuous basis instead of a sporadic one. The bench noted difficulty in tracing and questioning witnesses, and other factors slowing the process, such as suspension of internet services, and proposed order trials taken up on a day-to-day basis considering the delays. 

Business & economy 

  • On the 6th of July, protesting farmers in Gujarat called for a written government resolution and demanded four times the market value for their land, highlighting that installed power transmission lines and poles are leaving their land practically uncultivable.  Protestors continued their fast even after budget and raised compensation for land loss was decided. The land loss occurred as the Adani Energy Solutions Ltd installed power lines and towers on agricultural land.  

India in the World  

  • On the 1st of June, Myanmar President Hlaing’s visited New Delhi to hold bilateral talks. During the talks, PM Modi confirmed India’s commitment to deepening security cooperation and indicated that India will cover training of Myanmar troops for United Nations peacekeeping. Press had not been allowed inside the event nor did the two leaders take questions from the press.  
  • On the 1st of June, India and Australia reaffirmed their commitment to strengthening defense and security cooperation across the Indo-Pacific during the second India-Australia Defence Minister’s Dialogue in New Delhi.  
  • On the 28th of June, India’s Ministry of External Affairs rejected Pakistan’s allegations of India’s involvement in a terrorist attack on a Pakistani military base the day prior. In a press statement, MEA spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal called the accusations ‘baseless’ and accused Pakistan of using terrorism “as an instrument of state policy.”  
  • One the 28th of June, PM Modi started his three-day visit to Seychelles in which the two countries expanded their bilateral cooperation across defence,  development, healthcare, and agriculture, and India committed to support Seychelles maritime security capabilities through surveillance and defence capacity building. 

Civil society, human rights defenders, and journalists 

  • On the 13th of June, Umar Khalid and Sharjeel Imam have filed new bail applications at the Delhi High Court, arguing that their continued detention without trial or formal charges violates their fundamental right to personal liberty. The two activists were arrested due to alleged links to the 2020 Delhi riots under the Unlawful Activities Prevention Act, and they have since spent nearly six years in custody without trial. 
  • Phase 3 of the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) has started in 4 states: Odisha, Mizoram, Sikkim and Manipur, which encompasses around 3.7 crore voters.  Eligible electors will be included in the draft poll rolls published on July 5th, followed by a month-long window for claims and objections. The final poll rolls of all four states will be published on September 6th. The Supreme Court has recently upheld the SIR exercises and the related procedures; the Election Commission thus has the authority to examine a person’s citizenship for the limited purpose of voting eligibility.  
  • Human Rights groups warn that E. Abubacker, founding chairman of the now-banned Popular Front of India, could risk death in custody due to his continued incarceration and custodial neglect. Abubacker, who has severe health conditions, has spent 3,5 years in Tihar Jail under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act without trial. Jail authorities have submitted an acknowledgement to the Delhi High Court that they can only provide limited medical assistance, while his family sought permission to have him treated at a private hospital, a transfer which the court refused.  
  • On the 10th of June, the Delhi High Court granted bail to Kashmiri human rights activist Khurram Parves who has been incarcerated without trial since 2021. Parvez was arrested under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act under alleged links to a Pakistani-terrorist organization. The appeal argued that Parvez was a ‘factual stranger’ to the conspiracy alleged by the National Investigation Agency as there has been no digital evidence that Parvez was in contact with the organization nor with the co-accused. 
  • On the 20th of June, a 25-year-old resident in Rajasthan was taken into ‘preventative custody’ for posting a video on Instagram critical of the RSS, featuring children on a playground who were allegedly engaged in an RSS exercise. The resident, who had accused RSS of teaching the children “the seed of religion and hate”, allegedly received threat calls from members of RSS and the police to delete the video. He further alleges that later that day, he was abducted and beaten by the police without any pretext of arrest. Kotwali Jhunjhunu police station stated that they took Rajasthan under ‘preventative custody’ to prevent the ‘disruption of peace.’ 

 Hate Crimes and Hate Speech against Minorities 

  • On the 6th of June, while speaking at a BJP training program, West-Bengal Chief Minister Adhikari claimed that 4800 undocumented Bangladeshi immigrants have been deported from the state in the past month and that another 836 ‘illegal infiltrators’ are awaiting deportations.  
  • On the 7th of June, during a press conference, BJP leader Nazia Elahi Khan urged Hindus to boycott Muslims “everywhere” but notably in government and private sector employment. She claimed that India was under attack by people with a ‘Pakistan-mentality’ and questioned the patriotism of Muslims whom she accused placed ‘Islam first’.  
  • On the 27th of June, a BJP leader assaulted a Muslim school principal at a private school in Telangana over the teaching of Urdu, the state’s second official language. A group of 10 to 15 men allegedly entered the high school and accused the principal of forcing Hindu students to embrace Islam. The school board, led by Hindu members, denied the allegations and stated that the language class contained only 25 students. The police registered a case against the local BJP’s leader on charges of trespassing, and a case against the school’s principal for promoting enmity between groups. 

Religious Freedoms and Minority Rights 

  • On the 1st of June, Jammu and Kashmir Police arrested People Democratic Party (PDP) leader and tribal rights activist Talib Hussain for alleged attempted murder, assault of a public servant and rioting with deadly weapons. The Tribal activist was protesting a demolition drive in Bandi village on May 19th in which 30 structures were demolished and residents were evicted at 4 am without any notice. Around 150 people had gathered near the site to protest, including Hussain, who was arrested and accused of attacking the police. According to his lawyer, the protest was peaceful and Hussain had merely demanded the constitutional rights of tribal communities. 
  • Around 40 Adivasi farmer families staged a 9-day protest in a village in Madya Pradesh requesting their missing land ownership to be added to digital land records. The protest was initiated after the District Trade Industry Centre requested their lands, classified as state property, for commercial use. In response to the protests, the administration halted the proposed industrial project and promised to conduct a demarcation exercise. 
  • On the 21st of June, opposition leaders condemned the Rajasthan government for targeting and demolishing Muslim religious sites in border districts under the guise of anti-encroachment measures. The critique arises after Muslim Mirror reported that 23 mosques and madrasas were demolished in the last 45 days, all in BJP-ruled states. According to Human Rights organisations the Rajasthan administration issued 24-hour eviction notices to several Muslim religious sites if they could not provide formal documentations, including centuries old religious shrines. Congress district president Amardeen Fakir called the notices unrealistic as many religious sites pre-date the maintenance of formal land documentation. 

Internet and Technology 

  • On the 3rd of June the Supreme Court’s artificial intelligence committee published a preliminary draft of the Regulations for Use of AI in Court 2026, which include a complete ban on using AI to decide judicial outcomes. The draft outlines restrictions on AI tools to predict or profile parties and witnesses and further prohibits undisclosed or unexplainable AI systems that perpetuate bias on any ground prohibited in the Constitution.  
  • The Internet Freedom Foundation (IFF) has criticised the Union government’s decision to restrict access to Telegram for Indian users until June 22nd and disable the platform’s message-editing feature until the 30th. The Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology invoked the restriction in response to exam papers being leaked on the platform. According to the digital rights organisation, the measures are ineffective, disproportionate and intrusive as the National Testing Agency already implemented effective targeted actions.  

Police and authorities 

  • On the 6th of June, Youth Congress workers staged a demonstration in Haryana’s Kurukshetra which was met with police barricades and water cannons. The protesters, led by Congress member Deepender Hooda, demanded the resignation of Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan over the NEET paper leak and alleged irregularities in examinations.  
  • On the 8th of June, the Allahabad High Court issued guidelines against illegal preventative detention which hold officials personally liable. The bench expressed concern over the widespread practise of police officers and magistrates detaining individuals for several days under the apprehension of ‘a breach of peace’. Under the new guidelines, preventive detention will be more strictly governed and officials responsible of detention without lawful justification will face disciplinary proceedings for dereliction of duty. 

 Judiciary 

  • The Narmadapuram Court has convicted seven men to life imprisonment in connection to a 2022 mob lynching incident which killed one man and injured several. The seven men were part of a cow vigilantes group which had accused the victims of cow smuggling. The judge observed that the accused had armed themselves with deadly weapons and beat the victims with extreme brutality, which resulted in the death of one man.   
  • On the 23rd of June, the Supreme court refused to hear an urgent plea on the decision of BJP-led Bengali Government to link welfare benefits to the Special Intensive Revision. An exclusion from electoral rolls after the SIR also means a loss of benefits, which could lead to 60 lakh ration cards becoming inactive. The bench requested the petitioners to approach the Calcutta High Court as it did not view the matter as national importance. The petitioners argued that neighboring states would likely follow Bengal’s lead, as is the case for Bihar according to its BJP Chief Minister Choudhary 

Business & economy 

  • Over a 150 houses have been demolished to widen a road in Delhi, following a Supreme Court’s judgement on a decades-old land acquisition claim. The houses belonged to predominantly low-income labourers who state they are now homeless as they weren’t given alternative housing or compensation for the loss of their life savings. Residents further state that they weren’t allowed to retrieve their belongings and that they have either been destroyed or taken. Advocates state that the land had been in use by the residents for 50 years and that the government had previously recognized their settlement rights through documentation. Activists and lawyers have raised concerns over the violations of rights and due process.   

India in the World  

  • From the 15th to the 17th of May, PM Modi visited the Hague to elevate the ties between India and the Netherlands to ‘strategic partnership’ in semiconductors, trade and investment, water management, clean energy, critical minerals, migration, and education. The visit produced a broad “Roadmap of India-Netherlands Strategic Partnership 2026–2030” and several agreements, including a MoU between Tata Electronics and ASML to support semiconductor manufacturing in India. While talking to journalists before meeting PM Modi, Dutch Prime Minister Rob Jetten stated that concerns regarding “developments in India” under Modi’s BJP remain, particularly about press freedom and minority rights; concerns that were dismissed by Indian diplomat Sibi George as a “lack of understanding”. 
  • On the 15th of May, PM Modi visited The United Arab Emirates to sign an agreement on fuel supply and storage. The non-legally binding agreement confirms a collaboration of LPG and LNG storage withing India and states that the Abu Dhabi National oil Company would ‘potentially’ store up to 30 million barrels of crude in India’s strategic petroleum reserves including in facilities which bypass the Hormuz strait.  
  • On the 19th of May, India and the Nordic countries decided to elevate their ties to a Green Technology and Innovation Strategic Partnership, focusing on clean energy, sustainability, innovations and emerging technologies. During a joint press appearance, PM Modi decided not to take questions but was confronted by a Norwegian journalist requesting him to respond to critical media questions.  Congress leader Rahul Gandhi critiqued the PM for his avoidance, “when there is nothing to hide, there is nothing to fear,” he stated on X. 
  • On the 20th of May, Prime Minister Modi and Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni upgraded their ties to a special strategic partnership during Modi’s final stop of his six-day Europe tour. They further committed to increase their trade target from 14 billion euros to 20 billion euros as they “take advantage” of the FTA between the EU and India. Italian defence companies had previously been barred from the Indian defence market due to corruption allegations over the AgustaWestland deal, but this changes as the countries agreed on a defence industrial roadmap.

Civil society, human rights defenders, and journalists 

  • On the 18th of May, Supreme Court’s bench of Justices B.V. Nagarathna and Ujjal Bhuyan questioned its earlier decision to deny bail to activists Umar Khalid and Sharjeel Imam in the 2020 Delhi riots conspiracy case under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA). While granting bail in a separate case, the two judges expressed “serious reservations” about the judgment of January 2026 in Gulfisha Fatima v. State for not properly following the binding precedent set by a three‑judge bench in Union of India v. K.A. Najeeb (2021), which had established that prolonged incarceration and delays in trial can justify granting bail even under stringent laws like the UAPA. The case is viewed as part of a larger pattern of political repression targeting Muslim activists, student leaders and protest movements opposing laws they consider discriminatory.   
  • The Election Commission is preparing to conduct the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of the electoral rolls in Manipur, raising fears of disenfranchisement among already displaced communities amid ongoing ethnic violence and mass displacement. With thousands of people living in relief camps or outside the state, house-to-house verification may exclude those lacking documents or access to their original addresses. Civil society groups have warned that the process could unfairly impact tribal communities and legitimise the effects of displacement. The Supreme Court has asked the ECI to include voter ID cards as admissible documents for verification as tribal communities may not have access to the 11 documents required. 
  • On the 22nd of May, the Supreme Court granted six month’s interim bail to Khalid Saifi and Tasleem Ahmad, both arrested under the Unlawful Activities Prevention Act (UAPA) during the 2020 Delhi riots. The Supreme Court bench granted interim relief to Saifi and Ahmad while raising concerns about the prolonged pre-trial incarceration and delays in judicial proceedings, with several activists continuing to remain behind bars without trial. The bench also referred a key constitutional question to a larger bench whether prolonged incarceration without trial should outweigh the stringent bail restriction imposed under the UAPA.

Hate Crimes and Hate Speech against Minorities 

  • The Gujarat High Court has upheld the acquittal of five Hindutva men accused in a 2002 mob killing, citing a lack of evidence. The men were accused of throwing a Muslim man into a fire during the 2002 Muslim genocide, during which Hindutva groups VHP, RSS and BJP unleashed massive violence against Muslims in Gujarat, killing thousands. The High Court noted that multiple witnesses, including Kasamkhan’s wife, were not able to identify the specific rioters as the incident was carried out by a large mob of approximately 400-500 people at night. “The witness had not stated anything beyond the mere presence of the accused persons at the place of occurrence,” the court said. Since 2002, at least 150 accused of the 2002 Gujarat genocide have been acquitted by the Gujarat’s courts. 
  • On the 12th of May, four Muslim men in West-Bengal were brutally beaten and handed over to the police by senior BJP leaders and members of the Bajrang Ral for allegedly smuggling cattle. The police arrested the four injured men and not the attackers, they were released on bail on the 15th of May. The Katwa police station has refused to make a statement on the arrests. The attackers claimed that the absence of a transport permit had proved that the cattle were being smuggled to Bangladesh. However, local traders stated that the men had been paid to transport the herd to another town, a common event in the area. BJP Vice-President Seema Bhattacharya, who was present at the attack, stated that the BJP had taken up the efforts to “punish” smugglers.  

Religious Freedoms and Minority Rights 

  • On the 13th of May, the Karnataka Congress Government reversed the 2022 Hijab ban order for students, allowing religious and customary symbols to be worn along with prescribed uniforms in schools and colleges. The controversial 2022 bill passed by the BJP government at the time severely impacted access to education for Muslim women as students reported discrimination, mental distress and exclusions from classrooms due to the dress-code enforcement. The new order allows students to wear “limited traditional and practice-based symbols” including Hijabs, as long as they do not affect discipline, safety, cleanliness or identification. 
  • On the 13th of May, Congress leader and former Union Environment Minister Jairam Ramesh flagged the violations of tribal rights in infrastructure projects, alleging serious violations of tribal rights in the planned mega‑infrastructure projects on Great Nicobar Island. In the letter to the Union Minister for tribal affairs, Ramesh argued that the process has breached the Forest Rights Act of 2006, a law meant to protect both individual and community rights of tribal populations, and claimed that approvals for diverting over 13,000 hectares of forest land were given by village councils dominated by non-tribal settlers rather than by the indigenous Nicobarese and Shompen communities, who are legally entitled to decide under the law. He describes this as illegal and based on “fraudulent” consent, undermining both individual and community rights. Similar concerns were also raised by the National Commission for Scheduled Tribes. 
  • On the 18th of May, the West Bengal government decided to discontinue welfare assistance programmes based on religious categorization from June onwards. In line with a Calcutta High Court judgement, the new BJP cabinet scrapped the existing list of communities considered ‘socially and educationally backward’ and announced plans to set up a new panel to determine quota eligibility. The old list contained 113 sub-groups, the majority of them Muslim communities. Critics argue that the new BJP government has introduced several measures that disproportionately affects Muslims, including tighter restrictions on animal slaughter and public prayers on roads. 

Internet and Technology 

  • On the 11th of May, the Tamil Nadu Police Cyber Crime Wing has issued a notice to X to block over 20 accounts and posts critical of Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam (TVK), a political party, citing threats to public order. Police instructed X to “immediately remove or disable access” to the selected accounts and to take “proactive measures” to prevent similar future content. If X fails to comply with said measures, they could lose intermediary liability protections, exposing them to potential legal prosecution under Indian domestic law. 
  • On the 25th of May, the Environmental Reporting Collective (ERC) demanded public explanation from Meta regarding the restriction of access in India to an Instagram reel, which has been linked to cross-border investigation in a proposed Google data centre project, as well as carrying reported impact on Dalit communities and lands, and asked for the restoration of access to the video in the country ECR defended their content and urged Meta and the authorities to publicly explain the basis of restriction and restore access to the video.  

 Political Parties     

  • On the 12th of May, Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma was sworn in for his second successive term. Prime Minister Modi, Home Minister Amit Shah, Defence Minister Rajnath Singh, BJP national president Nitin Nabin, top industrialists, and religious leaders were present at the ceremony. In a post on X, Sarma claims that he freed “1.5 lakh bighas (traditional unit of land measurement) of land from encroachment” and promised to reclaim “5 lakh more bighas for the people of Assam” in the next 5 years. The Chief Minister referred to BJP’s ‘anti-encroachment campaign’ which involved mass evictions drives and home demolitions of self-constructed homes and slums, often without offering rehabilitation which is against High Court orders.   

Police and authorities 

  • On the 25th of May, Manipur Chief Minister Y Khemchand Singh announced a commitment to strengthening police forces to maintain peace in the state. Manipur has witnessed ethnic violence between Meiteis and Kuki-zo groups for the past 3 years, resulting in more than 260 people killed and 60,000 dissplaced.  The Chief Minister urged citizens to refrain from violent protests that have erupted since a bomb blast in April killed two children.  Protesters, in turn, have requested police not to use force and escalate confrontations. Many protesters are requesting the BJP government to step down, arguing that have failed to engage with both communities and have taken no accountability for the resulting violence. 

 Judiciary 

  • On the 27th of May, in a crucial ruling regarding the powers of the Election Commission, the Supreme Court held that the Election Commission of India (ECI) is equipped with the powers to undertake limited investigation into the citizenship of an individual, to determine their eligibility for the inclusion in the electoral roll. However, it is specified that such determination is not to be seen nor treated as a conclusive decision on the question of citizenship. When it comes to the Commission’s scrutiny on the citizenship status during the exercise, the bench held that the powers of the ECI come from constitutional responsibility to ensure the participation of eligible persons and factual electoral rolls. However, the Court clarified that the Commission’s conclusions cannot be used to determine the status of citizenship of an individual.  
  • On the 26th of May, a Delhi court was seeking responses from the Assam Chief Minister, Himanta Biswa Sarma as well as the Delhi Police regarding a revision petition filed by Harsh Mander activist, on the FIR registration over alleged hate speech targeting Bengali-speaking Muslims against a BJP leader. The complaint targets Sarma and accuses him of making statements that are allegedly promoting enmity and public mischief, such as urging for “troubles Miyas” and “Miya’ removal from electoral rolls about the electoral rolls during Assam’s Special Intensive Revision exercises. During the hearing, Mander’s council claimed that the trial court was wrong in rejecting the plea on jurisdictional grounds, based on Section 173(1) of the BNSS, invoking the “Zero FIR” principle. The court noted the submissions and scheduled the matter for hearing for the 15th of July 2026.  

India in the World

  • On the 6th of April, India’s High Commissioner Pranay Verma and Bangladesh’s newly elected Prime Minister Tarique Rahman had a meeting in New Delhi, and two days later, Bangladesh’s national security adviser Khalilur Rahman met with Indian external affairs minister S. Jaishankar. The visits represent a step to strengthen bilateral relations, as Bangladesh is India’s most prominent South Asian trading partner. However, bilateral ties are constrained by political flashpoints, the biggest one remains the border killings of civilians along their heavily militarised 4,096km border, especially by India’s Border Security Force. Other points of friction are the stale mate of water-sharing of the Teesta River, one of Bangladesh’ economic lifelines and market access issues such as visa bottlenecks, non-tariff barriers and bureaucratic inefficiencies.  
  • On the 8th of April, India’s Ministry of External Affairs issued a statement welcoming the ceasefire in West-Asia, more than 6 hours after its announcement. The brief statement read that India hoped for lasting peace in the region and further argued that they have continuously advocated for “deescalation, dialogue and diplomacy.” It further acknowledged that the conflict had “already caused immense suffering to people and disrupted global energy supply and trade networks”. At the government’s daily briefing later, the Ministry of External Affairs stated that hoped this development in the region will also “encourage peace efforts in Ukraine.” Notably, the statement did not refer to Pakistan’s involvement in mediating the truce, a role that both the U.S. and Iran publicly acknowledged. In the initial phase of the war, New Delhi appeared aligned with Israel, as Modi visited Israel two days before the escalations began. At the same time, external affairs minister S. Jaishankar held at least five conversations with his Iranian counterpart during the crisis. 
  • On the 14th of April, US President Trump called with PM Modi to discuss “the situation in West Asia and stressed the importance of keeping the Strait of Hormuz open and secure”, Modi described on X. In a Press statement, the Indian Ministry of Foreign affairs stated that “the two leaders reviewed the substantial progress achieved in bilateral cooperation across various sectors and expressed commitment to further strengthening the Comprehensive Global Strategic Partnership in all areas”. The US Ambassador to India described the call on X as “very positive and productive.” Their continued communications represent a stabilisation of their relationships after the strain in ties last year over US imposition of tariffs on India.  
  • India has withdrawn its offer to host the 33rd session of the UN Climate Conference (COP33) in 2028. According to the environment ministry, India is unable to host the conference “following a review of its commitments for the year 2028.” India’s proposal to host was made by Modi in 2023 following the successful hosting of the G20 summit in New Delhi. The ministry did not provide any further explanation but reaffirmed India’s commitment to engage constructively with the global community on climate action. the UN climate body’s Asia-Pacific Group, which is responsible for the coordination with host countries, will now likely rely on South Korea to host the event. Türkiye will host COP31 later this year, while Ethiopia will host COP32.  
  • On the 18th of April, India’s foreign secretary Vikram Misri summoned Iran’s ambassador, Mohammed Fathali, to express concern after two Indian ships were fired upon in the Strait of Hormuz. The UK Maritime Trade Operations Centre reported that an Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps vessel approached and opened fire on a tanker despite prior clearance. While the crew remained safe, some cargo was damaged without environmental impact. Iran had briefly reopened the strait but reimposed restrictions, citing the US blockade of its ports as a ceasefire violation. India emphasised the safety of merchant shipping and urged Iran to facilitate safe passage for India-bound vessels. 

Civil society, human rights defenders, and journalists 

  • On the 1st of April, the Press Club of India (PCI) released a statement in which they expressed grave concern over the recent take down orders issued across social media platforms that targets content critical of the government, resulting in creators being blocked or their material removed. A day earlier, the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology published proposed amendments to the Information Technology Rules (2021) that will enable such takedowns. According to the Press Club, the vague provisions enable arbitrary online censorship and create a chilling effect as the takedowns target news outlets, satirists and other critical voices. Fact-checker Zubair reportedly received notifications that multiple posts were blocked nationwide per a Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology order under Section 69A, though the specific content of the order wasn’t described. In the statement, the PCI termed the move “arbitrary and violative of the Constitution” and demanded that “authorities respect citizens’ and journalists’ fundamental right to freedom of speech and expression enshrined in and protected by Article 19(1)(a) of the Indian Constitution.” 
  • On the 7th of April, Manipur’s government imposed a three-day Internet suspension in five of its districts following violent protests. According to reports, an explosive device hit a civilian’s house in the Bishnupur district, killing two young children and injuring their mother. The incident, allegedly carried out by Kuki militants, triggered panic and led to protests across the district. In response, the State of Manipur ordered an Internet shutdown, stating that “anti-social elements might use social media for transmission of images, hate speech and hate video messages” which could affect law and order. It was in the public interest to stop “the spread of disinformation and false rumours”, the order read. Officials have also imposed a curfew in four valley districts. Manipur has witnessed a series of internet shutdowns in the nearly three years of ethnic violence, with the first and longest one imposed on the 3rd of May 2023, lasting 200 days. The same village, bordering a politically volatile hill, witnessed a similar attack in September 2024, when an explosive fell on the residence of former chief minister Koireng, killing an elderly man and injuring five others. 
  • On the 7th of April, clashes erupted in multiple constituencies in Assam over the single-phase assembly elections, leaving around 30 people injured and seven arrested. In the Partharkandi constituency, Congress candidate Kartik Sena Sinha allegedly stormed into the Rangamati polling booth and accused the presiding officer of allowing fake electors to cast votes. According to police reports, this was followed by a clash between Congress and BJP supporters injuring about 25 people. Three political parties, the Assam Jatiya Parishad, the Raijor Dal and the UPPL, reported that members and candidates of their party were attacked by BJP supporters. Officials further stated that minor scuffles happened in several polling booths due to heavy rush, queue-breaking and disputes between oppositional parties, but police presence brought these under control. 
  • On the 14th of April, stand-up comedian Anudeep Katikala was arrested after he made jokes about Andhra Pradesh Deputy Chief Minister Pawan Kalyan and his family in a comedy set titled “The Tollywood Roast Show. The controversy began when clips of his performance went viral online, prompting backlash from supporters of Kalyan, particularly members of the Jana Sena Party. A party leader filed a police complaint alleging that the jokes were defamatory, insulting, and potentially harmful to public order. Based on this complaint, an FIR was registered, and police detained Katikala from Prayagraj in Uttar Pradesh, where he was visiting family. He faced charges under several legal provisions, including defamation and laws related to offensive or harmful online content. The next day, approximately at 3 a.m. following his 9:30 p.m. arrest he was set free. Y. Rajesh and Md. Iqbal from the Human Rights Forum (HRF) advocated on behalf of Katikala and provided a detailed statement explaining the alleged illegalities of his arrest. They further noted that the report submitted by the police is “full of lies, misleading statements, contradictions and devoid of law”. 
  • On the 17th of April, the Union government has failed to pass an amendment to the constitution which would have resulted in an increase in the number of seats in the Parliament to 850. Congress MP Priyanka Gandhi Vadra referred to the failure of the amendment as a “very very big win for democracy” as according to her, the bill would have been about delimitation as opposed to protection of women nor allowing for reservation for them – allegedly only the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) would have benefited from such amendments. In 12 years of the Narendra Modi government, this was the first time they failed to pass a constitutional amendment, proposed as an act aimed at increasing women’s reservations. However, according to opposition parties the goal was to limit representation for some states, mostly southern ones. According to the Wire, claims of the Union home minister Amit Shah, do not hold up against factchecking. Allegedly, there has been an ongoing issue of men trying to reserve their own seats and according to Priyanka Gandhi, the delimitation is not to be trusted, and that Congress wasn’t and never would be against women’s reservation in the Parliament. On the other hand, Modi referred to the situation as “the government is committed to implementing the constitutional amendment within a clear timeline” and that “this decision is dedicated to women’s power”. In his eyes, India now stands “on the bring of making history” and asserts that the reform will have the effect of deepening democracy and women-led development, described it as transformative, and that the government is committed to implement this amendment within a clear timeline. 
  • On the 19th of April, activists, lawyers and journalists held a press conference at the Press Club of India to condemn the repression of protesters involved in the recent Noida worker’s protests. In the statement, they called the police crackdown “illegal and extrajudicial” and stated that those arrested were denied their legal rights. Four activists claimed to be forcibly taken into a police vehicle on the 11th of April without any justification nor a disclosure of their whereabouts to their relatives. Once their lawyers sought information at the Surajput Court, the police had “kidnapped’ them as well and “manhandled, abused and threatened” them. They further claimed that the UP police had initiated a ‘smear campaign’ in which they portrayed the protests as part of a conspiracy with links to Pakistan and the arrested activists as the masterminds behind it. The activists called these claims “baseless” and highlighted that there was texts and video evidence of them pledging to hold the strike in a peaceful manner. According to Supreme Court advocate Kawalpreet Kaur, who was at the press conference, it has become a predictable pattern that as soon as a mass movement emerges, a narrative of “conspiracy” emerges as well. Advocate Kabir pointed out that Journalists and intellectuals that weren’t at the protest were arrested as well, simply because they spoke in favour of the movement.  
  • The Electoral Commission has so far cut the Electoral rolls with 5.58 crore names since the initiation of the nation-wide Special Intensive Revision (SIR). The EC argued that the last intensive revision was carried out about 20 years ago and that rapid urbanisation and migration since then necessitated a clean-up of the rolls. As opposed to a Summary Revision, where the rolls are updated, an Intensive Revision prepares the roles anew. In previous SIRs, Booth Level Officers went house to house to check the number and details of electors. Now, the EC requires electors to submit a form themselves with documents proofing citizenship and eligibility, those that do not meet the one-month deadline face deletion. The SIR, taken place in 10 states and three union territories so far, led to 9.55% names being cut from 58.87 crore to 53.38. In Uttar Pradesh there was a decrease of 13.23% while Andaman and Nicobar Islands had the highest decrease (16.86%). Interestingly, Bihar, which had adopted a different methodology, saw a decrease of only 6%. The EC announced that it will start the SIR in the remaining states and union territories soon.  

Hate Crimes and Hate Speech against Minorities 

  • On the 11th of April, PM Modi claimed that if the BJP forms the government in West-Bengal, the process of granting citizenship under the Citizenship Amdentment Act (CAA) will be fast-tracked for refugee communities in West-Bengal. Modi made these statements while addressing an election rally ahead of West-Bengal Assembly elections, Simultaneously, PM Modi warned ‘infiltrators’ to leave the country or they will be identified and removed. Similar statements have been made by the Union Minister Amit Shah who promised that a Uniform Civil Code would be implemented within six months of the BJP taking office. These statements are meant to reassure members of Matua, Namasudra and other refugee communities who are key electorate groups in Bengal. Modi’s reassurance arrived a day after the BJP in Bengal shared a manifesto pledging citizenship and rehabilitation for Hindu refugees. This was seen as a direct threat to Matua and Namasudra voters amid voter roll deletions by the Election Commission. During his speech, Modi accused the Trinamool Congress Party of creating fear among refugee families during their 15-year rule and failing to secure the interest of these communities. 
  • On the 10th of April, a Dalit Medical student died after a fall from a building at the Kannur Dental College Campus in Kannur. His death caused outrage in Kerala after allegations emerged that he has been the victim of caste-based discrimination and humiliation by faculty members. A special investigation team has been formed to probe the case, headed by the Assistant Commissioner of Police, and two faculty members have been booked in the case. Two days after the incident, an audio clip emerged in which the victim reportedly describes how teachers publicly humiliated him and insulted his mother. The student’s sister claims that his brother had been the subject to repeated insults over his complexion, caste and parents’ occupation. The State Human Rights Commission has requested a report from the Kannur City Police Commissioner on the incident.  
  • On the 27th of April, the body of a Muslim Cleric was found near railway tracks in Uttar Pradesh, the man was allegedly thrown of the train. The evening prior, Imam Tousif Raza had called his wife three times in distress while reportedly being beaten by drunk men on the train. The post-mortem report recorded multiple ante-mortem (prior to death) injuries, including the fracturing of all of his ribs. In an audio call recording can be heard how Tousif asks his wife to call the police and begs fellow passengers to help him. According to Tousif’s wife, the men had accused him of theft and killed him deliberately. She further argues that his body was thrown of board and Tousif’s brother, who viewed the victim ‘s body, reported “wounds around his eyes (…) and injuries on both sides of his torso.” The family, residing in Kishanganj, stated they will file a formal complaint in Bareilly once they travel to the state. On April 30th, the Bareilly police alleged in a post on X that Tousif had dozed off and fallen of the train, which resulted in his death. In a later post, the police stated that necessary legal action will be taken once the family has filed a complaint. The All India Muslim Jamaat requested the CBI to probe into the case “It is our apprehension that this seems to be an incident related to mob lynching, so we have asked for a probe.” 

Religious Freedoms and Minority Rights 

  • On the 6th of April, the Union Government filed a submission urging the Supreme Court to uphold a restriction on menstruating women from entering a temple. In September 2018, the SC had ruled that not allowing women of menstruating age into Kerala’s Sabarimala temple was anti-constitutional and ordered that all women should be allowed to enter the temple. On the 4th of April, the Supreme Court announced a nine-judge bench to hear the long-pending Sabarimala review, which was initiated trough petitions against the 2018 judgement. Filed by solicitor general Tushar Mehta, the Union Government submission cautions the bench against adopting standards of review that assess religious practices on grounds such as “rationality,” “modernity,” or “scientific defensibility.” It argued that the restriction of women of menstruating age was not gender discrimination but rooted in religious practise, which falls within the domain of religious faith and denominational autonomy and outside the scope of judicial review.   
  • In Tamil Nadu, Assembly elections are nearing, yet Adivasis communities allege that hardly any politicians visit their settlements to seek votes or to enquire about their grievances. Around 30 tribal settlements in the Anamalai hills fight for survival as they lack basic infrastructure such as electricity and paved roads. Children are sent to residential schools in Valparai as daily commutes to local schools remain inaccessible. Government healthcare schemes do not reach the most vulnerable community members while malnutrition, poverty, and diseases threaten their existence. Tribal activists are demanding the State government to create special healthcare schemes, improve living standards and to declare these villages as ‘Particularly Vulnerable Tribal Groups (PVTGs)’. On the 2nd of April, the Chief Minister met with a Kadar tribal leader to speak about their grievances, a meeting which many tribals consider to be a promising gesture. 
  • In Nabarangpur in the state of Odisha, two Christian families were prevented from burying their family members in the village cemetery due to their faith. Local Hindus issued the ultimatum to the family converted to Christianity to either reconvert to Hinduism or lose access to the cemetery. Both families kept the dead bodies in their houses for several days while they negotiated with local Hindu community leaders. One of the families alleged that the district administration and the local police colluded with the Hindu groups in the village. The other family stated that hostilities in the community towards Christians began only a year ago. “Religious practice was never an issue here, we coexisted peacefully and even participated in each other’s celebrations”, they stated. The family claimed that the Christian families in the village were forced to sign a letter that permanently closed their church. “We are just a few families, and we are scared for our lives,” the family said.  The two incidents in the BJP-ruled state are part of growing struggles for Christians to access cemeteries and rising interference by Hindu right-wing groups.  
  • On the 13th of April, the Allahabad High Court condemned the Uttar Pradesh government over the filing of false First Information Reports (FIR) under the Prohibition of Unlawful Conversion of Religion Act 2021. The bench made the observation while hearing petitioners who are seeking to invalidate a registered FIR. The complainant had alleged that his daughter was being forced to marry the petitioner. However, the woman has said in her statement that she was in a consensual relationship with the petitioner and denied any allegations of change of religion, forced marriage or physical relations. She further claimed safety concerns for her and her family members due to harassments by Hindu organizations. The bench noted that despite the woman’s statement, the Investigative officer only dropped the charge of rape but continued the investigation under charges of kidnapping, assault and sections of the Anti-Conversion Act. According to the court, “it emerges that the Investigating Officer is acting under pressure or is ‘persuaded’ by some other factors.” The bench requested a hearing of the complainant for lodging a “patently false, fake and frivolous FIR” and directed the state to provide adequate security to the petitioners and their family members. The Court termed the false FIRs “a disturbing trend” and directed the additional chief secretary of the state to file a personal affidavit specifying the action being taken in such cases. 
  • The recent Indian Supreme Court ruling that reaffirmed that individuals who convert to Christianity cannot continue to be recognised as members of Scheduled Castes (Dalits) under the Constitution, sparked unrest. The ruling has caused significant concern in Punjab, a state with one of the highest proportions of Dalits in India (around one-third of the population) and where many Dalits are either Christian or have converted in recent years. For these communities, Scheduled Caste status is crucial, as it provides access to reservations in education and employment, as well as legal protections under laws such as the Scheduled Castes and Schedule Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act. The judgment effectively denies these protections to Dalit Christians, even if they continue to face caste-based discrimination. The National Council of Dalit Christians (NCDC), Catholic Bishops Conference of India (CBCI) and National Council of Churches in India (NCCI) have filed dozens of petitions seeking to extend Scheduled Caste status to Dalits of other religions. 

Internet and Technology 

  • On the 30th of March, the Telangana Assembly passed the Platform-Based Gig Workers Bill 2026, the legislation gives legal recognition to gig workers and regulates platform work to ensure the protection of workers. Labour, Employment and Mines Minister Venkataswamy introduced the bill, stating that workers in the digital economy lacked minimum wages, job security, health insurance, labour rights or other benefits. As per the Bill, the Congress-led government will tax 1-2% on gig-platform transactions, with strict high fines on non-compliance. From these taxes, a special welfare board will be constituted which will provide insurance, pension and maternity benefits to an expected 4 lakhs of gig-workers. The Bill further mandates transparency and accountability policies: the platforms must clearly disclose salary and deduction details, and cannot use arbitrary algorithms that affect workers. Similar bills have passed in four other states (Karnataka, Rajasthan, Jharkhand, and Bihar), although only Jharkhand way able to progress beyond negotiations and implement the measures.   
  • Investigative journalism by Decode reveals that AI Facial Recognition tools used by welfare programmes deny pregnant women food. Since July 2025, beneficiaries of the Integrated Child Development Services (ICDS) must pass an AI-powered facial scan and electronic verification before receiving supplies. However, the AI tool, downloaded on smartphones of community workers, uses old identity photos and often cannot recognize the changing facial features of pregnant women. Government data shows that nearly half of eligible beneficiaries did not receive emergency rations in 2025, leaving thousands of pregnant women, nursing mothers and young children without food. Experts who analyzed the AI-tool stated that the open-source Google ML kit was used. In response, Google responded that the ML Kit “does not have facial recognition capabilities” and is not designed to identify specific individuals. The company further stated that the legal responsibility of the technology lies with the developers who integrate it, which highlights a crucial accountability gap. The system was mandated by the Ministry of Women and Child Development, despite warnings from workers’ unions that it would fail vulnerable women whose faces change during pregnancy, illness or ageing. Further, the electronic verification process on personal phones is a high technical barrier for many poor women, those that cannot pass the system are removed from the welfare rolls entirely.    

Political Parties    

  • On the 15th of April, BJP leader Samrat Choudhary was sworn in as the Chief Minister of Bihar, becoming the first BJP politician to hold the post in the state. His appointment followed the resignation of long-time Chief Minister Nitish Kumar, who stepped down and moved to the Rajya Sabha, ending his extended tenure in state politics. The decision came after Choudhary was elected leader of both the BJP and the ruling NDA legislative parties after days of political uncertainty.  

Police and authorities 

  • On the 23rd of April, the Delhi High Court warned the Delhi police that it will order a probe into the alleged illegal detention and torture of students and activists by the police last month. The Bench of Justices examined the sealed cover reports handed in by the Delhi police and expressed dissatisfaction with the materials as well as the police’s conduct so far, “we can’t trust you with the investigation.’ The bench observed that the allegations of torture against police officials is of such serious nature that the investigation will be conducted by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI). The students and activists were under investigation for the alleged disappearance of a woman and alleged alliance to Maoist ideologies. According to the police, the students had joined the investigation voluntarily. The Bench expressed that the gravity of the alleged offences does not justify the negligence of the proper procedure and requested proof that the procedures were followed. The police named the allegations of abduction, wrongful confinement, torture and sexual harassment “false, fabricated, and devoid of any material particulars.” A sealed cover report on the status of the CCTV cameras in the Delhi Police Special Cell office was handed over to the High Court. However, the Bench had deemed it unsatisfactory and ordered the police to release the entire file of the case. The next hearing will be on the 19th of May. 

Judiciary 

  • The Campaign for Judicial Accountability and Reforms (CJAR) expressed its concern over the Supreme Court’s recent order directing Union and state governments to disassociate Professor Michel Danino, Suparna Diwakar, and Alok Prasanna Kumar from all publicly funded curriculum work. The three had supervised the drafting of a chapter in the NCERT textbook, which contained a section on corruption in the judiciary. The Court had ordered a ban on the publication and circulation of the textbook in February.  The order was issued without hearing the three experts or giving them the adequate opportunity to present their case. According to the court, the chapter held “a discernible agenda to undermine the institutional authority and demean the dignity of the judiciary” and argued that the writers had no reason to continue shaping textbooks meant for future students. According to the CJAR, the top court’s conclusion was “factually incorrect” as the book opens with a quote honouring the judiciary and only had one page devoted to corruption. “The judiciary has not been singled out but has been reasonably criticised as an institution that is not perfect and requires corrective steps as other branches of the state,” said CJAR. The organisation further urged the Supreme Court to revoke the ban on the textbook and its authors, and to permit healthy public discussion of the judiciary’s accomplishments alongside its challenges. 

Business & economy 

  • The Union Cabinet approved India’s updated Nationally Determined Contribution (NDC), which commits to 60% of its electric capacity being non-fossil sources by 2035. The NDC further pledges to radically reduce its emissions and increase its carbon sink to 3.5-4 billion tonnes of CO₂ equivalent. These targets will be communicated to the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change and arrive right after an analysis showed that India’s growth of CO2 emissions stood at its lowest in 2025 in more than 20 years. Under the Paris agreement, every signatory country is mandated to periodically submit NDC’s, India will very likely reach its 60% non-fossil capacity target as its already at 52%. When analysing every country’s NDCs, they so far close less than 14% of the emissions gap needed to reach the goal of reducing global warming to 1.5°C, according to the World Resources Institute. Further, no country set a target for reducing oil and gas production and international finance falls tremendously short to help subsidise developing countries’ targets. 

India in the World  

  • On the 9th of March, while addressing the Parliament, External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar stated that the Indian government had tried reaching out to the Iranian leadership after the U-S.-Israel combine attack on Tehran on February 28th but India could not establish contact. Iran had sought permission for three ships to use India’s ports before the U.S. torpedoed the ship IRIS DENA off Sri Laka. Permission was granted on the 1st of March with the crew resigning in Indian naval facilities, a call which External affairs Minister named “the right thing to do.” Jaishankar informed the MP’s that more than 52,000 Indian nationals have returned from the conflict zone since and that the Ministry has been closely engaged with governments to facilitate all those in need of assistance.  
  • On the 16th of March, the International Day to Combat Islamophobia, India critiqued Pakistan in the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) over “fabricating imaginative tales of Islamophobia” in its neighboring countries. India’s Permanent Representative Ambassador Parvathaneni Harish did not directly name Pakistan but instead referred to “India’s Western Neighbor.” He accused the country of hypocrisy, stating “one wonders what would brutal repression of Ahmadiyyas in this country be termed, or the large-scale refoulement of the helpless Afghans or air-bombing campaigns in this Holy Month of Ramadan?” Harish further requested the UN to focus on the alleged rising trend of “weaponizing religious identity” “to serve narrow political ends”. He underlined how all communities in India enjoy a multicultural and peaceful coexistence, including over 200 million Muslims, and that respect for all religions has been entrenched in “the secular ethos of the Indian Constitution”. 
  • On the 17th of March, India released a statement condemning Pakistan’s airstrike on the drug rehabilitation center in Kabul, Afghanistan, on the night of the 16th of March, killing over 400 people and injuring more than 250, according to Afghanistan. In the press release, spokesperson for the Indian Ministry of External Affairs, Randhir Jaiswal, called the attack on the Omid Addiction Treatment Hospital “barbaric” and “cowardly”, and accused Pakistan of “trying to dress up a massacre as a military operation”, stating that there is no justification for the deliberate targeting of a hospital and its patients. According to India, the attack is “a blatant assault on Afghanistan’s sovereignty and a direct threat to regional peace and stability” as they underline their “unwavering support for the sovereignty and territorial integrity of Afghanistan”. The statement further claims that the airstrike reflects “Pakistan’s persistent pattern of reckless behaviour” in an attempt to “externalize internal failures.” India called for the International Community to hold the perpetrators accountable and to ensure a halt to the targeting of Afghanistan by Pakistan.   
  • On the 24th of March, U.S. President Trump called up PM Modi to discuss the situation in West Asia, Modi shared on X. This was their first call since the start of the war on the 28th of February when the US and Israel launched attacks on Iran. Modi described the conversation as a “useful exchange of views on the situation in West Asia”. He further stated that “India supports de-escalation and restoration of peace at the earliest.” Both parties acknowledged the importance of opening the Strait of Hormuz, as described by the US ambassador to India on X, signaling their concern over disruption in global energy chains. On the same day, the US Under Secretary of War spoke at the Aanta Aspen Centre in New Delhi, he argued that the US and India did not need to agree on everything to cooperate effectively, describing their partnership as “embedded in lasting strategic mutual self-interest”. “Both of our countries benefit from an Indo-Pacific in which no power can dominate the region. Both benefit from open trade and national autonomy.” He further stated that US- India defence ties “have never been stronger” due to both parties acknowledging “the strategic centrality of military power for a stable balance in the region”.

Civil society, human rights defenders, and journalists 

  • On the 15th of March, the Delhi High Court heard multiple habeas corpus petitions concerning the alleged illegal detention of ten students and activists by Special Cell officials. The petitions were filed after the Campaign Against State Repression (CASR) claimed that the individuals had been picked up by plainclothes officers from different locations in Delhi and had remained untraceable, with no contact with family or lawyers. The petitioner’ council called the police actions ‘alarming’ as the activists were allegedly taken to unmarked “safe houses” instead of designated police stations and kept overnight without being produced before a magistrate. The counsel further alleged that the detainees were forced to sign false statements and were subjected to torture, with students describing the interrogation as “painful”, “humiliating” and “highly sexualised”, some even claiming they were forced to undertake sexual acts with fellow detainees. The police denied these statements, arguing that all activists received a formal notice to join the investigation which they complied with voluntarily. During the hearing, the Delhi Police told the court that all ten individuals had been released. However, counsel for the petitioners disputed this claim, stating that one activist was still missing. The court directed the police to trace him and report back. A division bench of Justices Navin Chawla and Ravinder Dudeja asked the police to explain the circumstances under which the detentions took place and ordered them to preserve CCTV footage from locations where the individuals were allegedly picked up. The police’s counsel declined to share a copy of the FIR, stating that it was confidential.  
  • On the 17th of March, the V-Dem institute published their annual report in which India ranked 105 out of 179 countries on the liberal democracy Index. Titled ‘Democracy Report 2026: Unraveling the Democratic Era’, the report notes that India remains an ‘electoral autocracy’, a zone it entered in 2017. According to the report, “India’s autocratisation is a slow but systematic dismantling of democratic institutions. The ruling BJP and PM Modi’s derailing of democracy include “deteriorations in freedom of expression and independence of the media, harassments of journalists critical of the government, and attacks on civil society and the opposition.” They further report that gains made in the “third wave of democratization” are almost eradicated as autocratisation scores fall back to the same level as in 1975.   
  • On the 19th of March, a Delhi Court acquitted Jamsheed Zahoor Paul and Parvaiz Rashid, arrested at the age of nineteen under the Arms Act, 1959 and subsequently under terrorism-related provisions of the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act. Since their arrest, Paul and Rashid have been repeatedly portrayed as “ISIS terrorists”, and declared guilty long before any trial concluded. Based largely on police claims and without judicial findings, several prominent outlets used definitive language that ignored the principle of innocence until proven guilty, shaping public perception and hardening stigma against the two young men from the moment of their arrest. After spending more than seven years in prison, the Delhi court acquitted both of them, citing serious doubts and failures in the prosecution’s case. 
  • On the 23rd of March, the Election Commission of India (ECI) released its first supplementary list for the upcoming West Bengal assembly elections which shows that women are being deleted at significantly higher rates than men. Across the state, over 30 lakh citizens remain in the ‘Under Adjudication’ (UA) category, a legal status where someone is legally barred from voting, awaiting an opaque review process. According to the Wire, who manually downloaded and verified the booth-level data, women are being deleted at significantly higher rates, with Malatipur showing the most excessive case of gendered exclusion with women accounting for 67.4% of deletions. The UA process exploits the documentation vulnerabilities inherent to rural women, specifically those related to marriage-based migration and the resulting changes in surnames or addresses. The UA tag leaves millions deprived of their constitutional voting rights without a finalised adjudication or a reason for removal, making it virtually impossible to file a meaningful appeal. The electoral rolls will be finalised between the 6th and 9th of April, leaving a window of two weeks to resolve 30 lakh cases. 

Hate Crimes and Hate Speech against Minorities 

  • On the 15th of March, while addressing a rally of the BJP’s youth wing the Bharatiya Janata Yuva Morcha, Union Home Minister Amit Shah claimed he “will search out and remove infiltrators” in Assam.  He expressed confidence that the BJP would win a large majority in the upcoming Assam elections and serve a third of them, as he claimed improvements in law and order, culture and traditions and development projects.  Shah was visiting Assam to inaugurate the construction of hospitals and medical facilities, where he stated that the BJP had brought the state’s healthcare system on par with developed states. At the rally, he claimed that the BJP would continue to free Assam and the country of “infiltrators” if the people of Assam would give the BJP a third mandate. He referred to districts with significant Bengali-origin Muslim populations and declared that they “will inspect every house, and the coming government will do the work of removing them.” He further accused the Congress party of “legalising, formalising and normalising” infiltrators, claiming that Rahul Ghandi, leader of the Congress party, opposes the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) as infiltrators are being cut of the electoral lists. He asserted that only the BJP can make Assam “infiltrator-free”, that they “will not stop cutting names” of the electoral lists and that “each one will have to leave the country”.   
  • On the 26th of March, the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of India (CBCI) expressed “grave concern” over the proposed amendments to the Foreign Contribution Regulation Act (FCRA), calling it “undemocratic” and “unconstitutional”. The Bill proposes the creation of a “designated authority” to take provisional or permanent control of assets of NGOs whose FCRA licences are cancelled, surrendered or lapse. In a press statement, the CBCI described the Bill as ‘dangerous’ and ‘alarming’, alleging that the proposed changes could enable ‘executive overreach’ into constitutional freedoms under the pretext of administrative concerns. They further raise concerns about the fairness, transparency and accountability of such licencing authority, alleging that the amendment is an attempt to place minority institutions under an “excessively stringent regulatory framework”. The CBCI urged the government to reconsider the proposed amendments, “remove all contentious provisions” and ensure that constitutional rights and freedoms, particularly of minorities, are protected. On the 29th of March, Kerala chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan published a letter on X  demanding Prime Minister Modi to withdraw the Bill and calling the provisions a “a tool for arbitrary control and intimidation” and “a direct assault on the autonomy of civil society and minority communities”. The amendment has become a major topic of debate in the upcoming Kerala assembly elections, with both the ruling and oppositional parties asking the Union government to reconsider the bill.  

Religious Freedoms and Minority Rights 

  • On the 4th of March, the day of the Hindu festival Holi, a dispute broke out in the Uttar Pradesh’s Shahjahanpur district over the alleged forceful throwing of Holi colours on members of the Muslim community.  The police registered a case against 108 unidentified people and eight Muslims in Mau Rasulpur village. According to the First Information Report (FIR), the ensuing argument escalated into violence with some Muslim community members reportedly sustaining injuries. “As the dispute escalated, stone pelting occurred between the two groups, in which around 11 people sustained injuries,” Superintendent of Police Rajesh Dwivedi stated. The Police detained 20 people from both communities, 10 Hindus and 10 Muslims, as a precautionary measure, who were later released. Authorities stated that the situation in the village is currently peaceful, but security has been tightened as a precaution. 
  • On the 7th of March, Amit Shah, the Union Home and Cooperation Minister stated that “intruders” will be driven out from Kedarnath to Kanyakumari. Shah further claimed that the names of those who are not Indian citizens must be removed from the voter list, in relation to the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls and the opposition parties protecting against the SIR, saying that a clean electoral roll is crucial to safeguard democracy. Moreover, according to Shah, the government is working so in the coming years all infiltrators will be ousted from India: “they will not be allowed to stay here” while saying that non-Muslim refugees have the right for the citizenship similarly as to any other Indian. He stated that no matter how much he opposes such initiatives, the Modi government will make those people Indian citizens. The Union Minister praised the introduction of the Uniform Civil Code (UCC) as well, as according to him, citizens, regardless of their religion, will be subject to the same law under the UCC and “the UCC will help stop unnatural increases in demographics”. The committee assigned to carry out the implementation of the order soon, and he finished by saying that the “opposition leaders can protest as much as they want”, since in his view, the amendments to the criminal laws shall streamline the delivery system of justice. 
  • On the 9th of March, Odisha Chief Minister Mohan Charan Majhi informed the state assembly that 54 incidents of communal riots and seven cases of mob lynching were reported in the state since June 2024. He stated that nearly 300 people have been arrested for their alleged involvement in the riots, however, chargesheets have been filed in less than half of the cases. According to the CM, changes have been made to prevent future incidents, such as the formation of peace committees and the strengthening of intelligence gathering to act against people attempting to disturb the public order. The Indian Express pointed out that Majhi did not mention the communal attacks reported in Cuttack last year during Durga Puja festivities, which prompted a three-day long curfew in the state and suspended internet services. Members of the Vishva Hindu Parishad, a right-wing Hindu nationalist organisation, clashed with police and indulged in vandalism and arson. In the past 20 months, six towns in Odisha have experienced curfews and Internet suspension over communal incidents, including the lynching of Bengali-speaking Muslims. Most of the accused have been members of right-wing organisations, according to critics, the Mohan Majhi government has been struggling to control militant Hindu organisations accused of attacking minority community members, particularly Muslims.  
  • On the 10th of March, the Communist Party of India (CPI) State Council passed a resolution condemning the government for including two non-Muslims in the newly constituted Puducherry Waqf board. The Waqf Act of 1995 governs the management of Islamic religious donations (Waqfs), specifically properties, and mandates the formation of state-level boards. The new Waqf Amendment act 2025, introduced by the BJP ruling party, substantially increases the government’s involvement in managing Waqf assets. It further mandates that every Waqf board must include at least two non-Muslim members, a requirement that does not exist for Hindu or Christian religious thrusts and which Muslim leaders have called “unconstitutional”. The Union government has argued that the provisions aim to improve transparency, administrative efficiency and secular oversight in management without interfering in religious matters. However, the amendment faces opposition from several Muslim organisations and political parties that argue it infringes on religious autonomy and minority rights. Particularly controversial is the amendment that Waqf boards must provide valid documents to claim a property as waqf, while many properties have been donated through oral declarations or community customs.  In case of disputes, particularly over land deemed government-owned, the final decision will rest with the government. Multiple petitions challenging the amendment have been filed in the Supreme Court in 2025, with the court imposing limits on the number of non-Muslim members allowed on the board. In their resolution, the CPI stated that the inclusion of non-Muslim members was against the interest of the Muslim community, especially as one of the non-Muslim members is “a staunch RSS man”, the RSS being a right-wing Hindu paramilitary organisation. “The State Council meeting of the party demands immediate cancellation of the Waqf Board and constitution of a new board as per the Act prior to the amendment,” the resolution stated.  

Internet and Technology 

  • The Union Government is using Article 69A of the Information Technology Act 2000 to block social media posts containing satire and criticism against Prime Minister Modi and his policies, actively censoring his critics online. The legal provision was applied to block all content on social media that mocks, lampoons, or in any other way is critical of Prime Minister Modi, or his policies and actions. Because takedown orders are issued secretly under Section 69A of the IT Act, the main “proof” comes from users posting the legal notices they receive from platforms like X (Twitter), showing their content has been blocked in India. These notices cover a wide range of posts: political cartoons, memes, satirical videos, critical commentary about Modi’s foreign policy, and posts questioning India’s alignment with the US. A research examining the data from Meta between January to June 2025 and observed that Instagram and Facebook deleted content due to governmental orders rose by three times compared to 2 years prior, in the same period from 2023. Among them whose post have been removed, cartoonist Satish Acharya came forward on the 10th of March 2026 denouncing that X have been withholding two of his works which were depicting India-Iran relations as well as the United States of America. The notices that X have sent out to users whose content has been removed from the platform stated that even though the platform has legal obligations to withhold the content in the country, if affected users wish to appeal the decision they can contact MeitY via their email address. Other censored material includes images of Modi saluting Trump, posts referring to the mistranscription of Sanskrit subhashita by Modi, as well as Shabnam Hashmi’s post on the protest at the AI Summit. Pranesh Prakash, the co-founder of the Centre for Internet and Society has stated that such orders and actions on X are “unconstitutional” as well as they fail to give meaningful opportunity to the user to be heard, as well as lacking a “public, reasoned order”. Prakash assessed the legal framework of these directives in a paper in 2024 and concluded that the requirements imposed by international human rights law in terms of legality, legitimate aims and proportionality all fail in present situation. 

Political Parties    

  • On the 10th of March, Oppositional parties staged a walk out in the upper house after Chairman Radhakrishnan declined their demand for a new debate on the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls in West Bengal. Mr. Radhakrishnan rejected the plea raised by Trinamool Congress leader Deker O’Brien, stating that adequate time had already been given during the Winter Session’s discussions on electoral reforms. Leader of the House J.P. Nadda accused the Opposition of avoiding substantive debate, undermining democratic norms and “bringing about anarchy”. TMC MP Sukhendu Sekhar Ray used a brief preface to question the Centre’s “coercive measures” in West Bengal under the SIR, naming it a threat to the fundamental rights of millions and calling for an investigation. In turn Mr. Nadda accused the West Bengal government of ignoring the rules and regulations. 

Police and authorities 

  • On the 24th of March, The Home Ministry provided data in Parliament showing a rise of deaths of people in police custody with 170 individuals dying in 2025-6. The figures stood highest in 2021-22 (176), and lowest in 2024-5 (140), before rising again to 170 in the current year so far. Despite these numbers, only one case of disciplinary action has been reported over this 5-year period. Bihar recorded the highest number (19), almost double the figure in the previous year (10). Responding to a Written question in the Lower house, Minister of State for Home Affairs Nityanand Rai said that all custodial deaths, whether in police or judicial custody, must be reported to the NHRC within 24 hours. The Ministry of Home Affairs and the NHRC issue advisories to ensure protection of human rights such as video recordings of post-mortems and model autopsy procedures. In cases where negligence is found, the NHRC recommends action to the concerned authorities, while disciplinary proceedings are carried out by the respective state governments.  

Judiciary 

  • On the 10th of March, the Supreme Court agreed to consider the plea against the deletion of the electors from the electoral rolls. The Supreme Court have allegedly consented to the consideration of a fresh plea which was filled out by the persons whose names have been deleted from the electoral rolls ongoing in West Bengal by the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) by the Election Commission. The plea relating to the deletion of voters from the rolls were considered by a Bench, and they were said to have a hearing on the issue the very next day. Previously, on the 24th of February, deployment of West Bengal civil judges was allowed to requisition judicial officers from both Odisha and Jharkhand to handle the objections and claims of those affected by the deletion from the electoral roll in the ongoing SIR proceedings. It was also noted that the process shall take up to 80 days to map the situation of the effected individuals.  

Business & economy 

  • On the 17th of March, the Research Collective published their investigation on how the BJP government in Assam pledged to pay the Adani group for surplus electricity that may not consume. Conservative calculations based on documents from the Assam government and Central Electricity Authority show that the state could end up paying more than Rs 12,500 crore over five years. Assam has committed to buying 3,200 MW from the Adani group starting in a phased manner from 2030. However, according to the Resource Adequacy Plan from the Central Electricity Authority, Assam requires only 2,829 MW of additional coal power by 2035-36 to meet all its energy needs, even if the state sees high economic growth. The Coordination Committee of Electricity Employees, Engineers and Pensioners demanded the immediate suspension of all proceedings related to the project in a formal letter to the state’s power distribution agency and Assam Chief Minister, stating that decision-makers took this step without adequate transparency, public awareness, or consultation with stakeholders. They further requested the authorities to explain the need for an additional 3200 MW as excess power generation could create financial risks, a burden that would ultimately be paid by consumers through higher tariffs.   

India in the World 

  • The EU and India have finalized their Free Trade Agreement, both sides commit to eliminating almost all tariffs and expanding bilateral trade. The trade deal does not require approval by each of the 27 national member states, which could speed up the operationalization of the agreement, but it would still need Parliamentary approval. Both parties desire the FTA to be operational within a year. PM Modi and his government have received a lot of critique in congress, particularly for its inability to secure an exemption for India’s aluminum and steel sectors from the EU carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism. Further critique comes from the left-leaning factions, such as the Communist Party of India, who argue that the tariff cuts on luxury goods will only benefit the wealthy, while threatening the livelihoods of farmers, workers and ordinary citizens. Indian Farmer unions, united under the umbrella body Sanyukt Kisan Morcha (SKM), condemn the “double standard” where complex EU barriers block Indian farm exports, while India lowers its own import standards. According to the SKM, the FTA’s high-level Intellectual Property protection will act as a Trojan horse for EU seed and agro-chemical monopolies. It further calls the trade deal “a blueprint for economic colonization”  that will lead to the systematic corporate capture of the vast India market, decimating the agriculture and industry and ruining employment opportunities in India. The agreement marked a new milestone in EU–India relations, but failed to protect democratic institutions, the rule of law, and respect for human rights.  
  • On the 6th of February, the US and India released their joint statement on the Interim agreement. The statements reveals that India committed to buy $500 billion worth of “U.S. energy products, aircraft and aircraft parts, precious metals, technology products and cooking coal” at the rate of $100 billion each year over the next five years. Both countries will significantly increase trade in technology products and goods used in data centers. Additionally, they addressed non-tariff barriers, India will eliminate restrictive import licensing procedures that delay market access for U.S. ICT products. This interim commitment is viewed as significantly one-sided, as stated by economics at the Wire, drastically changing the status-quo of free and fair trade among nations. India’s $500 billion commitment will erode India’s trade surplus of $45 billion and replace it with a growing trade deficit, no other East Asian economy has offered to dilute its trade surplus with the US like India has done. 
  • On the 13th of February, the US District Court has formally accepted the guilty plea of Nikhil Gupta, the Indian charged in the trans-national plot to kill Sikh separatist and activist Gurpatwant Singh Pannun. Pannun is a U.S. citizen of Indian origin, a vocal critic of the Indian government and leads a U.S.-based organization that advocates for the secession of Punjab. On the 18th of June 2023, a leader of the Sikh separatist movement and associate of Pannun was murdered in Canada. 12 days later, Gupta was arrested in the Czech Republic and subsequently extradited to the United States, preventing the murder of Pannun. The US Department of Justice released a press statement that claimed Gupta “acted on the direction of an Indian government employee”, Vikash Yadav, who was an officer of India’s external intelligence agency at the time. FBI Assistant Director Roman Rozhavsky stated that “the U.S. citizen became a target of transnational repression solely for exercising their freedom of speech.  The Indian government has denied any knowledge or involvement in the plot to kill Mr. Pannun.  
  • From the 16th to the 21st of February, India hosted the AI impact Summit, bringing together 20 national leaders, 45 ministerial-level delegations and Big-tech executives. PM Modi inaugurated the 5-day event, stating that they aim to create a “shared roadmap for global AI governance and collaboration” and discuss issues such as changing labor markets, regulation, security and ethics. The theme of the summit was Sarvajana hitaya, Sarvajana sukhaya; welfare for all, happiness for all. India positioned itself as a service provider for AI for the whole world, aiming to democratize access to compute, datasets and algorithms. Modi revealed India’s AI vision ‘MANAV’, referring to Moral and ethical systems, Accountable governance, National sovereignty, Accessibility and inclusivity and Valid and legitimate means. The key outcome document, the New Delhi Declaration on AI impacts, has been signed by 88 countries and international organizations. Throughout the document, India focused on the key pitch to ‘democratize AI’ as countries commit to promoting access to foundational resources, locally relevant innovation and pooling AI research capabilities.  Leading international and domestic AI companies, including Google, OpenAI, Meta and Microsoft signed the New Delhi Frontier AI Impact Commitments, a voluntary framework stating the companies will evaluate their AI systems for global context and, by the next AI Summit, they have pledged to publish statistical insights derived from anonymized, aggregated, and taxonomized usage data. Many companies also announced partnerships with Indian government and research institutions. The event marked the first time an AI summit was held in the Global South and positioned new Delhi as a convening power in Global AI governance. The rapid growth of AI does bring about challenges to the large data centers necessary to deploy AI models, as they place sustained pressure on electricity grids which strain the local energy distribution. They also require massive amounts of water to cool the hardware, which is a serious concern when 24% of  Indians still lack access to clean water and adequate sanitation.  Further challenges lie with policy gaps and institutional capacity: India still lacks a formally adopted national data center policy, which means that state-level policies remain fragmented even though state utilities and regulators often lack the technical expertise to assess the long-term implications of large digital loads. There are no compulsory energy efficiency rules or sustainability standards, nor a clear policy or financial support for green data centers, making clean power storage and sustainable cooling costly.  
  • On the 25 and 26th of February, PM Modi made a standalone visit to Tel Aviv, accompanied by a high-level delegation comprised of senior ministers and officials. PM Modi’s last visit to Israel was in 2017, when he notably did not visit Palestine as well, which was part of all previous official visits. Modi historically supported the establishment of a Palestinian state and condemned Israeli measures in the West Bank earlier this month, yet it has abstained from criticism of Israel in international forums like the United Nation. Netanyahu and Modi have spoken at least 10 times over the last 3 years, the two signed a pact on defence and started free trade negotiations in November 2025. In a joint statement following the visit, the countries reaffirmed their special strategic partnership and announced, “a new era” of collaboration across diverse domains “including emerging technologies, cyber, agriculture, water management, health, entrepreneurship, defence, security, and more.” Oppositional party, the Indian National Congress, termed the visit “shameful” and “ill-timed”, stating the visit “creates the perception of a political endorsement of military escalation” which is antithetical to India’s commitment to the rules-based international order.  The party reaffirmed its commitment to “peaceful coexistence, stability and shared prosperity” in the region and warned the BJP to be mindful of India’s geopolitical and diasporic ties with other countries in the region. 

 Civil society, human rights defenders, and journalists 

  • On the 10th of February, the Final voter list of Assam was published after the Special Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls. The list showed a decrease of 2.43 lakh voters from the draft released in December.  Booth-level officers (BLO’s) went house-to-house to verify voters and identified over 4.78 lakh names for deletions due to death of electorates, 5.23 lakh due to change of registered locations, and more than 50,000 identified duplicate entries. The publication of the draft list was followed by a period of claims and objections, in which new voters could apply for inclusion, and people can object to the inclusion of another individual. In some districts, the scale of objections filed caused hearings to come to a halt until the district administration could expand the infrastructure at those centers. The final list is followed by a window of appeal for 30 days.  
  • On the 10th of February, a magistrate court in Mansa convicted Indian freelance journalist Ravi Nair in a criminal defamation case and sentenced him to 1 year of imprisonment and a Rs 5,000 fine. The judgment followed a private complaint filed by Adani Enterprises, LTD (AEL), the flagship entity of Adani Group, an Indian conglomerate in de sector of energy production, mining, logistics and agriculture. Nair frequently used social media to critique the Adani Group, owned by billionaire Gautam Adani, which has come under sustained scrutiny over allegations of financial irregulates. The court concluded that the journalist’s comments and publications were defamatory and with knowledge of their likely impact on the company’s reputation. In September, Nair was among 10 defendants barred from publishing allegedly defamatory content about the Adani Group. The Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) expresses deep concern with the sentence, stating “the conviction of journalist Ravi Nair for criminal defamation sets a dangerous precedent for press freedom and free speech in India”. The CPJ has called on the Indian government to protect journalists from being jailed for defamation.  
  • On the 30th of January, Human Rights Foundation (HRF) and the Asian Forum for Human Rights and Development (FORUM-ASIA) submitted an individual complaint to the UN Working Group on Arbitrary Detention (WGAD) on behalf of Kashmiri journalist and human rights defender Irfan Mehraj. The complaint urges the UN Working Group to declare his detention arbitrary, in violation of international law and to call on the Indian government to immediately and unconditionally release him. Mehraj was arrested on the 20th of March 2023 by the National Investigation Agency and remains in pre-trial detention in Tihar Jail. According to HRF, his case exemplifies India’s practise of ‘trial by jail” where court relentlessly extend pre-trial detention and delay decisions on bail applications. Probe agencies allege Mehraj’s detention to be linked to his association to the Human rights organisation Jammu Kashmir Coalition of Civil Society (JKCCS), accusing him of terrorism and secessionism with the “NGO terror funding case.” JKCCS has been under broader investigation since 2020 together with another Kashmiri NGO’s, and the allegations have been widely criticised by international observers, including the UN Working Group on Arbitrary Detention. Kashmiri human rights defender Khurram Parvez remains detained under the same case. FORUM-ASIA’s Executive Director state that their cases “highlight India’s failure to protect freedom of expression and to meet its international human rights obligations.” 
  • Despite their significant contributions to journalism, female journalists in India continue to face significant obstacles, facing constant harassment, both online and offline, legal threats, professional isolation and persistent online trolling. Their opinions are often not valued says Padmaja Shaw, retired professor in the Department of Journalism at Osmania University. Shaw notes that although women have long shaped journalism, advocating for gender justice, redefining public issues, and challenging legal and social inequities, their independent opinions are still often dismissed, and they remain vulnerable to systemic obstacles that threaten both their safety and professional autonomy. She also warns of broader societal patterns that deprive women of property rights, financial independence, and equitable treatment, underscoring how these structural barriers compound the abuse women journalists endure today. 
  • On the 14th of February, the Uttar Pradesh police arrested a 22-year-old man for allegedly posting a video insulting PM Modi. The man, identified as Jitendra Kumar Kashyap, has been accused of intentional insult with intent to provoke breach of peace and statements conducing to public mischief. He was arrested shortly after his video went viral. Just last month, Youtuber Sangram Patil, A London based doctor who is known for his criticism of the BJP, was taken for questioning during his visit to India and released after 15 hours of detention. His detention stemmed from a complaint filed by BJP functionary Nikhil Bhamre who claimed Patil had posted “objectionable content” on Facebook that tarnished the image of a senior party leader. 

Hate Crimes and Hate Speech against Minorities 

  • On the 26th of January, in Uttakhand’s Pauri Garhwal, a group of men intimidated an elderly Muslim shopkeeper, threatening that he had to change the name of his shop (Baba Clothes). A local gym owner, named Deepak Kumar, overheard the commotion and confronted the mob. A video of Kumar defending the shop owner has since gone viral and sparked backlash online. The next Saturday, around 40 people gathered in front of Kumar’s gym, Kumar told officials that he feared his family’s safety. Uttarakhand Police have since filed a First Information Report (FIR) under the sections of unlawful assembly, obstructing the duty of public servants and promoting enmity. The FIR further states that “the group then reached Baba Dress shop and started raising slogans in front of the shop and used abusive language while spreading religious frenzy,” and that the crowd claimed themselves to be members of the Bajrang Dal, a right-wing militant youth organization of the Vishva Hindu Parishad.  
  • On the 7th of February, BJP state Chief Minister of Assam, Himanta Biswa Sarma, posted an AI video of himself with a rifle shooting at a photograph of two men in skullcaps, one resembling an MP of the opposition Indian National Congress party Gaurav Gogoi. The video further shows Sharma dressed as a cowboy wielding a gun and texts stating, “No mercy to Bangladeshis”, “Why did you go to Pakistan?” and “Foreigner-free Assam.” The video, captioned “Point blank shot”, led to backlash across the political spectrum prompting the party to delete the post from X. In an official statement, the All India Trinamool Congress states the video “Appears to glorify the targeted, ‘point-blank’ murder of minorities” and amounts to “a call to mass violence and genocide”. It further calls the posts a reflection of “the true face of this fascist regime” that has tried to normalize this content for the past 11 years. Congress MP Sagarika called for the arrest of the creator of the ad. In September 2025, the same account posted an AI generated video captioned “Assam without BJP” showing men in skullcaps and women in bourkas and hijabs with the text ‘beef legalization’ and ‘illegal immigrants.’ The chief minister has recently escalated his rhetoric against Bengali-origin Muslims in Assam, linking them to crime and demographic change. Speaking on the special revision of electoral rolls in Assam, Himanta said that “four lakh to five lakh Miya (Derogatory term for Bengali speaking Muslims) voters” will be deleted from the electoral rolls, that his job was to “make them suffer.” He further admitted that “Yes, we are trying to steal some Miya votes. Ideally, they should not be allowed to vote in Assam”. The comments triggered outrage, and multiple petitioners, including the Communist Party, lawyers and human rights activists, approached the Supreme Court, stating that the comments were communal, unconstitutional, and amount to hate speech by a person holding a high constitutional office. The petitioners provided a detailed chronology from 2021 to February 2026 of statement by Sarma allegedly calling for social, economic, and civic exclusion of Bengali-origin Muslims. They further claimed that the statements resulted in real-world consequences as perpetrators of discrimination and harassment have reported acting on the chief minister’s directions. On the 16th of February, the Chief Justice of India Surya Kant refused to invoke Article 32, which guarantees the right to move the Supreme Court directly for the enforcement of fundamental rights. Instead, he argued that the petitioners should first approach the jurisdictional high courts who can “effectively adjudicate” the issues, claiming their move to approach the SC was a “calculated” effort to “demoralize’ high courts”, referring to alleged aim to politicize the upcoming elections in Assam.  
  • A query filed by the Quint under the Right to Information Act revealed that Modi’s government funded Rs 63 lakh to an event calling for the “mass deportation” of Muslims. At the event, organized on the 13th and 14th of December by the Sanatan Rashtra Shankhnad Mahotsav, the organizers publicly called for “Mass conversion”, “a cap on Muslim population” and “a constitutional Hindu Rastra”.  The event in Delhi had over 3000 participants including prominent figures such as BJP politicians, Hindu NGO’s, the Sudarshan TV chief and supreme court lawyer Ashwini Upadhyay.  Union ministers Gajendra Singh Shekhawat, Shripad Naik and Sanjay Seth, and Delhi’s tourism minister Kapil Mishra spoke at the event. The concerned ministries responded to the query revealing the donation. 

 Religious Freedoms and Minority Rights 

  • On the 2nd of February, the Supreme Court sought responses from the central government and several states in response to a petition filed by the National Council of Churches in India challenging the constitutionality of anti‑conversion laws enacted across multiple states, arguing that these laws violate fundamental rights by criminalising voluntary, conscience‑based religious conversions and imposing requirements such as prior government permission, which petitioners say undermine privacy and personal autonomy. One of the laws challenged is the Orissa Freedom of Religion Act (1967), enacted to prevent large-scale conversion of tribals. According to the petitioners, the laws have deliberately defined ‘conversion’, ‘inducement’ and ‘allurement’ vaguely to give uncanalised authority to states who show uniform patterns of misuse. “Routine worship, prayer meetings, charitable activities and interfaith marriages are criminalised through expansive interpretations of ‘allurement’ and ‘inducement’.” This produces “a chilling effect on free speech and religious propagation” as vigilante groups function as de facto enforces, legitimising social hostility and instilling fear among minority communities. They further argue that the stricter provisions on the conversion of women “deny women equal decisional autonomy”.   
  • In Surat, Indian state of Gujarat, BJP’s local corporator Vikram Popat Patil has been accused of misusing application forms to declare hundreds of living Muslim voters as ‘deceased’ and removing their names from the voter list. Hundreds of Muslim residents have filed formal complaints with the police, demanding action and an investigation against Patil for misusing Form 7- meant for removing names of deceased or ineligible voters- to falsely declare living Muslim voters as dead and eliminate them from the electoral rolls. A draft of the electoral roll was published on the 19th of December as part of the Special Intensive Revision of the Election Commission. Since then, 73.73 lakh names have been removed from the list. BJP leader Himanta Biswa Sarma has publicly urged BJP workers to file complaints against Muslim community members and “fill out form 7 wherever possible”.  Similarly in Indore, bulk objections have been filed against thousands of voters by workers of the BJP, alleging that fellow residents have moved or are not Indian citizens. Booth level officers, residents and local corporators told Scroll that a majority of objections have been filed against Muslim voters. Fakir Mohamed, who is an Indian citizen born in Madya Pradesh, received such an application on the grounds that he was not an Indian citizen. “How can anyone decide that I can no longer vote?” He said, producing a list of documents, including land records from 1961 as proof. Rafique Khan, a former corporator, said the objections seem to be “a systematic attempt to cut Muslim votes. 
  • On the 8th of February, a new wave of violence has erupted Manipur’s Ukhrul district between the Tangkhul Naga tribe and the Kukis community, triggered by a drunken brawl the night prior. During the clashes, around 40 houses were burned in the district. The state Home Department issued a curfew and an order stating a 5-day internet ban in Ukhrul, effective immediately as a “preventative” and “precautionary” measure. The order stated that “anti-social elements might use social media” for the transmission of content and further stated that “there is an imminent danger of loss of life (…) as a result of inflammatory material and false rumours”. The following Monday morning, the 9th of February, villagers in and around Litan abandoned their homes, fearing further escalation. On the 16th of February, 51 Kuki Students were evacuated as a precautionary measure.  Local civil society organizations helped the administration in deescalating tensions and persuading villagers to ensure safe evacuation. The students were handed over to the Saikul police station team for their onward movement to a sister school in the Kangpokpi district. Since May 2023, Manipur has been rocked by ethnic violence which has led to deaths of at least 260 people and the displacement of thousands.  
  • While addressing an election rally in Assam, Union Home Minister Amit Shah claimed that seven of the districts in the state have been “occupied by 6.4 million infiltrators.” He further stated that the ruling Congress party was to blame and that only the BJP could halt the alleged infiltration. In response to an information request under the Right to Information (RTI) Act, the Ministry of Home Affairs clarified that it does not have any centrally available data regarding the identification, arrest, or deportation of infiltrators in the country. Amit Shah has repeatedly referred to large numbers of ‘infiltrators’ in the country and stated that these illegal infiltrations pose a serious threat to the country’s security and demography. In October 2025, during a memorial lecture, he claimed that “the growth of the Muslim population in India is not owing to fertility rates but is instead a result of extensive infiltration.” 
  • The Union of Ministry of Home Affairs released an order stating that all six stanzas of Vande Mataram will be sung first when the national song and national anthem are played at any event. The direction drew criticism from prominent Muslim bodies, calling it a “blatant attack” on the freedom of religion guaranteed by the Constitution, contrary to Supreme Court judgements and directly conflicting with the religious beliefs of Muslims. Verses in the song refer to beliefs that portray the homeland as a deity, which contradicts the fundamental belief of monotheistic religions. General secretary of the All-India Muslim Personal Law Board (AIMPLB) stated that “A secular government cannot forcibly impose the beliefs or teachings of one religion upon followers of other religions.” 

 Internet and Technology 

  • On the 10th of February, the Ministry for Electronics and Information Technology published the Information Technology (Intermediary Guidelines and Digital Media Ethics Code) Amendment Rules, 2026. The document shows that the takedown timeline of unlawful content has been cut from 24-36 hours to just three hours. This change is expected to receive pushbacks from big tech firms due to a heavy compliance burden, which might initiate over-censorship to comply with such a short window. The Ministry dropped their earlier proposal that forced all AI-generated content to carry a label that covers at least 10% of the content; the rule now refers to a ‘prominent’ label. The definition of synthetically generated information (SGI) has been broadened to include assistive and quality-enhancing uses of AI. Routine and good faith editing of audio, video or audio-visual content is excluded from the definition of SGI. Companies must take “appropriate” and “expeditious” action when they become aware of their intermediary hosting or disseminating unlawful SGI. Big tech companies must also ensure that they require users to declare when information is SGI, deploy appropriate technical measures to verify the accuracy of such information, and prominently display an appropriate label. The rules came in effect on the 20th of February, the last day of the AI India Summit. 
  • On the 19th of February, the Wire published their findings of a government manual on takedown orders of social media content. The User Manual for Sahyog Portal (IT intermediaries) became active in October 2024 and lays down the union government’s takedown mechanism for online content with the goal of automating the process of central and state authorities, including police officers. Before the Sahyog portal had been developed, written orders stating reason, notice to the affected party, and review by a judicial committee were needed for blocking content. The new mechanism effectively bypasses the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting and the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology. The manual further shows direct correspondence between government agencies and social media companies and telecom providers while excluding affected parties such as journalists and content creators from their definition of ‘stakeholders’. The document claims that the platform ensures “immediate action against the unlawful information by removing or disabling access and providing a clean and safe cyber space to the citizens of India,” and allows the removal or disabling of access “not only to unlawful information, but also to any information, data, or communication link which is being used to commit an unlawful act.” Social media company X is the only major tech company that is not integrated in the portal, while Microsoft, Google, Meta, and LinkedIn are. X challenged the government’s use of the portal, which the Karnataka high court dismissed in September.   
  • In the beginning of February, social media platforms in India became flooded with alarming posts claiming that over 800 people, mostly women and children, had gone missing in Delhi in the first 15 days of 2026 alone. The posts questioning women’s safety in Delhi, suggested a sudden spike in disappearances, sparking panic. A fact-check by BOOM found that, while the figure of 807 missing person is factually correct, it does not represent a “surge” and is in fact a lower average than previous years. Additionally, out of 807 missing, 235 individuals were already traced within two weeks.  
  • At the AI Impact Summit, between the 16th and the 21st of February, India announced the launch of its first set of sovereign AI models, a national AI research program, an expansion of computing facilities, and a roll out of AI labs with standardized curriculum across 500 universities. Trained on Indian datasets, the models are designed to handle the country’s linguistic divers and sector-specific challenges across divers sectors such as governance, healthcare, science, agriculture and industry. Electronics and IT minister Ashwini Vaishnaw claimed that Indian IT firms have already built over 200 sector-focused AI models aimed at improving productivity and efficiency and that nearly $70 billion has already been invested in AI-related infrastructure.  

 Political Parties    

  • On the 4th of February, in the Jammu and Kashmir Assembly, the BJP took back their demand for a separate Statehood of the Jammu region. Back in January, BJP member and former minister Sham Lal Sharma called for a division of the Pir Panjal Valley, citing discrimination against and neglect of the region by the government, a demand he shared as early as 2010. His comments were met with critique by the Chief Minister of J&K, who accused the BJP of aiming to “dismantle and destroy J&K.” According to the National Conference minister and senior leader in the region, Javid Rana, there has been no demand for a separate Jammu state by the people in the valley. During the J&K Assembly, leader of the BJP, Sunil Sharma, stated that they see J&K as “one entity”, adding that they “will not allow any division” and that attempts to create regional identities “challenge the historical and cultural unity of J&K”. Mr. Sharma’s statement is a strong departure from the narrative set by senior BJP leaders Sham Lal Sharma and Vikram Randhawa. Sunil Sharma’s speech resulted in a staged walkout by BJP members who accused him of defending the ruling National Conference (NC) party.  
  • On the 14th of February, PM Modi questioned Congress’ commitment to national security while addressing a large crowd of BJP booth-level workers in Assam. The PM arrived early in the morning in his aircraft, landing on the new Emergency Lading Facility (ELF), indented to support the landing and takeoff of military and civilian aircraft during emergencies. Referring to ELF, he stated that there was much progress happening in Assam which he credited to the hard work of the booth workers and the BJP government. When talking about the Congress party, he alleged that the party “always kept the country in danger” and “never gave priority to the country’s security”. The day marked the seventh anniversary of the 2019 Pulwama terror attack, Modi stated that India punished the terrorists harshly and claimed that Congress couldn’t make such “strong decisions”. Modi’s comment came after Congress accused PM Modi of compromising India’s sovereignty and shortly before the announcement of elections. 

 Police and authorities 

  • On the 25th of February, UN Special Rapporteur on torture and other cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment and UN Special Rapporteur on extrajudicial, summary or arbitrary executions issued a formal warning to the Indian government, citing a pervasive pattern of excessive force, custodial torture, and extrajudicial killings, particularly in Uttar Pradesh and Assam. They described the violence as systemic, not sporadic, and urged urgent independent investigations and major reforms to align policing with international human rights standards.   

 Judiciary 

  • A local court in Muzaffarnagar, Uttar Pradesh, acquitted 22 individuals charged with murder, arson and other violence during the 2013 anti-Muslim violence in the area, claiming there was not enough evidence for a conviction. Communal riots had erupted after a resident was allegedly murdered by eight men; soon after, a mob caught two of the alleged attackers and killed them. The chain of events led to widespread violence in which 62 people were killed and over 50,000 displaced. During the communal violence, there were also instances of sexual violence, including seven cases of rape filed and one conviction of gang-rape. The prosecution had claimed that a large mob went on a rampage in the village, setting houses on fire, vandalizing a mosque and attacking police personnel deployed at the spot. The verdict stated that the “prosecution could not establish the charges beyond a reasonable doubt”, as reported by the Times of India. According to the defence council, Sub-Inspector Gaga Prasad had lodged a FIR under multiple sections, including murder. The Special Investigation Team (SIT) filed a chargesheet against 26, all members of the Jat community, who were all tried as a single case before the local court. Four of the accused died during the decade long pendency of the trial, the remaining 22 have now been acquitted.  
  • The Supreme Court has tasked a committee led by NJA director Justice Aniruddha Bose to frame guidelines for Judicial Sensitivity in Sexual Offence Cases. The committee will first prepare a detailed report on measures taken in the past, before framing the draft guidelines. The court stated the recommendations will entail the “the approach of Judges and the Judicial System when dealing with cases of sexual offences and other similarly sensitive occurrences involving vulnerable victims, complainants, and/or Witnesses”. The order was made during a Supreme Court hearing of a 2022 case on an alleged rape-attempt of a minor, the high court had declared that the actions of the accused could not be seen as an attempt to commit rape, but as ‘preparation’ to attempt rape, a decision that the Supreme Court revoked. Action is required “to inculcate and nurture an inherent sensitivity and discernment into the approach of members of the judiciary, as well as into the accompanying court procedures”, the top court remarked. The court further advised the committee to not use complicated and technical vocabulary but instead use simple language, so that the guidelines are contextualized “in the real and lived experience of the stakeholders in the Indian judicial process”. The Chief Justice of India Surya Kant had critically called an earlier handbook on gender stereotypes published by the SC “Harvard-Oriented.” An increased understanding of the offensive nature of colloquially used expressions can “empower the victims to give better and fuller narrative of the trauma undergone by them”, according to the Court.  
  • On the 17th of February, a Supreme Court bench, led by the Chief Justice of India (CJI), called attention to the issue of lawyers submitting petitions drafted by AI. Some of the petitions contained fake case citations, Justice Nagarathna recalled an instance of coming across a citation “Mercy v. Mankind”, which never existed. In other instances, the citation would be correct, but the quotes attributed to the judgement were not, which creates an additional burden on the judges, she added. In January, the Bombay high court imposed a Rs 50,000 fine on a litigant for citing AI-generated citations. CJI Kant described the shift as ‘alarming’ and “absolutely uncalled for.”  Justice Bagchi argued that the art of legal drafting has suffered setbacks in recent times, recalling an earlier generation of advocates whose pleadings were precise, concise and original.  

 Business & economy 

  • On the 14th of February, Leader of the Lower House Opposition Rahul Ghandi argued that the US-India trade deal will “destroy and finish” the textile industry. In a video statement, Ghandi accused PM Modi and his ministers of inflicting deep damage on the cotton farming and textile export industries, adding that a “visionary government” would have promoted the national interest and negotiated a deal that would protect both sectors. He claimed that “5 crore families employed by the industry will be hit by the 0% tariff on Bangladesh and 18% on India”, referring to the fact that Bangladesh, India’s competitor, has negotiated a 0% tariff on garments and textiles produced using U.S. cotton. “The Bangladesh textile industry will finish off the Indian textile industry,” he stated in the video. Ghandi further alleged that there was pressure on the PM due to the Epstein files naming the Union Minister Hardeep Puri and the industrialist Anil Ambani, allegations that Puri denied. Commerce Minister Piyush Goyal has stated that the trade deal will have provisions for a limited quality of India textile and clothing to be exported to the US at zero reciprocal duty. Ghandi named the suggested policy of a minister to import cotton from the US to receive special concessions a “trap.”  “If we import American cotton, our own farmers will be ruined. If we don’t import it, our textile industry will lag behind and get destroyed,” he added. 
  • Farmer unions in India have announced protests and called for a general strike on Thursday the 12th of February against US-India trade deal framework. The concerns of farmers unions, organized under the Samyukt Kisan Morcha (SKM), range from the Indian markets being opened to US agricultural products to benefits for US agricultural corporations at the cost of Indian farmers. The farmers call the framework a direct threat to Indian agriculture, dairy and rural livelihoods, as 86% of Indian farmers are small or marginal, with landholdings below two or one hectare. SKM national coordination committee member Dr Darshan Pal says, “Indian agriculture would be left hanging at the mercy of multinational corporations, undermining food sovereignty, rural employment and long-term sustainability.” The unions see the agreement as part of a broader agrarian crisis and warn that it opens the door to imports of Genetically Modified foods and seeds, which could damage soil fertility, biodiversity and domestic seed systems. SKM has requested political parties, farmers’ organisations, agricultural workers’ unions, trade unions and mass organisations to oppose an “anti-national” trade agreement being pushed without parliamentary discussion.  

India in the World 

  • On the 7th of January, Prime Minister Narendra Modi spoke with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu to discuss ways to further strengthen the strategic partnership between India and Israel. In a post on X, Modi wrote “Glad to speak with my friend, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and convey New Year greetings to him and the people of Israel”. The call marked Modi and Netanyahu’s first direct engagement in 2026, continuing a series of conversations since late 2025 centered on the West Asia crisis and the Gaza Peace Plan, with Modi reaffirming support for peace initiatives and Netanyahu underscoring India’s diplomatic backing. 
  • Diaspora in Action for Human Rights and Democracy (DAHRD) has urged the Indian government to reaffirm its commitment to international law, peace and solidarity by unequivocally condemning the US military attack in Venezuela. On the 4th of January, India released a statement that expressed “deep concern” but avoided naming Washington or condemning the military strikes that seized the Latin American leader. DAHRD defined this response as “unconvincing” and “half-hearted”, saying that it raises serious questions about the erosion of India’s historic moral leadership. Ritumbra Manuvie, Co-founder and executive director of DAHRD, said that “the latest event in Venezuela constitutes a new, blatant, and illegal act  of aggression against a sovereign state, regardless of one’s opinion of  the Caracas government,” and that such a weak response from India raises serious questions about its willingness to uphold the very principles it has long claimed to defend. DAHRD emphasized that as a founding BRICS member and a leading voice in the Global South, India occupies a unique and moral position in today’s international order. For this reason, the condemnation is not only a moral imperative but a strategic necessity for solidarity, credibility and cohesion within the BRICS itself.  “India must once again assume its historic role, not as a passive observer, but as a global leader capable of condemning aggression wherever it occurs, regardless of the actors involved,” it added. 
  • In the first days of January, Indian families have been left unable to contact relatives in Iran following a near-total internet and telecom shutdown imposed by Iranian authorities amid nationwide protests. The blackout has affected thousands of Indians in the country, including students, workers and pilgrims, cutting off access to messaging apps, calls and even landlines in some areas. India’s Ministry of External Affairs issued advisories urging citizens to avoid protests and remain cautious, while the Indian Embassy in Tehran said it was working to verify the safety of nationals and reported that students at several universities were safe. Despite these assurances, families in India have expressed anxiety over the lack of information, with some calling for evacuation as communication disruptions persist. 
  • On the 12th of January, German Chancellor Friedrich Merz made his first official visit to India, meeting Prime Minister Narendra Modi for discussions aimed at strengthening economic and strategic cooperation. The two leaders met with CEOs in Ahmedabad to discuss expanding cooperation across trade, investment, technology, renewable energy, and strategic sectors. Their talks emphasized deepening collaboration through new Memorandums of Understanding and the creation of an India‑Germany Centre of Excellence to promote joint innovation and technological advancement, while also reviewing ongoing partnerships in education, skills, defense, security, research and sustainable development. 
  • On the 19th of January, United Arab Emirates (UAE) President Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan spent three hours in New Delhi, during which the two nations signed a letter of intent to establish a framework for strategic defence partnership. The trip marked Sheikh Mohamed’s fourth visit to India, reciprocating PM Modi’s seven visits to the Emirate. Five documents were exchanged and seven announcements made during this visit, covering defence, space, energy, food security and investment. Billed as top outcome, the strategic defence partnership letter of intent aims to expand cooperation in counter-terrorism, maritime security, cyber security, defence industrial collaboration, advanced technologies and special forces training, with the two sides set to negotiate a Framework Agreement.  
  • On the 26th of January, India and the EU have finalized a free trade agreement, celebrated by European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen as the “mother of all deals.” The pact significantly opens India’s market to EU’s Member States, especially in manufacturing and services with easier access for European products as cars, wine, and industrial products. The deal is expected to sharply reduce tariffs on 96.6% of goods traded by value (particularly on iron and steel, plastics, chemicals, machinery, and pharmaceuticals) and to double EU exports to India by 2032, saving EU companies around €4bn (£3.5bn) in duties annually. The agreement is part of a broader cooperation package announced during a summit in Delhi on the 27th of January, coming at a moment when the EU and India both face economic pressure from Donald Trump’s tariff threats and China’s economic influence. Major highlights of the deal include emphasis on technology collaboration, cooperation across the entire tech value chain- from research and innovation to business adoption- and joint work in semiconductors, AI, quantum technologies, 6G, clean tech, and cybersecurity. Both sides have also concluded a mobility agreement designed to make it easier for Indian students, workers, and professionals to move across all 27 EU member states, at a moment when the United States is raising costs and tightening requirements for H‑1B and other visa categories used by Indian nationals. Commenting on the deal, von der Leyen said that “Europe and India are making history today […]. We have created a free trade zone of 2 billion people, with both sides set to benefit.” The agreement marked a new milestone in EU–India relations, but failed to protect democratic institutions, the rule of law, and respect for human rights. 

Civil society, human rights defenders, and journalists 

  • On the 5th of January, the Enforcement Directorate (ED) conducted searches at the homes and offices of veteran climate activists Harjeet Singh and Sanjay Vashist, both prominent figures in climate policy advocacy, especially for the Global South. The action, officially tied to alleged violations of the Foreign Exchange Management Act (FEMA) over foreign funding received by Singh’s NGO Satat Sampada, occurred months after the arrest of another climate activist, Sonam Wangchuk, by the National Investigation Agency. The ED stated it had received intelligence at the COP30 climate summit in Brazil suggesting that some climate activists were undermining India’s positions on key issues such as fossil fuel use. Officers anonymously quoted suggested this prompted scrutiny of Singh’s foreign funding. During this investigation, Singh was briefly arrested by the Uttar Pradesh excise department over liquor bottles found at his residence and was granted bail. ED allegations include that Satat Sampada received roughly ₹6 crore in foreign remittances covertly, purportedly to promote the Fossil Fuel Non‑Proliferation Treaty (FF‑NPT) agenda within India. The ED claims this initiative, though framed as climate advocacy, could expose India to legal challenges internationally and “severely compromise the nation’s energy security and economic development” by advocating for the accelerated phase‑out of fossil fuels. Singh’s NGO denied the allegations as “baseless, biased, and misleading,” asserting that his international travel and climate work were professional and focused on representing developing countries’ concerns. Meanwhile, ED officials said that other climate activists or organisations whose campaigns may be seen as hostile to India’s energy security are also being examined. 
  • On the 5th of January, the Supreme Court denied bail to student activists Umar Khalid and Sharjeel Imam, who have spent more than five years in pre-trial detention in relation to the so-called “larger conspiracy” case arising from the 2020 Delhi riots. At the same time, the top court granted bail to human rights defenders Meeran Haider, Gulfisha Fatima, Shifa Ur Rehman, Shadab Ahmed and Saleem Khan, also booked under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA) with the prosecution alleging they were among the “masterminds” behind the riots against the discriminatory Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA). Umar Khalid and Sharjeel Imam were denied bail primarily because the Supreme Court considered them to hold a “central and formative role” distinguishing them from other co-accused who were granted bail. The court found a prima facie case under anti-terror laws (UAPA) and ruled that their prolonged pre-trial detention and trial delays did not automatically justify bail. Additionally, the court imposed exceptionally restrictive conditions for future bail applications, allowing them to reapply only after the prosecution completes the examination of protected witnesses or after one year, effectively placing their release largely at the discretion of investigative authorities. The top court’s decision sparked international dissent. Amnesty International India’s Chair of Board, Akar Patel, said “this judgment underscores a deeply worrying pattern in which prolonged pre-trial detention is becoming normalised”. He added that justice cannot prevail while individuals remain imprisoned for years without trial for exercising their right to peaceful protest. Regarding the new bail conditions, he states how they unduly restrict the detainees’ right to seek regular judicial review of whether their detention remains lawful and necessary. The move feels like “categorising one section of the population as internal enemies or suspects, treating them with another class of laws, or rather in a legal shadow,” said a political commentator in New Delhi. Human Rights Foundation submitted an individual complaint to the UN Working Group on Arbitrary Detention (WGAD) urging them to consider Khalid’s detention arbitrary and in violation of international law. “Khalid stands as a brave symbol of dissent in an increasingly authoritarian India. For five years, Khalid has remained India’s most prominent political prisoner-his case exemplifying the lengths Modi’s government will go to crush dissent, particularly from the Muslim minority,” said HRF Legal and Research Officer Hannah Van Dijcke. Days before the Supreme Courts’ ruling, United States lawmakers formally wrote to the Indian Ambassador, expressing grave concern over the continued denial of bail, repeated procedural delays, and the normalization of prolonged pre-trial detention in these cases. In parallel, public solidarity has intensified. New York Mayor Zohran Mamdani recently sent a message to Umar Khalid, reaffirming that he has not been forgotten and that democratic voices across the world continue to stand with him. In his letter from the jail, Umar Khalid describes how Tihar Jail has become more crowded and noisy since his interim bail, making solitude scarce just as he struggles to process the Supreme Court’s refusal to grant him bail again and explains how daily routines (such as reading or feeding cats) help him preserve  a sense of humanity amid despair. 
  • On the 14th of January, senior Kashmiri journalist Bashaarat Masood was called to report to the Cyber Police Station in Srinagar,  where he was asked to sign a bond admitting to an unspecified “mistake” and promising not to repeat it. He then understood the bond was linked to a story he reported on political reactions to the recent police action seeking information about the Valley’s mosques and who runs them. He refused to sign it when he learned the reason behind the bond was him being a threat to public law and order for the story he wrote.  Because of his refusal, he was made to report to the station for three more days. After this incident, at least two other reporters have been called in by the police. This episode is part of a broader pattern in Jammu and Kashmir where journalists report being routinely summoned, questioned about their sources, social media posts, and editorial decisions, and pressured informally rather than through legal procedures. Press freedom advocates warn that these practices contribute to harassment, intimidation, and growing self-censorship, significantly shrinking the space for independent and critical journalism in the region. 
  • On the 23rd of January, the Bombay high court granted bail to cultural activists Sagar Gorkhe and Ramesh Gaichor in the Elgar Parishad case, after they had spent over five years in jail. Arrested in September 2020 under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act for their alleged links to banned Maoist organisations, the two are members of Kabir Kala Manch, a cultural group known for anti-caste activism. As a condition of bail, both men must furnish bonds of ₹1 lakh and report monthly to the National Investigation Agency (NIA). Sixteen persons have been arrested at different points in time in relation to the Elgar Parishad case. One of them, Jharkhand- based Jesuit priest and activist Father Stan Swamy, died in custody in 2021, at the age of 84. With the release order of Gorkhe and Gaichor, only human rights defender Surendra Gadling will continue to remain in jail from among the arrested 16. Gadling was among the first to be arrested, in June 2018, and has since then remained in jail. Hany Babu, an academic teaching at Delhi University was granted bail only last month. The Bharatiya Janata Party government at the Union has received criticism globally for unjustly arresting human rights defenders and keeping them under prolonged incarceration. 

Hate Crimes and Hate Speech against Minorities 

  • On the 4th of January, a group of eight migrant workers from West Bengal was allegedly attacked and driven out of a bread factory in Chhattisgarh’s Surajpur district by Bajrang Dal members. The workers were subjected to severe violence after they asked the factory owners for fair wages. One of the workers explained that they asked Bajrang Dal members why they were attacking them, and they replied that it’s because they are Bangladeshis. Even after the workers showed them their Aadhaar cards, the beating did not stop, with the factory owner not intervening. The brutal attack has sparked fear over the workers’ village, as most families have members working elsewhere as migrant labourers. Questions of migrant workers’ safety, especially those who speak Bengali, are being raised in light of other recent attacks in Odisha, Delhi, Rajasthan and Haryana.   
  • On the 7th of January, a 45-year-old Muslim man was allegedly beaten up to death by a group of unidentified individuals on suspicion of cattle theft in Jharkhand’s Godda district. The deceased was identified as Pappu Ansari, a resident of Ranipur village under the Pathargama police station area. He was reportedly assaulted by a group of men who accused him of stealing cattle. Deputy Superintendent of Police J.P.N. Chaudhary confirmed the incident and said a probe had been initiated to determine the sequence of events and identify those responsible. 
  • On the 13th of January, the India Hate Lab, a project of the Centre for the Study of Organized Hate (CSOH), released its report on hate speech events in India in 2025, which describes a sharply worsening landscape in which anti‑minority rhetoric- particularly targeting Muslims and Christians- became a normalized and continuous feature of public life, with verified in‑person incidents rising beyond the already unprecedented levels recorded in 2024. The report attributes this escalation to a decade of intensifying Hindu nationalist mobilization, noting that political leaders, affiliated Hindu nationalist organizations, religious figures, and local influencers routinely framed minorities as disloyal, dangerous, or demographically threatening, while major elections in Delhi and Bihar further amplified fear‑based narratives. Hate speech occurred across political rallies, religious processions, protest marches, and nationalist gatherings, and was widely disseminated through social media, reflecting a deeply entrenched mechanism of far‑right mobilization. In particular, the report documented about 120 speeches encouraging people to socially or economically boycott minority communities (mainly Muslims), 276 speeches demanding that places of worship, including mosques, shrines, and churches, be removed or destroyed, and dehumanizing language portraying minority groups with terms like “termites,” “parasites,” “insects,” “pigs,” “mad dogs,” “snakelings,” “green snakes,” and “bloodthirsty zombies.” The Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP) and Bajrang Dal were the leading organizers, associated with 289 hate‑speech events. The report identified Uttarakhand Chief Minister Pushkar Singh Dhami as the country’s most prolific hate speech actor, with 71 recorded speeches.  
  • Days after being identified by the CSOH as a top offender, Chief Minister Dhami said he “accepted” the label of top offender and reiterated his government’s hardline position against what he described as religious conversions, riots, “love jihad,” “land jihad,” and “thook jihad.” These comments come at a time when opposition parties and civil rights organizations continue to criticize the state government, accusing it of implementing communal and discriminatory measures that target religious institutions and minority groups. 

 Religious Freedoms and Minority Rights 

  • A jury report on the ongoing special intensive revision (SIR) of electoral rolls has found that it is being “hastily and haphazardly conducted”, without carefully following the due provisions of the Registration of Electors Rules, 1960. The jury, through testimonies, found that heavy reliance on documentary proof to the 2003 electoral rolls placed “an unreasonable burden on ordinary citizens, particularly migrants, the poor and those without stable housing.” Moreover, many people from marginalised sections have been excluded from the revised electoral rolls due to several discriminatory reasons such as their absence during the SIR visit, their religion, identity, living conditions, age and gender. Key issues highlighted included:  migrants workers  and displaced people (from Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh and Bastar in Chhattisgarh) not receiving enumeration forms and being left out of draft rolls; religious and identity-based exclusion, where Muslims in places like Gujarat face rejection because demolished settlements are treated as “illegal”; tribal and nomadic groups, such as those in forest areas and nomadic tribes in Madhya Pradesh, being incorrectly labelled and removed; urban slum residents facing high barriers to registration, with informal housing making verification harder; women and transgender persons seeing sharp drops in registration due to documentation requirements tied to family relationships; reports of people being wrongly listed as dead and removal having a cascading effect on families because of mismatches and strict document demands. 
  • In Indian-administered Kashmir, a recent police profiling exercise targeting mosques and religious leaders has heightened concerns about intrusive surveillance and erosion of religious freedom. Since early January, Jammu and Kashmir Police have been distributing a detailed four-page form to collect extensive data on mosques’ ideological affiliations, funding land ownership, congregational capacity and financial records, as well as personal information about imams, muezzins and khatibs, including mobile numbers, passport and bank details, social media handles and family ties abroad – all information far beyond typical administrative surveys. Residents and religious figures say the exercise feels less like routine administration and more like state attempts to tighten control over religious institutions that historically managed their own affairs, raising fears of discrimination against the Muslim majority community in the region. The Mutahida Majlis-e-Ulema (MMU), the largest umbrella body of Islamic groups in Kashmir, has condemned the profiling as intrusive and undermining trust, urging authorities to stop it. Imams have also expressed anxiety about how such detailed data might be used and questioned why such profiling is necessary when existing surveillance mechanisms are already extensive. Critics argue the move reflects broader concerns about privacy and religious freedom under expanded federal control since the revocation of Jammu and Kashmir’s special status in 2019.   
  • Muslim organisations and rights activists in Rajasthan are warning that the state’s proposed “disturbed areas” property law poses a serious threat to the land and housing rights of Muslims and other marginalized communities. Modelled on Gujarat’s Disturbed Areas Act, the Rajasthan bill would allow the government or district authorities to declare certain localities “disturbed” on grounds such as communal tension, violence, or so‑called “demographic imbalance,” after which no sale or transfer of property could occur without prior approval from the district magistrate. Muslim groups argue that vague notions like “improper clustering” and “demographic imbalance” are likely to be used to target Muslim‑dominated or mixed neighborhoods and to restrict Muslims from buying property in Hindu‑majority areas, formalizing segregation under the guise of protecting sellers from distress sales. While the BJP-led state government claims the law is meant to preserve communal harmony and prevent people from being forced to sell cheaply during unrest, critics describe it as discriminatory, unconstitutional, and part of a broader pattern of legal measures that curtail Muslim citizenship and property rights in India.  
  • On the 19th of January, the United Nations Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination (CERD) has written to India’s Permanent Representative in Geneva to raise serious concerns about systemic discrimination against Bengali-speaking Muslims in India’s Assam state, and has formally sought explanations from the Indian government. The Committee noted that Delhi has not adequately responded to an earlier 2025 communication and that many core allegations remain unaddressed, especially those linked to the National Register of Citizens (NRC) process. CERD highlights evidence that Bengali-speaking Muslims have been disproportionately excluded from the final NRC list due to procedural hurdles, difficulties obtaining documents, stricter verification standards, and their categorisation as “non‑original inhabitants,” a term the UN body said has no clear legal definition. It also flagged the suspension of Foreigners’ Tribunal proceedings during the NRC update, which allegedly prevented “doubtful voters” from challenging their status, as well as reports of systematic forced evictions without adequate rehabilitation, rising hate speech and incitement to violence, and excessive use of force by law‑enforcement agencies and civilian groups. The Committee called on India to protect the rights of Bengali-speaking Muslims in Assam and to provide detailed information on remedial measures in its upcoming periodic reports. The CERD also highlighted concerns on the Bastar area of Chhattisgarh, where Indigenous Adivasi communities make up roughly 70% of the population, observing that since January 2024, counter‑insurgency operations have intensified sharply, following the Indian government’s stated aim of eliminating non‑state armed groups by March  2026. Information provided to the Committee indicates that this escalation has led to “widespread and unprecedented violence” affecting Adivasi civilians. Reports suggest that at least 500 Adivasi people- including civilians- were killed between January 2024 and October 2025 during security operations. The Committee’s letters reflect growing concern that India’s security and citizenship policies are disproportionately impacting marginalized groups, restricting civic freedoms, and limiting avenues for justice. It also notes that the government has taken little substantive action on the issues raised in its earlier communication of May 2025. The relevant Indian government departments have been requested to provide detailed updates in the coming months on investigations, protective measures, consent procedures, and steps taken to address the harms identified. 

Internet and Technology 

  • The Employees’ Provident Fund Organisation (EPFO), one of the two main social security agencies of the Ministry of Labour and Employement responsible for  retirement plans for employees in India, announced liberalized withdrawal norms and it’s now set to start a next phase of reforms, called the EPFO 3.0. The launch includes a new portal, new software, and the use of AI-powered language translation into native regional languages, a senior government official told The Indian Express. The reforms come after the EPFO expansion in scale to cover both organized and unorganized sector workers after the implementation of the new Labor Codes in November 2025. The reform shifts the organization’s technology backbone to a core-banking-style system similar to what commercial banks use to handle large volumes. 

Political Parties    

  • In early January, BJP and former minister Sham Lal Sharma called for the division of Jammu and Kashmir, suggesting granting the Jammu region separate statehood, citing discrimination against and neglect of the region by the government.  Sharma has demanded a separate Jammu state as early as 2010, when he was the minister in the National Conference-Congress government. In response to Sharma’s claim, Jammu and Kashmir Chief Minister Omar Abdullah critiqued the call for separation, stating that the BJP aims to “dismantle and destroy J&K.” He further accuses the BJP of destroying Ladakh and now aiming to do the same with Jammu. National Conference minister and senior leader from the Pir Panjal region, Javid Rana, stated that there has been no demand for a separate Jammu state for the people in the Pir Panjal Valley and Chenab Valley. “The people in these valleys continue to stand with the idea of a unified Jammu and Kashmir.” 
  • On the 8th of January, Samajwadi Party Chief Akhilesh Yadav met with West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee, who he claimed ‘defeated’ the Enforcement Directorate. Banerjee’s intervened during the ED’s raids of offices and co-founder residence of the political consultancy firm the Indian Political Action Committee (I-Pac). ED took away crucial data of the Trinamool Congress party, relating to its strategy documents and candidate lists. According to the party, the raid was ‘politically motivated’. ED, in turn, accuses the Chief Minister of removing key evidence and obstructing ongoing investigation as Banerjee, together with senior officials of the state police, left the raid sites with physical documents and allegedly removed electronic evidence. Yadav extends “full support to Mamata Banerjee in her fight to save democracy,” thus denouncing the actions of the ED, calling them “just a means to reduce voters of BJP opponents.” His comments come amidst increased criticism and alleged voter fraud of the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) undertaken by the Election Commission of India with many calling alleged collusion between the ECI and the BJP. 
  • On the 11th of January, PM Modi addressed a crowd in Somnath during the Somnath Swabhiman Parv festival celebrating Mahmud of Ghazi’s pillaging of the Somnath temple and the 75th anniversary of the modern temple’s restoration. Modi claimed that historically the temple faced numerous “attacks of religious terror” by Muslim leaders who attempted to turn the temple into a mosque. Historians reject these claims, arguing that the temple’s destruction was partially due to plundering raids, natural causes and neglect, finding no evidence for religious conflict. Modi accused historians and politicians of ‘whitewashing’ the attacks as plundering raids and concealing “the mentality of religious fanaticism.” He emphasized that the “forces” who had “opposed the Somnath temple’s reconstruction” in 1951 remain active today.  
  • On 18th of January, Senior Congress leader and member of parliament Jairam Ramesh asked Modi’s government in a social media post, how long they will live in denial about the issue of air pollution. The social media post quoted recent reports by the World Bank according to which the Indo-Gangetic Plains and Himalaya foothills, home to one billion people, now witness one million premature deaths annually due to air pollution. Additionally, they are suffering economic losses worth 10% of the regional GDP due to loss of labour productivity, higher healthcare costs and reduces human capital. Congress leader Ramesh added that Congress has suggested several actions including a review of the Air Pollution Act of 1981 and the National Ambient Air quality standards. In 2025, Delhi’s air quality reached hazardous levels, with the Air Quality Index (AQI) of 410, triggering the strictest emergency measures under the Graded Response Action Plan. Dense fogs were also reported in several parts of Delhi. Ramesh argued that the government should adopt many of the report’s recommendations, including enforcing stricter emission norms, expanding clear air programmes and updating pollution laws and standards. He asked how long the government would “live in denial” about the severity of air pollution and the need for stronger action.   
  • On January 28th, PM Modi expresses shock and condolences over the sudden passing of Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Ajit Pawar, who lost his life in a fatal aircraft crash. In a post on X, Modi describes Pawar as ‘widely respected’ with a “passion for empowering the poor”. The plane crashed at landing at Baramati Airports, aboard with Pawar were 2 more personnel and 2 members of crew.  

Police and authorities 

  • On the 11th of January, Vishwa Hindu Parishar district committee called for a 12-hour shutdown after rising communal tensions in the Western Assam’s Kokrajhar district.  Protest arose after the alleged rape of a mentally challenged woman. State police shot and injured the accused, claiming he tried to flee custody. The Kokrajhar district administration imposed the shutdown stating, ‘heightened public tension and apprehension of disturbance to public peace and tranquillity.” Per the administration’s orders, assembly of more than four people and demonstrations have been barred throughout the district.  District commissioner Chakravarty stated that vulnerable areas are being identified with steps taking place to install CCTV cameras and streetlights to improve safety. 
  • On the 19th of January three people were arrested after allegedly assaulting a 23-year-old medical student in East Ahmedabad, police stated. The police identified and arrested three accused who were all associated with Bajrang Dal, the right wing militant youth group of the Vishva Hindu Parishad (VHP).  Five others were booked for intentionally causing hurt with dangerous weapons, unlawful assembly, rioting, obscene acts and song and criminal intimidation, based on the complaint by the MBBS student. According to the student, a group of eight people, approached him and his friend while they were waiting in front of a closed shop. They allegedly took the victims phone and began assaulting him and his friend. After the police had arrived, the victims alleged they were assaulted again and threatened with murder. A fourth friend took them to the hospital where the police took a statement. A cross complaint was filed by the Bajrang Dal members and police states that the matter is being investigated.  

Judiciary 

  • On the 29th of December 2025, the Supreme Court of India paused its own controversial new definition of the Aravalli hills and ranges, a move that had risked stripping legal protection from vast tracts of one of north India’s most fragile ecosystems. The Apex court asked a third party to file a detailed report in four weeks to reassess the ecological and regulatory implications. The stay reflects deep unease about narrowing protection to a technical elevation criterion that many fear undermines groundwater recharge, biodiversity, and climate resilience. Critics, including scientists and activists, argue that legal definitions must respect ecological reality rather than administrative convenience, warning that fragmented protection could accelerate deforestation, mining, and urban encroachment. They stress that the Aravallis function as an interconnected landscape, vital for air quality in Delhi-NCR and for sustaining rural livelihoods across Rajasthan and Haryana. On the 21st of January, the court decided that the question of defining forests and Aravallis would be examined separately. 
  • On the 13th of January, the Supreme Court issued notices to the Union government and the Election Commission of India (ECI) in response to a petition filed by an NGO contesting the lifelong immunity granted to the Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) and Election Commissioners (ECs) under Section 16 of the Chief Election Commissioner and Other Election Commissioners Act, 2023. This provision shields them from civil or criminal proceedings for actions taken in their official capacity, a protection not extended even to the President or Governors. The petitioner argues that this immunity, added at the last minute to the original bill, undermines free and fair elections by shielding potential misconduct. The court has agreed to hear the matter further to assess its broader implications for electoral integrity.  
  • On the 6th of January, the Supreme Court reprimanded the Commission for Air Quality Management (CAQM) for failing in its duty to combat Delhi’s worsening air pollution. A bench led by Chief Justice Surya Kant and Justice Joymalya Bagchi noted that despite years of interventions and expert inputs, air quality remains poor, with CAQM submitting only vague status notes instead of concrete long-term plans as previously directed. The court refused the body’s request for a two-month adjournment, instead ordering it to urgently convene a meeting of domain experts to identify major pollution sources. 

Business & economy 

  • India’s Real GDP growth of the fiscal year 2026 is expected to rise to 7.4% according to the government’s first estimates, based on data released by the Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation (MoSPI). This sharp rise is mostly due to the manufacturing sector whose growth rebounded from 4.5% last year to 7%. This is despite problems caused by the 50% US tariffs on Indian goods, economists note the Indian economy to be resilient in a time of volatile global economics. The nominal growth, growth without adjusting for price increases, is set to fall to a 5-year low of 8% and is estimated to slow down in the second half of the year. The gap between the nominal and real growth is estimated to be the lowest it has been since 2011-12, as nominal growth rises to its long-term average at 10.5-11%.  
  • On the 12th of January, the board of Maruti Suzuki India Ltd (MSIL) granted approval of ₹4,960 crore towards land acquisition and development, for expansion of production capacity at Khoraj Industrial Estate in Sanand. Suzuki currently operates manufacturig facilities at Gugugram, Manesar, Karhjoda and Hansalput with a total installed capacity of around 24 lakh vehicles per year. The company states this capacity to be fully utilised, necessitating fresh investments in new production lines. Suzuki Motor Corporations plans to secure production capacity to approximately 4 million units in India by 2030-31 to prepare for future expansion of the automobile market in India.  
  • On the 22nd of January, members of the Tribal Council in Little and Great Nicobar alleged that they are being pressured by the district administration to surrender their ancestral land to make way for the Great Nicobar Island mega-infrastructure project. Parts of the project require the conversion of forest lands on which the indigenous Nicobarese people had been living before the 2004 tsunami. During a brief meeting on the 7th of January, Council members said they were orally asked to sign a “surrender certificate” to give up their ancestral land, without being given written details or clarity on the specific areas involved, and were later asked whether they would give up claims to part of their lands if they were allowed to resettle tsunami-destroyed villages elsewhere on the coast. A Council member said at a press briefing, “We cannot sign a surrender document like this. It is our ancestral land. We will have nothing for future generations”. Chairman Barnabas Manju noted that it had been 21 years since the community was displaced by the tsunami and that repeated requests to return to their original villages have received no response from the administration. Council members also said they had received a message containing a draft template for a surrender certificate and questioned the administration’s claim that forest rights under the Forest Rights Act had already been settled, noting that the project’s environmental and forest clearances are currently under legal challenge.  
India in the World
  • On the 4th of December, Russian President Vladimir Putin arrived in India, where he was welcomed with a red carpet in a show of resilient ties between the two countries and was invited to the PM’s residence for a private dinner. Prime Minister Narendra Modi defined this relationship as a “guiding star” and the Russian leader promised “uninterrupted” energy supplies. The 23rd annual summit between the two countries, which marks 25 years of strategic partnership, came in a delicate moment, as a day before Putin’s arrival, India abstained from a UN General Assembly resolution demanding the return of Ukrainian children forcibly transferred by Moscow. Ahead of Putin’s visit, the envoys of Germany, France and the United Kingdom had jointly authored an op-ed criticising Russia for not seeking peace and noted that India had also called for a just settlement. The visit centred on economic diversification and ways to shield the partnership from external pressure. The surge is largely driven by Russia becoming India’s top source for foreign oil since the start of the Ukraine war. To bypass the banking sanctions, the two sides have moved away from the dollar. Putin noted that “national currencies” now account for 96% of commercial deals, supported by a network of special rupee Vostro accounts. Yet, this sharp increase has made India a specific target of US President Donald Trump’s tariffs for allegedly fuelling Russia’s war machine. Recently, two largest Russian oil majors were also sanctioned, leading Indian refiners to announce that they are not placing any new orders this month with them. Besides fossil fuels, civic nuclear cooperation is also part of the deals, together with an “Agreement on Temporary Labor Activity” and an “Agreement on Cooperation in Combating Illegal Migration”. The summit produced no major announcements on military platforms or hardware.
  • On the 5th of December, India and Russia signed a five-year plan to bolster economic and trade ties, presumably a reaction to Washington’s punitive tariffs and sanctions regime, even as Prime Minister Modi conveyed to Putin that the war in Ukraine must be brought to an end through peaceful means. The focus of the meeting was squarely on economic cooperation and taking forward the roadmap on the “Development of Strategic Areas of India – Russia Economic Cooperation till 2030” that was launched during PM Modi’s visit to Moscow in 2024. To this end, they announced a “Labour Mobility Agreement” that will facilitate Indian skilled workers to work in Russia, where manpower shortages for three million jobs are expected by the end of the decade. The visit also explored mechanisms to balance trade by boosting Indian exports of Indian goods and services to Russia (agricultural products, manufacturing, medicines, etc.).
  • On the 9th of December, India and the European Union said they were pushing to conclude a long-pending free trade agreement, even as the end-2025 deadline for finalising the deal appears increasingly difficult to meet. Indian Commerce Minister Piyush Goyal met with an EU delegation led by EU Trade Commissioner Maros Sefcovic to continue negotiations aimed at closing the deal. Talks have been ongoing since they were relaunched in 2022 and gained momentum after political leaders agreed earlier this year to fast-track negotiations. Despite the commitment on both sides, significant differences remain unresolved. Officials say progress has been uneven, with sticking points on tariffs, market access, and how to enforce sustainability commitments. Specific disagreements include EU demands for steep tariff cuts on products like cars, medical devices, wine and spirits and stronger intellectual property rules, while India wants duty-free access for labor-intensive goods and quicker recognition of its growing automobile and electronic industries. Once implemented, the agreement could boost bilateral trade, which reached about €120 billion in 2024.
  • On the 18th of December, the Indian Defence Minister Rajnath Singh met Foreign Minister of the Netherlands David Van Weel in Delhi to discuss a range of bilateral security and defence issue, including priority areas for co-development and co-production of defence equipment. In a statement, the Ministry of Defence said the two nations reaffirmed their commitment to enhance military-to-military cooperation, with focus on developing defence cooperation as a key pillar of the strategic partnership. It also stated that the discussions highlighted the shared commitment of India and the Netherlands to a free, open, inclusive and rule-based Indo-Pacific region. They emphasized the need for connecting the defence industries from both nations, especially in the field of niche technology. Defence Minister Singh said people-to-people ties between the two countries are very strong with a large Indian diaspora in the Netherlands serving as a living bridge and strengthening the bonds of friendship.
  • Bangladesh has temporarily suspended all consular and visa services at its High Commission in New Delhi and its Assistant High Commission in Agartala, saying the move is due to security concerns. Notices at both diplomatic missions state that these services are stopped “until further notice”. The decision follows the protests staged on the 20th of December by Hindu nationalist groups targeting Bangladeshi diplomatic facilities, sparked by the lynching of a Hindu man in Bangladesh on the 18th of December. On the 21st of December,  India’s Ministry of External Affairs said there was no attempt to create a security situation, adding that police dispersed the group within minutes. He said the slogans were raised “in protests against the horrendous killing of Dipu Chandra Das in Mymensingh, while also calling for the protection of all minorities in Bangladesh”. Bangladesh’s foreign affairs adviser Touhid Hossain, however, questioned how protesters were able to enter what he described as a secure diplomatic zone.
 
Civil society, human rights defenders, and journalists
  • On the 3rd of December, hundreds of students, activists and common citizens assembled at Jantar Mantar to protest Delhi’s deadly air pollution. Speaking to journalists, protesters explained how air quality in Delhi is continuously deteriorating, defining it a “state sponsored massacre”. The government tried to delegitimise such protests with mainstream media representing the protestors as “anti-nationals”. Protestors ask the government to admit the gravity of the situation and take action to solve the problem.
  • On the 4th of December, the Bombay High Court granted bail to former Delhi University Professor Hany Babu, who has been booked for his alleged role in the Elgar Parishad-Bhima Koreagon conspiracy case. Babu was arrested in July 2020 by the National Investigation Agency (NIA) under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act over alleged links to Maoists in the Bhima Koreagon case. Babu highlighted the fact that he has spent over 5 years and 2 months in prison without any trial. The Bombay High Court has so far granted bail to Rona Wilson and activist Sudhir Dhawale, Sudha Bharadwaj, while the Supreme Court has granted bail to P Varavara Rao on medical grounds, Shoma Sen, Vernon Gonsalves and Arun Ferreira on merits.
  • On the 8th of December, after 15 days of detention, a Delhi court granted bail to 10 protesters accused in the Kartavya Path case, a protest organised on the 23rd of November in front of the India Gate against rising pollution. Demonstrators, mostly students, who gathered to demand meaningful government action against Delhi’s toxic air, were arrested by the police over allegations of pepper spray use and serious offences. In particular, the police registered two FIRs (one at Kartavya Path police station and one at the Parliament Street police station) under several provisions of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS), including assault, contempt of public servants, disobedience to lawful orders, obstructing public servants, and other serious offences. Bail was denied to seven students for alleged connections with the Revolutionary Student Union (RSU), a banned revolutionary student organization in Andhra Pradesh and Telangana. In total, 23 students were arrested in late November with Delhi courts granting bail progressively.  As of December 31st, all protesters have been granted bail.
  • India observed Human Rights Day on the 10th of December under conditions that activists and journalists say represent the most comprehensive assault on civil liberties in the country’s democratic history. This past year has seen coordinated action across multiple fronts: raids on independent newsrooms, the blocking of platforms documenting communal violence, criminal cases filed against those expressing solidarity with Palestine, and financial strangulation of civil society organisations through regulatory mechanisms. One of the starkest examples of government censorship has been the blocking of independent documentation platforms without legal process or public justification. The most prominent case involved in Hindutva Watch, a research initiative that maintains a database tracking hate speech and religiously motivated violence across India. The platform was abruptly blocked within India’s borders, eliminating public access to one of the few systematic archives documenting the rise in majoritarian violence. Without accessible documentation, incidents of abuse become isolated anecdotes rather than patterns, and the experiences of survivors remain invisible to public consciousness. The assault on documentation comprised also traditional media, with a sustained campaign against independent newsrooms, who saw themselves victims of predawn raids, prolonged interrogation, confiscation of reporting equipment, frozen bank accounts, and criminal prosecution for coverage deemed unfavourable to authorities. Civil society groups have faced some of the most severe consequences, with cancellation of foreign funding licences under the Foreign Contribution Act (FCRA), raids by the Enforcement Directorate and Income Tax department, frozen bank accounts, and suspended operating licences. This highlights how India is a nation where the ability to speak freely is contested, access to information restricted, and the preservation of documented history requires active defence. On the same day, the Committee to Protect Journalist (CPJ) urged India to release all journalists so they can “return to their families and continue their work without fear of reprisal”. In a letter addressed to Prime Minister Narendra Modi and copied to Union Home Minister Amit Shah and Press Council of India chairperson Justice (retired) Ranjana Desai among others, CPJ noted that India’s “continued detention and harassment of journalists risks eroding” its “reputation as the world’s largest democracy and a leading voice of the Global South”.
Hate Crimes and Hate Speech against Minorities
  • India recorded 209 cases of hate crimes targeting religious and social minorities in November 2025, according to a new report published by the Justice and Empowerment of Minorities (JEM). The findings highlight growing hostility and institutional bias amid rising concerns over democratic backsliding and minority safety. The report categorises into seven forms of hate-driven harm, with “Acts of Hate”, including verbal abuse, online intimidation and community-targeted slurs, constituting the largest share at 71 cases (34 percent). These incidents overwhelmingly affected Muslim communities, who remain the primary target of religiously motivated hostility in India. Observers say Dalits, Christians and Sikhs were also disproportionately represented among victims. Researchers say hostile media ecosystems have become a driving force in normalising violence and majoritarian rhetoric. Worryingly, the report documents 18 cases (8.6%) of state-sponsored discriminatory practices, including targeted administrative actions, evictions and punitive policies. Right groups say the numbers do not represent isolated incidents but a widening pattern of targeted violence, rising public impunity and a political climate that emboldens majoritarian aggression. Analysts also note that many cases go unreported or unresolved due to fear of retaliation and low trust in police accountability, suggesting the real scale may be significantly higher.
  • On the 5th of December, Mohammad Athar Hussain, a cloth vendor from Gagan Dewan locality in Nalanda district, was allegedly tortured and lynched over his religious identity. On the 12th of December, he died at Pawapuri Hospital. The police registered a case on the 6th of December, based on a statement from Mr. Hussain’s wife. The complaint named ten people in the FIR and stated that they had lynched her husband on charge of theft. The Bihar police has subsequently arrested eight people in connection with the mob lynching. Mr. Hussain’ brother shared the detail of the incident with the media. He said that on the 5th of December, while he was returning home from work, his bicycle got punctured. On the way, he approached some people, asking about a shop to fix the bike nearby. The group of people asked his name and as soon as he revealed it, Mohammad Athar Hussain, they began hitting him with a burning piece of wood.
  • On the 16th of December, a Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) youth wing member from Gurugram named Shaurya Mishra was arrested by cyber-crime police for sharing a fabricated and inflammatory social media post claiming that a Hindu college student had been raped and murdered by her Muslim classmate, a story with no basis in fact. Mishra’s post used a collage of unrelated photos lifted from various online sources and falsely described a communal “love-murder” to stoke tensions and hatred. The Gurugram Police clarified that no such incident occurred, and after the post went viral and raised concerns about public order, they registered an FIR and detained Mishra under relevant sections of the law for spreading fake news, promoting enmity between groups and sharing obscene, misleading content. Authorities also noted that despite official warnings on the post that the claims were false, Mishra neither deleted nor corrected it, prompting further legal action.
  • On the 16th of December, a 31-year-old migrant worker from Chhattisgarh named Ramnarayan Baghel was lynched to death by a mob in Palakkad, Kerala, that suspected him being a Bangladeshi national. Baghel had arrived in the area four days earlier in search of work and was staying with relatives when he allegedly lost his way and drew suspicion. The video of the assault was circulated online, and one of the attackers can be heard asking Baghel if he was a Bangladeshi. Kerala’s minister for local self-governments, M.B. Rajesh, condemned the killing, calling Baghel a “victim of Sangh Parivar’s hate politics”. Rajesh said that among Bhagel’s attackers were RSS – a right-wing Hindutva paramilitary organisation – workers who have faced criminal cases in the past. The minister said the violence was rooted in racial and communal prejudice, propagated by hate-driven politics. The state government assured support to the victim’s family, including compensation of at least ₹10 lakh.
  • On the 18th of December, the Karnataka’s Legislative Assembly passed the Karnataka Hate Speech and Hate Crimes (Prevention) Bill, 2025, presenting it as a tool to curb hate speech. While framed as a protective measure, the Bill raises concerns about expanding state discretion, equipping the executive and police with broad powers to interpret, monitor, and restrict expression in the name of preserving “harmony”. A central issue lies in the Bill’s definition of “hate speech”, which includes any act that may create “disharmony” or “ill‑will”, which may enable the state to target legitimate criticism or dissent. Other provisions that raise concerns are Clause 4, which allows police officers and magistrates to take “preventive action” if they have “reason to believe” that a person is likely to commit an offence, and Clause 5, which targets directors of NGOs and civil society organisations, who will be considered responsible for any offence committed by their organisations.
Religious Freedoms and Minority Rights
  • A new study conducted by the University of Melbourne in partnership with the Supreme Court of India found that, although the Court has often upheld Dalit rights through landmark constitutional rulings, its language has frequently reinforced caste hierarchies rather than challenged them. The study examines “constitution bench” rulings from 1950 to 2025, relevant because they set legal precedents, are taught in law schools, invoked in courtrooms and cited by later benches. A recurring pattern identified in the study is the tension between progressive legal outcomes and regressive language. Academics believe there was no intention from the judges to insult or demean Dalit people, but rather that they were genuinely unaware of the implications of the language they were using and what it revealed about their attitudes. The report suggests that the struggle for caste equality is not only fought in judgments and statues, but in metaphors, analogies and everyday linguistic choices.
  • The Special Intensive Revision (SIR) exercise has intensified the worries of the Rajbanshis, a community of North Bengal who is already burdened by land loss, democratic decline and ongoing struggles for dignity and autonomy. People are amassed at SIR help centers, where they get warned of the possibility of being left out of the voter rolls. The problem is twofold: some still risk being wrongly targeted as illegal migrants and face deportation to Bangladesh. Moreover, almost every family has a migrant worker relative outside of West Bengal, and their name may vanish from the record if they are unable to go back in time for the SIR. These fears are compounded by the community’s historical decline in demographic share despite being the largest single Scheduled Caste group in the state. Recent floods and natural disasters have further worsened the situation by destroying essential documents such as voter IDs, Aadhaar cards and land records, making it difficult even for long-settled residents to prove their citizenship. As a result, what is framed as a routine administrative exercise has become a deeply unsettling experience, transforming voter list revision into a perceived threat to belonging and representation.
  • On the 24th of November, the BBC published an article analysing how India’s voter roll revision affects migrant workers. On the 4th of November, the Election Commission started the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) to revise electoral rolls across 12 states and federally administered regions. The aim of the exercise, according to the EC, is to ensure that no eligible voter is excluded, and no ineligible name remains on the roll. To do so, pooling booth-level officers visit households across town and villages, collecting personal identity details and voter card numbers. This exercise, however, creates several problems for migrant workers. For most of them, an unplanned trip home translates into extra unplanned costs and lost wages. Some also worry about the gaps in their official documents, which is a common problem across rural areas in India. Another problem that might occur is SIR’s interference with the workers’ access to welfare schemes. And for those from West Bengal, which borders Bangladesh, there is an added fear of being asked to prove their citizenship, as this year saw hundreds of people arrested on suspicion of being illegal migrants. Under the guidelines, there is a provision to fill the SIR form online, but most migrant workers told BBC they were either unfamiliar with the process or found it “too risky”. A major worry is the time, as there are millions of migrant workers spread across India and not everyone might be able to travel back home twice: once for SIR and again for election. People say that, as most migrant workers lack job security, the SIR exercise is causing them stress. For this reason, help desk in big cities could be useful to assist these workers.
Internet and Technology
  • On the 1st of December, different newspapers raised serious privacy concerns as the Ministry of Communications has directed smartphone makers to pre-install a government-owned cyber security app, Sanchar, Saathi, on all new devices, and ensure users cannot delete it. On the 2nd of December, presumably as a result of the backlash, the telecommunications minister said that the app was optional. However, the government has not withdrawn its official notification which mandates the installation and non-removal of the app. The government launched the Sanchar Saathi app in January, claiming the initiative is “for curbing misuse of telecom resources for cyber frauds and ensuring telecom cyber security”. The direction to pre-install the app, the government says, is “to check the genuineness of mobile handsets”. For devices already in the supply chain, manufacturers have been told to push the app through software updates. However, Apple policies say that the company pre-installs only its proprietary apps and they prohibit installation of any government or third-party app before sale of a smartphone. News agencies said that Apple does not comply with a mandate to preload its smartphones with a state-owned cyber security app and will convey its concerns to New Delhi. As of now, only Russia and presumably North Korea have attempted this level of intrusiveness on personal phones of all citizens. The Internet Freedom Foundation has written a statement that describes the direction as a “sharp and deeply worrying expansion of executive control over personal digital devices”.
  • On the 3rd of December, in what appeared to be an overnight change of mind, the Department of Telecommunications (DoT) revoked its order directing phone makers to mandatorily pre-install the state-owned Sanchar Saathi application. The previous order had sparked controversies not just from digital rights group, but also around the impact on the business of big mobile phone makers such as Apple and Google. In fact, they were planning to push back against the order with concerns about privacy and system security. The Ministry of Telecommunications said that, given the Sanchar Saathi’s app increasing acceptance, the government has decided not to make the pre-installation mandatory for mobile manufacturers. Civil society activists had raised concerns about the potential implications on people’s privacy by mandating the app, since preloading it defeats the principles of choice and consent, while leaving the potential for “functional creeping” (a gradual expansion of a system beyond its original purpose) in the future.
  • More than half of the takedown notices issued by the Indian government to X have been justified on the grounds of “disturbing public order”, according to disclosures made in court. The data became public in December 2025 though filings by the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) before the Delhi High Court. Between March 2024 and November 2025, the government issued 91 takedown notices covering 1,100 URLs. About 50% of these were flagged for public order concerns, making it the most common reason cited for content removal. A significant number of requests also related to content allegedly targeting political and public figures. Takedown activity increased during the 2024 Lok Sabha elections, when authorities said they acted against content they claimed was spreading misinformation or attempting to influence the electoral process. The notices were issued under Section 79(3)(b) of the Information Technology Act through the government’s Sahyog poartal. X has challenged this mechanism in court, arguing that content removals should instead follow the stricter procedure under Section 69A of the IT act, which includes clearer legal safeguards.
Political Parties
  • On the 9th of December, during the Lok Sabha, leader of the opposition Rahul Gandhi accused the Election Commission of India (EC) of colluding with the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) to manipulate elections and undermine Indian democracy. In his address during the electoral reform debate in Lok Sabha, Rahul Gandhi claimed that “everything in India that exists today has emerged from the vote, and the RSS is trying to capture that”. He claimed that the BJP and the ECI are working together to “steal the mandate” and control electoral outcomes, arguing that institutions meant to be independent are instead being used to favour the ruling party. Gandhi raised three pointed questions to the government and the poll body intended to highlight this alleged collusion, including concerns about changes in how election officials are selected and how the voter list revision is being handled. His speech framed the issue as a direct threat to democratic processes and the fairness of future elections.
  • On the 12th of December, Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi demanded a discussion in parliament on rising air pollution in Indian cities, saying that the government and the opposition can come together to address the “blanket of poisonous air” without blaming each other. In a rare show of consensus, Union parliamentary affairs minister Kiren Rijiju agreed to Gandhi’s suggestion and said that the matter had already been raised at the Business Advisory Committee (BAC) meeting and he would return to the House after a decision was taken. Rahul Gandhi explained how this is not an ideological issue; millions of children are getting lung disease, people are diagnosed with cancer, elders struggle to breathe. “We can show the country that we can work together to solve something critical”, he added.
 
Police and authorities
  • The city of Haldwani in Uttarakhand was placed on high alert as the Supreme Court prepared to deliver a ruling in a contentious land encroachment case that could affect the lives of more than 4,300 families, about 50,000 residents, living on railway land in Banbhoolpura. Ahead of the anticipated verdict, hundreds of police officers, paramilitary personnel and security forces were deployed, sensitive areas cordoned off, and authorities placed 23 people in preventive detention with many others “bound down” to maintain order. The dispute stems from a PIL originally related to illegal sand mining, after which the Uttarakhand High Court in 2022 directed that residents be given a week to vacate the land claimed by Indian Railways, with force authorised thereafter for eviction. That order sparked significant panic and protests, leading the Supreme Court to stay the eviction directive on humanitarian grounds, noting that “50,000 people cannot be evicted overnight.” A joint survey in 2016–17 identified 4,365 alleged encroachments in the area, which includes three localities, Gafoor Basti, Dholak Basti and Indira Nagar, and accommodates schools, mosques, madrassas, a health centre and a temple. While residents say they have lived there for generations, the Railways cites historical notifications and land records to assert ownership. Locals and political representatives have expressed anxiety about the verdict, citing the absence of a relocation or rehabilitation plan despite earlier Supreme Court directions.
Judiciary
  • Internal disagreements have surfaced within the Election Commission of India (ECI) over the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls. Commissioner Sukhbir Singh Sandhu cautioned in a draft order that the exercise could unintentionally harass genuine voters, particularly the elderly, disabled, and poor, who may struggle to provide the required documents. In the final order, references to the Citizenship Act were removed, leaving only general constitutional provisions, which has raised concerns among critics that the SIR could function as a de facto citizenship verification process, similar to aspects of the NRC. The article also notes that the first phase of SIR in Bihar caused widespread confusion, logistical strain, and a drop in the number of registered voters, illustrating the very risks Sandhu had warned about. Many observers argue that the way the SIR is being implemented blurs the line between routine voter list updates and citizenship determination.
  • On the 8th of December, the Union Governments opposed a plea by detained Ladakhi activist Sonam Wangchuck to virtually follow or access online the Supreme Court proceedings in his own case from inside Jodhpur Jail in Rajasthan, where he is being held under the National Security Act (NSA). During the hearing, solicitor general Tushar Mehta argued that granting such access would create an “unhealthy precedent” by prompting other “convicts” to demand similar allowances. Wangchuk’s counsel stressed that he was neither “accused” nor a “convict” as he has never been arrested or convicted in any case. His only request was to observe a proceeding that directly concerned “his fundamental right to personal liberty”. The government also rejected Wangchuck’s separate request to appear in the case via video conferencing from jail. His counsel, senior advocate Kapil Sibal, informed the bench that Wangchuck wished to join the proceedings electronically, but Mehta objected, reiterating that granting such access would obligate similar facilities for other detainees across the country. Wangchuck has been detained under the NSA since 26 September 2025, two days after protests in Ladakh over demands for statehood and Sixth Schedule protections turned violent, resulting in deaths and injuries. His wife, Gitanjali Angmo, filed a petition challenging his detention, arguing the order was based on outdated FIRs and speculative allegations with no legal or factual justification. The Supreme Court has scheduled further hearings on the matter.
  • On the 23rd of December, the Delhi High Court suspended the jail term of expelled BJP leader Kuldeep Singh Sengar, who is serving life imprisonment after being convicted in the 2017 Unnao rape case, and was granted conditional bail. Sengar remained in jail in a separate case related to the custodial death of the survivor’s father. This crime was one of the most horrific in India in recent years. The survivor, who can’t be named under Indian laws, alleged that she had approached Sengar for a job in June 2017 and was kidnapped and raped for more than a week by him and others. The high court’s decision to free Sengar in the rape case was based on whether the assault could be considered “aggravated” or not. Under the POCSO Act (Protection of Children from Sexual Offences), a sexual assault is treated as aggravated, and therefore punished more severely, if it is committed by someone who holds a position of trust or authority. Sengar’s legal team argued that, although he was a legislator, elected representatives are not explicitly listed as “public servants” under the relevant provisions of the Act. The Delhi High Court accepted this interpretation. It held that since the offence could not be classified as aggravated assault, the applicable minimum sentence was seven year’s imprisonment, a term that Sengar had already completed. As a result, the court suspended his sentence and granted him bail, a decision that triggered nationwide outrage. On the 26th of December, the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) challenged the High Court’s order in the Supreme Court, arguing that Sengar, as an elected legislator, is a public servant holding a “constitutional position of trust and authority”.  On the 28th of December, protests continued in Delhi, with protesters demanding the cancellation of Sengar’s bail. The survivor and her mother, along with social activists and several supporters, were present at the site.
Business & economy
  • The Indian government has confirmed in a parliamentary reply that the state‑owned Life Insurance Corporation of India (LIC) has invested ₹48,284.62 crore in companies belonging to the Adani Group. This comes two months after reports suggested that the Modi government had quietly devised a $3.9 billion rescue plan for the financially stressed Adani conglomerate by funnelling LIC funds into the group. When asked by MPs Mohammed Jawed and Mahua Moitra for a full list of LIC’s private‑sector investments, the government declined, arguing that releasing a detailed list and could harm LIC’s operational interests.
  • Adivasi communities in Chhattisgarh and Jharkhand have faced widespread land dispossession linked to power and mining projects backed by the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and the Adani Group. For several years, Adivasi lands and forests have been diverted for industrial use, resulting in widespread deforestation and displacement. Villagers allege that land acquisitions were carried out through forged documents, manipulated Gram Sabha resolutions, and coercive practices, undermining legal protections meant to safeguard Adivasi consent and self-governance. In Chhattisgarh, major Adani investments have intensified concerns over the loss of Adivasi land and livelihoods. Similar allegations have emerged in Godda, Jhardkhand, where a 1,6000 MW thermal power plant operates on land reportedly transferred through manipulated approvals, despite being located in a Scheduled Area. Opposition parties and activists claim these projects were facilited throigh highly concessional land deals and politically motivated decisions, especially ahead of elections. Protests by Adivasi communities have also occured in Madhya Pradesh, where coal mining projects involve large-scale forest diversion and forced evictions.
  • In December, the Madhya Pradesh government fully withdrew its controversial land pooling scheme in Ujjain, scrapping four proposed town development plans liked to preparations for the 2028 Simhastha Kumbh after sustained opposition from farmers’ groups and political pressure. The Bharatiya Kisan Sangh (BKS), a farmers’ organisation affiliated with the RSS, had threatened large-scale protests, including an indefinite sit-in, arguing that the land pooling framework would lead to the permanent loss of fertile agricultural land for development. Earlier attempts by the government to modify rather than cancel the policy failed to satisfy farmers. The withdrawal marks a significant government climbdown, though officials may still need to revise their strategy for Ujjain’s development ahead of the festival.
  • On the 22nd of December, protests broke out across Rajasthan in response to a new definition of the hills which could expose more than 90% of the 692‑kilometre stretch to mining and construction activities. Facing backlash, Union Environment Minister Bhupender Yadav specified that mining will be restricted to just 0.19% of the Aravalli hills, with no new leases approved until a comprehensive study is completed. Kavita Srivastava, national president of the human rights group People’s Union for Civil Liberties, commented that Rajasthan should file a review petition in the Supreme Court against the order, warning it could spell doom for the Aravalis.

India in the World 

  • On the 2nd of November, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) announced that a delegation of foreign diplomats from Japan, Indonesia, Australia, the United Kingdom, Bhutan and South Africa is on a two-day visit to Bihar. Dr. Vijay Chauthhaiwale, in-charge of the Foreign Affairs department of the BJP, said that “the visit aims to familiarise the diplomats with the functioning, outreach, and organizational strength of the BJP, as well as to provide an on-ground understanding of India’s electoral engagement at the grassroots level”. The visit is being conducted under the “Know BJP” initiative launched by National President J.P. Nadda aiming at introducing foreign diplomats and political figures to the BJP.  
  • On the 3rd of November, Indian External Minister S Jaishankar met with Bahrain’s Foreign Minister Abdullatif Bin Rashid Alzayani to discuss cooperation in defense and security. The two countries have agreed to combat the threat of terrorism through enhanced bilateral and multilateral cooperation, including intelligence sharing, capacity building and cyber security. A joint statement after the talks specified that the visit of three Indian naval ships to Bahrain in September 2025 has helped deepen engagement between the two sides. The External Minister of India added that there has been a steady growth of bilateral trade and investments between the two countries.   
  • On the 3rd of November, the Delhi High Court asked the Central Government to urgently intervene to secure the return of 22-year-old- Indian student Sahil Mahmadhusen Majothi, who is believed to be detained by Ukrainian forces amid the Russia-Ukraine conflict. After hearing the pleas of Sahil’s mother, judges believe the youth may have been coerced into joining Russian military operation. The family’s counsel said that, before approaching the High Court, they tried to reach out to the Indian Embassy in Moscow and St. Petersburg, and a government lawyer in Moscow. All the efforts made by the counsel went in vain. 
  • On the 17th of November, a senior government official said that the first tranche of a trade deal between India and the U.S. is “more or less near closure”. Talks on the reciprocal tariffs aspect of the proposed Bilateral Trade Agreement (BTA) were derailed in August following the levy of a total 50% tariff on imports from India.  

Civil society, human rights defenders, and journalists 

  • After the “Special Intensive Revision” (SIR) of voter rolls in Bihar, the number of registered women voters dropped sharply, with the gender ratio falling from 907 women per 1,000 to 892. This decline disproportionately affected constituencies that had previously seen higher female turnout, raising concerns that the very group that had become politically influential is being excluded. Bihar has experienced a remarkable reversal in its gender gap in voting: while in 1962, far fewer women voted than men, by 2020 women’s turnout had surged past men’s. This shift was driven by targeted policies such as cash transfer, support through self-help groups, and livelihood programs, which empowered women to engage politically. The recent reduction in women voters is seen as a serious regression in democratic inclusion. Analysts argue that this is not simply an administrative cleanup but risks being a form of institutional disenfranchisement, undermining the political gains women had achieved over decades of increasing participation. 
  • On the 3rd of November, journalist and Washington Post columnist Rana Ayyub told the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) that she received multiple threats via her phone from someone who knew her address. In the calls and messages, she was asked to write a column on the 1984 anti-Sikh riots, in which about 3,000 Sikhs were killed after the assassination of the then Prime Minister Indira Gandhi. The caller stated Ayyub’s home address and threatened to send people to attack her and to kill her father if she failed to publish the article. The Committee to Protect Journalist, after acknowledging the incident, has sought immediate steps by Indian authorities to guarantee the safety of journalist Rana Ayyub and her family. CPJ’s India representative Kunal Majumder said that the threats made against Rana Ayyub and her father from an unknown international number are “deeply concerning”. “Authorities must act swiftly to identity and hold accountable those responsible to ensure the safety of all journalists in India so that they can work without fear of intimidation or violence”, he stated.  
  • On the 8th of November, at an event hosted by the Indian Women’s Press Corps, Justice Surya Kant warned against normalising the “incessant and malicious” trolling of women journalists. He noted that their private data is being misused and fake incriminating material created to target them. These harms, he said, must not be dismissed as the inevitable cost of being online. “These perpetrators, instead of engaging with their actual work or the opinions expressed by women journalists, utilise these methods of ‘online violence’ to belittle, induce fear, and discredit them professionally. This type of digital abuse not only undermines the confidence and security of women journalists but also threatens press freedom by stifling the diversity and nuance of public discourse,” Justice Kant said. 
  • A SIR supervisor’s dying declaration has brought focus on the extraordinary pressure that workers handling this revision exercise are in. On the 27th of November, The Wire published a piece on the multiple cases of booth level officer (BLOs) citing work pressure, threat of suspension and police action in multiple states including Uttar Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan, Gujarat and Kerala. Reports have noted four deaths among SIR workers in Uttar Pradesh, eight in Madhya Pradesh and four in Rajasthan. Low-paid government staff such as panchayat secretaries, assistant teachers, and anganwadi workers are usually assigned as Booth Level Officers during elections, but many are reporting unusually high pressure during the current SIR process. One primary school teacher in Uttar Pradesh explained that the work now requires technical skills they were never trained for. Some officers still use basic phones yet are expected to collect voter information, process forms, and upload large amounts of data through mobile apps, all while facing strict supervision and deadlines they consider unrealistic. The EC has not acknowledged these deaths as having been a result of the SIR.   
  • On the 25th of November, tensions have escalated in Madhya Pradesh after it was found that different persons reportedly linked to the BJP and RSS were appointed as assistants to both level officers for the ongoing special intensive revision (SIR) of electoral rolls. This news sparked criticism from the opposition, alleging that the ruling BJP was influencing the electoral revision. The district administration later described the inclusion as an “inadvertent mistake”, and initiated action to remove the names. State Congress president Jitu Patwari wrote that even a constitutional exercise like the SIR was being “politically manipulated” by the administration. “When the party in power begins to colour every institution in its own shade, democracy suffers” he alleged, adding that the Congress would oppose any attempt to “misuse the electoral process”.  
  • On the 20th of November, the Delhi High Court passed an order which protected the personality rights of podcaster and entrepreneur Raj Shamani and directed removal of certain objectionable posts against him on social media. The court passed the interim order while hearing Mr. Shamani’s plea seeking to restrain unauthorised use of his image, persona, likeness and voice without his consent, and AI-generated content. The court also observed that Mr. Shamani’s rights are protected under the Copyright Act. It directed the social media entities to block or remove or take down the infringing content generated through AI and deepfake.  

 Hate Crimes and Hate Speech against Minorities 

  • On the 4th of November, Christian rights activists assembled at the Press Club of India to release a report about an alarming annual surge in incidents of violence against the religious minority in India. A statement released at the press conference alleged that there has been a 500% rise in the number of hate crimes targeting Christians since 2014. According to the statement, between 2014 and 2024, incidents of violence against Christians increased from 139 to 834. The total number of documented incidents across this 12-year period reached 4,959 cases, affecting Christian individuals, families, and institutions nationwide. This represents an average annual increase of 69.5 incidents, demonstrating a sustained and systematic escalation in violence.  
  • On the 19th of November, World Health Organisation (WHO) published the global report “Violence against women prevalence estimates, 2023”, which found that, in 2023, over a fifth of women in India aged 15-49 were subjected to intimate partner violence, while nearly one in three women around the world have suffered partner or sexual violence during their lifetime. This figure, the report said, has barely changed since 2000. In India, about four percent of women aged 15 and above are estimated to have suffered sexual violence from a non-partner.  
  • On the 25th of November, the Supreme Court, while hearing a plea filed by journalist Qurban Ali and others, quoting instances of systematic ostracization of the Muslim community in various States, said it was not inclined to legislate over or monitor every incident of hate speech across the country. A Bench of Justices said police stations and State High Courts were in place and competent to deal with them. The oral observations from the Bench came almost seven years after the Supreme Court had condemned hate crimes in 2018. The court had declared it the state’s “sacrosanct duty” to protect and lives of citizens from hate crimes. Four years later, in October 2022, witnessing the unabated ferocity of hate crimes, the Supreme Court had ruled the “tragic” level to which “we have reduced religion to” in the 21st century. It had said a “climate of hate prevails in the country”.  

Religious Freedoms and Minority Rights 

  • On the 3rd of November, the Syro-Malabar Catholic Church strongly criticised the erection of signboards in eight villages in Chhattisgarh that ban entry to pastors and “converted Christians”, calling them the “most divisive boundary the country has seen since Partition”. “In a nation where lynch mobs, killers, persecutors of Dalits and Adivasis, and those forcing ‘ghar wapsi’ conversions are not prohibited, this verdict must be challenged in the Supreme Court”, the Church said. According to the High Court’s ruling on the 28th of October, the boards were put by gram sabhas (village councils) “as a precautionary measure to protect the interest of indigenous tribes and local cultural heritage”. The Church also warned against weakening resistance to Hindutva by aligning with other forms of communalism or religious extremism, arguing instead that the fight for secularism must rest “only in alliance with the Constitution of India”.  
  • On the 18th of November, an independent Indian news site reported on Sakina Begum, a woman from Assam who was declared a foreigner and allegedly pushed into Bangladesh, where she is now in police custody for entering without documents. Sakina was taken into custody by Assam Police in May and then disappeared; her family could not contact her for weeks. After finding shelter with a woman in Dhaka who tried to help her return home, Sakina was located by a BBC reporter investigating her case. Once the BBC story spread online, Bangladeshi police detained her and charged her with illegal entry. Sakina’s daughter says she had long struggled to prove her Indian citizenship. On the day she vanished, police took her for a “signature” and promised to return her, but later told the family she had been moved to a detention centre. A local helpline eventually informed them she had been handed over to the Border Security Force on the 26th of May near the Bangladesh border. This occurred amid Assam’s promotion of a “push-back policy,” in which more than 1,000 people are believed to have been forced across the India–Bangladesh border. 
  • The U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF) warns that strong ties between India’s ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) are enabling discriminatory laws against religious minorities. Their report highlights how national and state laws, including citizenship rules, anti-conversion laws, and bans on cow slaughter, disproportionately restrict Muslim and Christians. The USCIRF also argues that the BJP-RSS relationship helps push a “Hindu State” agenda, making India less secular in practice. It points to cases like Umar Khalid’s long detention for protesting the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA) illustrating how religious minorities face legal and political persecution. According to the report, hundreds of Christians and Muslims have been arrested under anti-conversion laws, with 70% of India’s inmates being pre-trial detainees and religious minorities disproportionately represented.  Finally, the report recommends designating India as a “Country of Particular Concern” under U.S. rules, though the State Department has so far not acted on this recommendation. 
  • A decade after the India–Bangladesh Land Boundary Agreement was implemented and residents of former enclaves were formally inducted into the two countries, many of those who chose to live in India say their lives have been filled with uncertainty, with the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) now adding to their worries. The agreement swapped 162 enclaves and promised people who had lived for generations in a legal vacuum full citizenship and land rights, yet these promises have not been fulfilled. Former Indian enclave residents are living in government-allotted rehabilitation flats that, after only ten years, are already in terrible condition, with no registered ownership and no proof of citizenship. Many feel betrayed, as the Indian government had promised them a house, ₹5 lakh, and five kathas of land, none of which ever arrived. The rehabilitation camps, meant to be short-term transit centres before families received land and were integrated locally, have instead become permanent. Meanwhile, the Election Commission has made no clear statement on how SIR scrutiny applies to residents who were not Indian citizens in 2002, leaving officials to repeat that “nothing is final” and residents to live with growing anxiety that the uncertainty of the past decade is becoming permanent. 

Internet and Technology 

  • On the 10th of November, the Supreme Court agreed to list a petition highlighting that indiscriminate use of Generative Artificial Intelligence (GenAI) in judicial work can lead to “hallucinations”, resulting in fictitious judgments, research materials and even perpetuate bias. The petition warned the opaque use of AI and Machine Learning technologies in the judicial system and governance would trigger constitutional and human rights concerns. The judiciary must use only data free from bias, and the ownership of that data must be transparent enough to ensure stakeholders’ liability. The petition highlighted how “this process of hallucinations would mean that GenAI would not be based on precedents but on a law that might not even exist”. It also pointed out that judicial reasoning and decisions cannot be left to the fluctuations of AI, the public have a right to know the reasoning behind judgements. Advocates specified how AI may assist in administrative efficiency, but it cannot replace the “prudence, moral judgment, and human discretion essential to judicial decision-making.” It flagged that one of the biggest dangers of integrating AI with judicial work was data opaqueness, largely due to the ‘black box algorithms’ employed in GenAI.  
  • According to the new report published by the US non-profit organisation Freedom House, global internet freedom has declined for the fifteenth consecutive year with 27 out of 72 countries assessed showing a dip, and India continuing to have the “partly free” status 51st ranking. The last time the organisation had claimed India to have a “free” status in internet control was 2021. The report found that the online information environment in the country is rife with misinformation and misleading content, particularly in the aftermath of the Pahalgam terrorist attack, and it noted that among the six key internet controls deployed by a country’s government, India uses all: blockages on social media or communications platforms, of political, social or religious content; ICT networks deliberately being disrupted; pro-government commentators who manipulate online discussions; blogger or ICT users being arrested, imprisoned, or kept in prolonged detention for political or social content; blogger or ICT users being physically attacked or killed (including in custody). 

Political Parties    

  • On the 2nd of November, Tamil Nadu chief minister M.K. Stalin led a united front of allied parties in accusing the Election Commission of deploying a “mere trick to delete the names of genuine voters” through its special intensive revision (SIR) of electoral rolls just months before the assembly election. Chairing a multi-party meeting of 40 regional and national parties, Stalin condemned the exercise, claiming it was modelled on a similar process in Bihar that had disenfranchised citizens. “Voting is the body and soul of democracy, and that right is facing a threat”, he declared.  
  • After the NDA secured a strong majority of 202 seats in the 243-member Bihar assembly, its legislators met on the 19th of November and unanimously chose Janata Dal (United) leader Nitish Kumar to head the new government. He then met the Governor to stake claim to form the ministry, and arrangements were made for a swearing-in ceremony at Patna’s Gandhi Maidan. On the 20th of November, Nitish Kumar was sworn in as Chief Minister for the tenth time, marking another continuation of his long political tenure in Bihar. The ceremony was attended by Prime Minister Narendra Modi and other senior NDA leaders. Twenty-six ministers from alliance parties also took oath, including Samrat Chaudhary and Vijay Kumar Sinha as deputy chief ministers. Together, the two events completed the formal establishment of the NDA government following its election victory. 

Police and authorities 

  • On the 10th of November, a high-intensity blast in a parked car near the Red Fort Metro Station in Delhi left at least eight people dead and several vehicles charred. The explosion triggered a fire that quickly spread to nearby cars. The Union home Minister Amit Shah said that the government is “exploring all possibilities and conduct a thorough investigation”. Shortly after issuing the statement, Shah visited the LNJP hospital to meet the blast victims. On the 11th of November, Prime Minister Narendra Modi spoke about the blast, saying that those responsible for the explosion won’t be spared and be brought to justice.  
  • On the 10th of November, hours ahead of the Delhi blast, the Jammu and Kashmir Police carried out a wide-scale crackdown in around 10 districts of the Valley. Around 100 locals were either detained or bound down in several districts as more than 70 locations were raided and searched. In north Kashmir’s Baramulla, police said an operation was launched and 16 properties linked to Pakistan-occupied Kashmir or Pakistan-based Kashmiri natives, and 23 locations with links to “over ground workers” were searched. In central Kashir’s Ganderbal district, police said 39 persons were taken into custody as a preventive measure, “after credible inputs suggested their involvement in activities detrimental to public space and security”. The police have also filed 16 applications for cancellation of bail granted to accused persons booked under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA) in south Kashmir.  

Judiciary 

  • On the 3rd of November, advocates of the accused in the 2020 Delhi Riots “larger conspiracy” case presented their arguments to the Supreme Court. They all argued in favor of bail considering the passage of years since the cases were filed and the activists and students arrested, without any visible progress in the cases. Opposing the pleas, additional solicitor general S.V. Raju, for the Delhi police, argued that the accused had played the “victim card” while delaying proceedings, and that the gravity of the allegations – a planned “regime-change operation” against the State – warranted continued custody. He urged the court not to dilute the standards for bail under the UAPA. Advocates representing various accused explained the sequence of events related to their clients, saying that they were only arrested because they happened to be residents of the violence-affected areas, or were involved in the protests, but not in any “conspiracy”. Senior advocate Kapil Sibal, appearing for Umar Khalid, argued that his client had been targeted and kept in custody for more than five years despite a lack of direct evidence linking him to any act of violence. 
  • On the 10th of November, the Supreme Court of India declared that women represent the country’s “largest minority” and agreed to hear a petition seeking immediate implementation of a 33% reservation for women in the Lok Sabha (the national lower house) and state assemblies, rather than awaiting for delimitation after the next census. The petition argued that previous amendments to the Constitution enabling various forms of reservation were implemented without waiting for delimitation, and that delaying the women’s quota undermines the goal of ensuring their adequate political representation, noting that women currently hold only about 4 % of legislative seats despite constituting nearly half the population. Justice Nagarathna remarked that women do indeed form the country’s largest minority group, and that the declining number of tickets given to women candidates by political parties raises serious concerns. 

Business & economy 

  • On the 2nd of November, the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) launched a powerful communication satellite CMS-03, the heaviest to be carried by any Indian rocket so far.  
  • In November, India launched Exercise Trishul, a mega tri-service military drill along the western border with Pakistan, the first of its scale since Operation Sindoor in May, with around 20,000 troops participating to test offensive and defensive capabilities, interoperability, and coordination among the armed forces. Sources said the three services will operationally test the entire spectrum of resources for efficacy and capability, T-90 and Arjun tanks, attack helicopters, missile systems, Rafale and Sukhoi-30MKI fighters, drones and a range of warships. The tri-services’ assets will also be tested in the electromagnetic spectrum, and in the cyber and information warfare domain. Last month, Defence Minister Rajnath Singh had warned Pakistan and stated that a route to Karachi passes through Sir Creek. He had said that any aggression in the Sir Creek area would be met with a response that would “change both history and geography.” 
  • On the 17th of November, Indian public-sector refiners have signed a one-year agreement to import liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) from the United States, establishing the first formal, structured supply contract for US-sourced LPG in the Indian market. “In a significant development, Indian PSU oil companies have successfully concluded a 1-year deal for imports around 2.2 MTPA LGP, close to 10% of your annual imports, for the contract year 2026, to be sourced from the US Gulf Coast,” said Petroleum Minister Hardeep Singh Puri in a post on X. This deal is expected to reduce India’s dependence for LPG on its traditional West Asian suppliers as the country looks to diversify import sources in search of better prices. The deal also comes at a time when India is looking to reduce its trade surplus with the US amid delicate trade pact negotiations between the two countries. 
  • The Indian government has revealed in Parliament that the Life Insurance Corporation of India (LIC) has invested a total of Rs 48,284.62 crore in Adani Group companies, combining both equity and debt exposure. Of this amount, Rs 38,658.85 crore is invested in equity and 9.625.77 crore in debt instruments, including LIC’s subscription to Rs 5,000 crore worth of secured non-convertible debentures issued by Adani Ports and SEZ in May 2025. LIC’s exposure spans several Adani-linked companies, including Adani Enterprises, Adani Total Gas, Adani green Energy, Adani Energy Solutions, Ambuja Cements, ACC, and others. The government stressed that it does not direct LIC’s investment decisions, asserting that all investments follow strict due diligence, risk assessments and statutory regulations under the Insurance Act and IRDAI guidelines. It also declined to provide a detailed company-wise breakdown of LIC’s investments, arguing that such disclosures would not be “commercially prudent” and could harm LIC’s financial interests. This large concentration of public money in Adani Group Firms, an entity frequently scrutinised for its financial practices, has raised concerns about transparency. While the government insists that regulatory norms were followed, the refusal to release granular data has fuelled ongoing public and political debate over accountability and the safeguarding of public savings.  

 

India in the World  

  • On the 7th of October, as US President Donald Trump resumed his intention to take control of Afghanistan’s Bagram air base, the Russia-led regional platform that includes India, reiterated that any attempt to deploy “military infrastructure” in the country would be “unacceptable”. The statement is part of a joint declaration issued after the seventh meeting of the Moscow Format Consultations on Afghanistan, which called the international community to increase humanitarian aid .The Afghan Foreign Minister will travel to India directly from Moscow for the first ever bilateral high-level visit to India since the Taliban took over in 2021.  
  • On the 9th of October, Prime Minister Narendra Modi met his UK counterpart Keir Starmer, during the latter’s first visit to India. PM Starmer and PM Modi addressed the CEO Summit in Mumbai together and discussed defence and trade partnership between India and the UK. PM Modi also announced that nine UK colleges will open their campuses in India soon. Following three years of negotiations, PM Starmer finalised the trade deal with PM Modi in July 2025, saying it would bring “huge benefits to both of our countries” by boosting wages, raising living standards and bringing down prices for consumers.   
  • On the 9th of October, India and Australia explored the possibility of joint production of military hardware as Defence Minister Rajnath Singh and his Australian counterpart Richard Marles held talks in Canberra on further expanding the bilateral strategic ties. Mr. Singh described the meeting as “productive”, saying on social media that “we reviewed the full spectrum of India-Australia defence cooperation, including defence industry, cyber defence, maritime security and regional challenges”. The India-Australia defence engagements have expanded in the last few years, including in areas of capacity-building, training, ship visits, and bilateral exercises.  
  • On the 18th of October Pakistan Army Chief Field Marshal Syed Asim Munir warned India of a “decisive response” to even a minor provocation, telling Indian military leaders there is “no space for war in a nuclearised environment”. Speaking at the Pakistan Military Academy in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa about the recent military conflict between India and Pakistan, he claimed Pakistan’s armed forces had demonstrated “remarkable professionalism” and “far-reaching capabilities” by “neutralising” all threats and emerged “victorious” against a “numerically superior adversary”. He alleged India of using terrorism as a weapon to destabilise Pakistan and warned that all “proxies” using Afghan soil would be “raised to dust”. He also urged India to settle “core issues”, an apparent reference to the Kashmir dispute, while reiterating Pakistan’s commitment to provide “moral and diplomatic support” to the people of Jammu and Kashmir. 
  • On the 19th of October, US President Donald Trump said India will “continue to pay massive tariffs” if it does not stop buying oil from Russia, adding that Prime Minister Narendra Modi assured him that New Delhi would halt such purchases. Washington maintains that India is helping finance President Putin’s war through Russian crude imports. Relations between New Delhi and Washington have been strained after US President Trump doubled tariffs on Indian goods to 50%, including a 25% additional duty for India’s purchase of Russian crude oil. India described the US action as “unfair, unjustified, and unreasonable”. 
  • On the 26th of October, PM Modi attended virtually the 22nd AESAN-India Summit that took place in Kuala Lumpur. Via video conferencing, PM Modi gave his opening remarks, describing AESAN as a “cultural partner” and saying that this strategic partnership has continued to prosper despite the prevailing era of uncertainties. He also announced a further deepening of India-AESAN cooperation in the domain of maritime security in 2026. PM Modi said India and the AESAN member-states in southeast Asia were “companions in the Global South” and assured that India would work with the AESAN countries to advance digital inclusion, food security, resilient supply chains ‘amid global challenges’. “We are steadily advancing our cooperation in education, tourism, science and technology, health, green energy, and cybersecurity,” said PM Modi, highlighting the ‘shared cultural heritage’ and ‘people-to-people’ ties between India and the ASEAN member-states. 

 Civil society, human rights defenders, and journalists  

  • On the 6th of October, five years after a life convict swallowed a suicide note before taking his life inside Nashik Central Prison, the National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) has formed a committee to conduct a “spot investigation” into the matter. The victim, Asghar Ali Mansoori, had named five prison officials in his letter that was ignored at the time of the death with the Maharashtra police refusing to investigate the matter. In the meanwhile, some of the accused prison officials have been transferred to other jails and a few have retired. Following Mansoori’s death in 2020, other convicts had written letters to the Chief Justice of the Bombay high court to denounce the living conditions in Nashik prisons and the ill-treatment prisoners suffered from the prison officials, but no action was initiated on these letters. Dushyant Singh, the Deputy Superintendent of Police deputed at the NHRC, visited the Nashik Prison on the 6th of October and said that the delay in investigation happened due to “non-cooperation” from the state authorities, with the magisterial inquiry report in the case not yet been received after five years. A prisoners’ right activist pointed out that “custodial torture and deaths are difficult to prove. But here, the victim had left a suicide note with clear roles attributed to the accused persons. Yet no action was ever initiated”. 
  • The Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) is asking the Indian authorities to conduct a comprehensive and transparent investigation into the death of journalist Rajeev Pratap. “Authorities in Uttarkhand state should not discount any possible causes of Rajeev Pratap’s death, including his family’s serious allegation that he was targeted for his journalism”, said Kunāl Majumder, CPI’s India representative. “The initial police conclusion that he died of a car crash must not preclude a rigorous examination of the threats made against him. Thos who threaten journalists must be held accountable”. On the 28th of September, Rajeev Pratap’s body was recovered from the Joshiyara barrage on the Bhagirathi river in Uttarkashi district. Pratap ran a YouTube channel named “Delhi Uttarkhand live” and had been missing since the 18th of September. His uncle Kripal Singhh had registered a First Information Report (FIR) at the Uttarkashi police station on the 20th of September under Section 140(3) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (kidnapping or abduction with intent to secretly and wrongfully confine a person). In his complaint, Singh alleged that Pratap, known for fearless reporting on local issues, had made several enemies. He claimed the journalist had been pressured to remove a video highlighting poor conditions at Uttarkashi hospital and had no reason to travel towards Gangori on the day he went missing. While the family had alleged foul play, police said Rajeev Pratap met with an accident, after his car fell into the river. Pratap’s wife had said that she had talked to him around 11pm on the day he went missing, after which he was unavailable. “He was telling me that he was feeling anxious after his reports on a hospital and a school. He said many people were calling him, threatening to kill him if the videos were not taken down. At 11.50, I sent a message, and it went undelivered. He was abducted by someone. I am sure he did not just fall off the road” she had alleged.  
  • On the 17th of October, the Rajasthan Police arrested two journalists from Bhopal, Madhya Pradesh, claiming that they had carried false and defamatory stories against Rajasthan Deputy Chief Minister Diya Kumary. A spokesperson from the news agency defined the police actions as “shocking and unlawful” and said that “our reporting on the corruption allegations involving the Rajasthan Deputy Chief Minister is backed up by proper documentation and verifiable evidence”. The spokesperson added that “this act is nothing short of an attempt to intimidate and silence independent journalism”, and that when their representatives attempted to register an FIR regarding the illegal detention, the police refused to accept their complaint. 

 Hate Crimes and Hate Speech against Minorities  

  • On the 4th of October, violence erupted during a religious celebration in Cuttack, Odisha. The incident shocked the residents, as Cuttack is not only known for its secular culture, but also for its communal harmony. The violence saw two groups, one of them including some Muslim boys, fighting a pitched battle with stones and glass bottles. The apparent trigger was the high-decibel DJ music accompanying the Jhanjirimangala Puja Committee’s immersion procession while it was passing through Hatipokhari near Dargah Bazar, an area with Muslim population. A day later, the Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP), an Indian right wing Hindutva organisation, issued a call for a strike to protest what it saw as an attack on Hindus. The VHP organised a rally in Cuttack, where they damaged shops and beat up their perceived enemies, leaving 25 people injured. The administration imposed a 36-hour curfew in Cuttack and also suspended internet services, fearing further escalation of violence. Syed Ekram Hussain, former chairperson of Odisha Waqf Board, said “I firmly believe the entire issue is being deliberately given a communal colour. All this talk about members of the Muslim community objecting to songs containing the name of lord Ram during the procession is nonsense. Such songs have been played in the past with no one taking offence”. Hussain said that it was his understanding that the incident began when someone fell during the process over some Muslims boys who, in turn, fell against some shops, damaging them in the process. “It was quickly given a communal colour by those with vested interests”, said Hussain, urging the police to take action against the troublemakers who are out to disrupt Cuttack’s communal harmony. 
  • On the 14th of October, a Bangladeshi court framed charges against Sunali Khatun, a pregnant migrant worker from West Bengal who, along with her companions, was charged by the Delhi Police as infiltrators and deported to Bangladesh with the help of Border Security Forces (BSF) about four months ago. The Calcutta High Court rejected the Union government’s “infiltrator” claims and ruled that Khatun must be repatriated along with her husband, son and others within a month. However, the Ministry of External Affairs has not yet provided any information on the matter, so there is no certainty whether her child will be born in a Bangladeshi prison or if she will be able to return to the country within the court-mandated timeframe. 
  • On the 19th of October, Union Minister Giriraj Singh has declared he does not want the votes of the “namak haram”, or the ungrateful, in a remark that appears to be aimed at Muslims weeks before the Bihar assembly elections, triggering widespread political condemnation. Mr Singh said that citizens who accept government welfare have a moral obligation to vote for the ruling party, allegedly referring to Muslims who benefit from PM Modi’s schemes but do not support the ruling party, Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP). Despite facing criticism, the Union Minister stood by his remarks, telling reporters he meant only to highlight that government welfare schemes were non-discriminatory. 

Religious Freedoms and Minority Rights  

  • On the 7th of October, a day after the Election Commission of India (ECI) declared Bihar’s voter roll “purified,” a report published by The Reporters’ Collective found more than 14.35 lakh suspect duplicate voters and 1.3 crore entries with fictitious addresses. On the same day, an independent analysis published by The Indian Express denounced the exclusion of nearly 80 lakh eligible voters- most of them Muslims- from the final list that will be used for the state’s assembly elections in November. The Reporters’ Collective, which reviewed the final voter lists across all 243 constituencies, found that the systemic issues present in the draft roll remained unaddressed. Their report highlights 14.35 lakh suspected duplicate entries, including 3.42 lakh instances where voters shared identical names, relatives’ names, and ages across multiple voter IDs. Duplicated entries, as well as the exclusion of eligible voters, raise serious questions about the integrity of the SIR process.  
  • The results of a massive “Special Intensive Revision” (SIR) drive of the electoral rolls conducted by the Election Commission of India in Bihar from June to September 2025 showed voters with Muslim-sounding names being permanently struck off the lists at a higher rate than their non-Muslim counterparts. While Muslims constituted 24.7% of the 65,75,222 lakh voters initially flagged for scrutiny, they accounted for 32.1% of the 323,000 voters who were ultimately confirmed for deletion after a period of ground-level verification. Moreover, the disparity was not uniform across Bihar but was acutely concentrated in the state’s Seemanchal region.  This disparity in outcome raises critical questions about the equitable implementation of the ECI revision process. The burden of proof now lies on the Election Commission, who must investigate and explain why a system built on its motto of “no eligible voter to be left out” produced a result that so disproportionately impacted one community in a specific geographic area.   
  • The names of 22.7 lakh women voters have been deleted in Bihar, a phenomenon that is expected to have its impact on the assembly elections in the state. Out of 3.92 crore male voters, 15.5 lakh names were deleted, resulting to a gender gap in deletions, as male voters saw less deletions as compared to women voters. The deletion of women voters from the electoral rolls comes at a time when the ruling BJP-JDU alliance has emphasised women’s welfare in its agenda. 
  • The latest report by the National Confederation of Dalit and Adivasi Organisations (NACDAOR)- published on the 10th of October- reveals that, despite repeated claims of development by the government, widespread poverty, high unemployment, inadequate education, and a severe lack of land ownership and proper housing continue to define the life of thousands of Dalits in Bihar. The survey shows that 62% of Dalits in the state are still illiterate, while 63% remain unemployed, surviving on an average monthly income of just Rs 6,480. Ashok Bharti, NACDAOR’s head, stated, “The voices of Dalits are suppressed in every election in Bihar. The real concerns and aspirations of Dalits remain absent from most political agendas”. 
  • Seven years after being relocated from forest areas in the Nilgiris, dozens of Adivasi (indigenous) families remain without access to basic amenities such as clean water, electricity, and sanitation. The Adivasi families, many of whom were allegedly cheated out of the compensation they received during relocation, were taken advantage of by real estate brokers and some forest departments officials. Following complaints by around 21 families, the District Crime Branch police had registered a case against ten people, including a forest ranger, a forester a lawyer and real estate brokers for defrauding the families who were relocated from the tiger reserve a few years ago. K.Mahendran, district secretary of the Tamil Nadu Tribal People Association, has approached the Tamil Nadu State Commission for Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes with a complaint, asking for justice for the victims of the fraud. Due to his efforts, more than 80 families have been added as victims of the fraud since the original FIR was filed, bringing the total number of victims now to more than 100.  Despite this, justice for the communities remains elusive, with no real solutions available to the communities who have been resettled on revenue lands without legal documents proving lands’ ownership.  

Internet and Technology 

  • On the 19th of October, The Wire and Alt News confirmed that the news of Dutch government releasing a stamp to honour the RSS is a deep fake. The incident traces back to the 10th of October, when the Bharatiya Janata Party’s (BJP) official X handle posted a graphic featuring a postage stamp and a representative image of the Rashtriya Swamsevak Sangh (RSS), with written “100 years of selfless service”. BJP IT cell head Amit Malviya, who has been found spreading misinformation several times in the past, had reshared the post the claim that a commemorative stamp was released by the Netherlands government to pay tribute to the RSS on completing 100 years.   
  • A report published on the 22nd of October by an Indian news website highlights how access to the internet is gradually transforming the lives of workers in the tea gardens of Assam and North Bengal. Through an initiative called Internet Roshni, launched by the Digital Empowerment Foundation, Wi-Fi zones and community internet libraries have been set up in remote tea estates, with local youth and women trained as digital facilitators to help others navigate online spaces. In India, a strong digital divide across rural areas is still present. Only 24% of rural households have access to the internet, compared to 66% in urban areas. Alarmingly, this gap seems to be widening in its usages. Oxfam’s 2022 India Inequality Report (Digital Divide) points out that 31% people in rural areas uses internet in comparison to 67% in urban. The villages in lush tea estates are emblematic of such deep digital divide. People who are still not connected to the internet are often the most disadvantaged, and this lack of access include education, health care and banking. Despite efforts like the Wi-Fi zones, internet is still a luxury for a lot of people.  
  • On the 25th of October, a revenue minister of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) warned party leaders and workers that their phone calls and WhatsApp conversions were “under surveillance”. He reportedly said, “Every word you speak is being monitored. A single wrong button on your phone can destroy the next five years for the party”. The minister later clarified that he had been referring to WhatsApp groups and messages related to the party’s work. However, the clarification followed criticism from another MP, who described the comments as illegal monitoring and called for the minister’s arrest. The allegedly conducted surveillance has often caused controversy, by for instance the allegations of using Israel-imported Pegasus spyware to hack journalist and activist phones, or the encroachments into citizen privacy through changes to the Information Technology (I-T) Act, Income Tax Act, etc., while simultaneously curbing citizens’ right to know, through laws like the so-called Digital Privacy and Data Protection Act.  

 Political Parties    

  • On the 8th of October, the Congress questioned the integrity of the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of the electoral rolls in Bihar and said that the exercise has raised more questions than answers. In particular, the party said that a preliminary analysis of the final electoral list shows that there were 5 lakh duplicate names, while more than one-tenth of the 67.3 lakh deletions were from 15 assembly constituencies. Following the publication of the final electoral roll after the SIR the electorate in Bihar has shrunk by almost 6% with about 47 lakh net deletions.  
  • On the 9th of October, leader of the opposition party Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) and former Bihar deputy chief minister Tejashwi Yadav announced that if his party is voted to power in the upcoming assembly elections, a law will be brought to ensure that every family in the state has one government job. He specified a timeline: after forming government they will pass the legislation within 20 days, and within 20 months to ensure that no household in Bihar remains without a government job. Yadaw argued that the promise is backed by data from a survey his party has conducted and claimed is not mere rhetoric but actionable. He cited his record of providing five lakh government jobs in 17 months during the previous government as proof of feasibility. The announcement came shortly after the ruling NDA government launched cash transfer schemes for women.  
  • On the 21st of October, Jan Suraaj Party founder Prashant Kishor accused the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) of allegedly pressuring three of his party’s candidates to withdraw their nominations for the upcoming Bihar assembly elections, directly naming Union home minister Amit Shah and Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan, appointed as the party’s election in-charge for Bihar. The Bihar assembly elections will be held on the 6th and 11th of November. The counting of votes is scheduled for the 14th of November.  
  • On the 27th of October, the Election Commission of India has announced a nationwide Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls in 12 states and Union territories. Addressing a press conference, Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) Gyanesh Kumar said that after the completion of Phase 1 of SIR in Bihar, this will be the second phase. Kumar said all poll-bound states and union territories in 2026 will be part of the SIR, which include Kerala Puducherry, Tamil Nadu and West Bengal. The draft roll would be published on December 9, and the final electoral roll will be released on February 7, 2026. The other states and Union Territories are Andaman and Nicobar Islands, Chhattisgarh, Goa, Gujarat, Lakshadweep, Madhya Pradesh, Rajasthan, and Uttar Pradesh. Training of polling officials for Phase-II of SIR will begin on Tuesday, the CEC said, adding that each officer will visit every house thrice to avoid any bogus voters. “The SIR will ensure no eligible elector is left out and no ineligible elector is included in poll rolls,” he said. 

 Police and authorities 

  • On the 10th of October, a protest march in Perambra, a town in the district of Kozhikode in the state of Kerala, turned violent, following which the Kozhikode police registered a case against Vadakara MP Shafi Parambil and more than 600 Congress party workers. Congress workers alleged that Shafi Parambil, MP, was beaten up by police, and he sustained injuries to his nose, leading to an emergency surgery. The First Information Report (FIR) was registered under multiple sections of the Indian penal code, including those related to rioting, unlawful assembly and deterring public servants from their duty by assault or criminal force. The clashes erupted following strong political tensions after the college union election at CKG Government College, Perambra. Congress leaders alleged that the assault on MP Shafi Parambil was politically motivated and declared that they will stage a series of protests across the State to expose the police officers involved in the incident.  
  • On the 18th of October, student groups staged a protest at Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU) demanding registration of an FIR against ABVP (a student wing of Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh, a right-wing Hindutva and nationalist organisation) on allegations of violence. The protest turned violent, with the organisations accusing Delhi Police of brutal assault. The All India Students’ Association (AISA) said that several students were “brutally beaten up” and allegedly detained by police when they attempted to march to the Vasant Kunj police station. The Students’ Federation of India (SFI) also alleged that the police “pulled female students by their hair and manhandled them, including by male personnel. The Deputy Commissioner of Police denied the allegations.  

 Judiciary 

  • On the 7th of October, the Supreme Court issued a notice regarding a petition   asking for the removal of an AI-generated video posted on X by the Assam’s BJP unit. The video, “Assam without BJP”, was posted on the 15th of September and depicts a scenario dominated by Muslims in the case of a BJP’s loss at the elections. Congress’s media department chairperson Bedabrat Bora, who filed the petition, declared that the vide spreads fear and hatred against Muslims, and the Congress claimed that the video is intended to spread communal violence. The bench of judges of the Supreme Court has now set the hearings for the 28th of October. 
  • On the 27th of October, the Supreme Court expressed displeasure over the Delhi Police’s failure to file counter-affidavits to the bail pleas of activists Umar Khalid, Sharjeel Imam, Meeran Haider, Gulfisha Fatima, and Shifa-ur-Rehman in the larger conspiracy case linked to the 2020 Delhi riots. During the hearing, advocates of the accused highlighted that their clients had spent nearly five years in custody while the trial had been progressing at an extremely slow pace. “The whole case is about the delay in the trial. There should not be further delay in the hearing”, one of the advocates submitted. Accordingly, the Bench nudged the Delhi Police to consider granting bail on concession, especially in view of the prolonged incarceration and the delay in the trial. The court had previously been unable to hear the matter on two occasions in September.  

 Business & economy 

  • On the 8th of October the Bombay High Court dismissed Anil Ambani’s petition challenging the State Bank of India’s (SBI) decision to classify the loan account of Reliance Communications (RCom) as “fraud”. The court held that as RCom’s promoter, Ambani could not escape liability for the company’s actions. Ambani had argued that he was not involved in the day-to-day management of RCom and that the decision violated principles of natural justice, but the court rejected these claims. It ruled that written objections were sufficient and that there was not requirement for a personal hearing. With this decision, the High Court upheld SBI’s classification of the account as fraudulent, reinforcing stricter standards of corporate responsibility in India.   
  • A draft notification issued by the Ministry of Environment proposes exempting standalone cement-griding units from the requirement of a detailed Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) and public hearing under the Environment (Protection) Rules, 1986, a move that would significantly ease environmental clearance for such projects by allowing them to proceed on a simplified evaluation process. This change comes as the Adani Group seeks approval for a 6 million-tonne-per-annum cement-grinding plant near Kalyan in the Mumbai Metropolitan Region. Local residents and environmental groups have opposed the project, citing potential air, dust, and water pollution, as well as threats to the area’s ecological balance and public health.  
  • On the 10th of October, the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), which is probing alleged security fraud and USD 265 million bribery scam against Adani Group executives, told the court that Indian authorities have failed to act on its requests to serve summons and complaints to Adani Group executives. In 2024, prosecutors of Brooklyn indicted the Adani group of allegedly bribing Indian officials to buy electricity produced by Adani Green Energy, a subsidiary of the Indian conglomerate. The SEC complaint claimed that the Indian executives who benefitted from the bribes then “misled” US investors about the company’s anti-graft practices by providing falsely reassuring information. On the 10th of October, the SEC told a New York district court it had repeatedly contacted India’s law ministry in its attempt to serve legal documents to Adani group founder Gautam Adani and his nephew Sagar Adani. The latest communication with the ministry was on the 14th of September, but no confirmation of delivery has been acknowledged, the SEC said. “The SEC will continue communicating with the India Ministry of Law and Justice and pursuing service of the defendants via the Hague Service Convention,” the SEC filing said. 
  • An industry-wide survey has revealed that, following the imposition of 50% tariffs by the US President Donald Trump on Indian goods, the country’s textile and clothing exporters have witnessed an equivalent 50% drop in their US businesses with inventories piling up and orders getting delayed. Around two-third of the respondents revealed that they had to offer discounts up to 25% to remain competitive. Around 82% of the exporters also have to deal with an extended credit cycle across the supply chain owing to the tariffs. The survey also indicates that around 40% of respondents saw a rise in working capital requirements by more than 30%, which reflects the increasing financial burden within the sector. The US is the single-biggest market for India’s textile and apparel, making the tariffs extremely burdensome for the sector.  

India in the World  

  • On the 5th of September, US President Donald Trump posted a picture of Prime Minister Narendra Modi with Russian President Vladimir Putin and Chinese President Xi Jinping from the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) summit commenting that it looks like the US “has lost India and Russia to deepest, darkest China”. The Indian Ministry of External Affairs said in its weekly press briefing that New Delhi rejects the “inaccurate” and “misleading” statements made by the White House trade adviser Peter Navarro criticizing India’s purchase of Russian oil. Shortly after Trump’s remarks, in a Bloomberg interview, US Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick said that he expects India to apologize and resume trade talks with the US within one or two months, adding that India needs to “decide which side it wants to be on”.  
  • On the same day, the Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman confirmed that, based on economic and commercial considerations, Delhi will continue to buy oil from Moscow. “Whether it is Russian oil or anything else, it’s our decision to buy from the place which suits our needs whether in terms of rate and logistics” Sitharaman said during an interview. The Minister of Finance’s remarks came on the day Brazil’s President Lula called a virtual meeting of BRICS leaders on the 8th of September to figure out a response to the Trump administration’s tariffs. Delhi has decided that Modi will not join the virtual meeting; External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar will instead attend. While there was no public reason given for the PM’s absence, it is seen as part of New Delhi’s balancing act, especially after the reception to his participation in the SCO summit. 
  • On the 10th of September, Prime Minister Narendra Modi condemned the Israeli missile strike as an infringement of Qatar’s sovereignty. In a post on X, Modi wrote he had expressed concerned to the Emir of Qatar and declared that “India condemns the violation of the sovereignty of the brotherly State of Qatar”. The PM also stressed that India stood for resolving issues “through dialogue and diplomacy” and “firmly in support of peace and stability in the region”. 
  • On the 17th of September, the European Commission and the EU High Representative disclosed the new “strategic EU-India agenda”, set out to strengthen cooperation with India on defence and trade. “In an increasingly complex geopolitical and geoeconomic environment, closer EU-India cooperation is more important than ever”, the joint communication said. The initiative comes as the EU faces pressures from the United States to sanction India and China over purchases of Russian crude. EU foreign police chief Kaja Kallas described security and defence as a central pillar of the partnership but noted that New Delhi’s ties with Moscow are a potential risk to the partnership’s expansion and that some EU commissioners still had “hesitations” “because, ultimately, our partnership is not only about trade, but also defending rules-based international order”, she said at a press conference in Brussels.  
  • On the 18th of September, US President Donald Trump, during his visit to the United Kingdom, said he is “very close” to India and shares a strong personal relation with Prime Minister Narendra Modi.  During a joint press conference with UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer, President Trump also reiterated his claim of “intervening and settling” the standoff between India and Pakistan earlier this year, using trade as a strategy to defuse the escalating hostilities between the two countries in the aftermath of Operation Sindoor. India has consistently denied any third-party intervention and has maintained that the understanding on cessation of hostilities with Pakistan was reached following direct talks between the Directors General of Military Operations (DGMOs) of the two militaries.   

Civil society, human rights defenders, and journalists  

  • On the 4th of September, Akhtar Hussain, an activist of Raijor Dal, a political party based in the state of Assam, was arrested by the Dhubri Police and detained in connection with protests against a massive eviction drive in the town of Bilasipara that took place in July 2025. The arrest happened a day after Hussain was stopped by police while attempting to visit the villages where the eviction drive had taken place.  The eviction was carried out to clear land for a proposed 3,400 MW thermal power plant and left 1,400 homes demolished and around 2,000 Miya Muslim families displaced. Ashraful Islam, a Raijor Dal leader, alleged that “Akhtar Hussain has been deliberately and democratically raising his voice for justice for the victims of the evictions. To silence his dissenting and powerful voice, the administration is filing false cases against him.” With Hussain’s arrest, Raijor Dal leaders say that they expect further crackdowns on activists raising questions about the eviction drives.   
  • On the 8th of September, Mehraj-ud-Din Malik, a member of the Jammu and Kashmir legislative assembly from the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP), was arrested by the police under the Public Safety Act (PSA). The PSA is a controversial law, defined as a “lawless law” by Amnesty International, that allows people to be held in detention without trial for up to two years if they are considered a threat to “public order”. Following his arrest, protests broke out, with Malik’s supporters demanding his immediate release. Political parties across Jammu and Kashmir condemned the move, calling it an attack on democracy and a way to silence dissent. This is the first time since the revocation of Article 370 in 2019, which removed Jammu and Kashmir’s special constitutional status, that an elected legislator has been detained under the PSA. Condemning Malik’s detention, Peoples’ Conference chairman Sajad Leone said that it was “another assault on the democratic fabric of Jammu and Kashmir.” Critics argue the arrest shows how democratic space in the region has narrowed, with opposition voices increasingly suppressed.   
  • On the 13th of September, a group of journalists, activists and advocates gathered in Kochi, Kerala, to voice concerns about the increasing crackdown on journalists and their arbitrary arrests. The meeting was organized as part of an ongoing campaign to demand the release of journalist Rejaz M. Sheeba Sydeek, who was arrested by the Maharashtra Anti-Terrorism Squad (ATS) on the 7th of May. Shortly after the meeting, the Kerala Police registered a case against the event’s organizers and speakers. Despite having permission to hold the event, the Kochi Police booked them under several sections of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (India’s criminal code) and the Kerala Police Act for “unlawful assembly” and “for obstructing police from performing their duties”; allegations that were denied by the organizers of the event. One of the speakers stated that the Kerala government, with this intervention, is sending a clear message: “You can’t speak up for the wrongs happening to Muslims. Rejaz (the arrested journalist) is clearly targeted for his identity, and we pointed that out in our speeches. He had been reporting on the state agencies’ crackdown on Muslim and other marginalized communities, among other issues”. Another senior journalist said the Kerala government has increasingly become averse to any form of dissent. This incident highlights growing concerns over press freedom and the shrinking space for dissent in India, raising urgent questions about the protection of journalists and the right to peaceful assembly.   
  • On the 24th of September, an independent Indian news website published an article regarding the situation of the activists jailed under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA) in connection with the alleged conspiracy behind the February 2020 Delhi riots. The UAPA, India’s anti-terror law, has been criticized for being misused to suppress dissent and political opposition. Umar Khalid and other activists have now spent five years in jail, accused of inciting riots in the capital, yet no trial has begun. Instead, hearings have been repeatedly adjourned and bail consistently denied, even though “bail is the rule and jail the exception”. This could be for one of the two reasons: either the state does not have a strong case to prosecute, or it simply intends to use the UAPA to keep the accused imprisoned indefinitely. The denial of bail and the interminable delay in beginning the trial do not project the majesty of a confident state, but rather its frightened escapism. 

Hate Crimes and Hate Speech against Minorities  

  • On the 6th of September, a Muslim hawker in West Bengal was stabbed by three men who allegedly tried to force him to chant “Jay Shri Ram”, a slogan associated with Hindu identity. After the attack, the assailants allegedly threatened the man, warning him that if he went to the hospital for treatment, they would kill him. On the 7th of September, superintendent of police, Bankura (headquarters) Siddharth Dorji issued a press statement to the media about the attack declaring that “allegations about forcing the victim to chant religious slogans remain unsubstantiated”. This incident is not isolated but part of a rising trend of religiously motivated violence in India. 
  • In September, the Association for Protection of Civil Rights (ACPR) published a report on the number of hate crimes recorded between June and August 2025, which accounted for 141 reported hate crimes, 102 incidents of hate speech and a surge in attacks targeting religious symbols and places of worship. The report alsport also highlights that legal protections have proven inadequate, with data showing that only 22 out of 141 hate crimes and 4 out of 102 hate speech incidents have resulted in FIRs. The data from these three months also highlights a continuing trend of normalization of hate speech in Indian politics: of the 102 reported hate speech incidents, the majority were made at public rallies and gatherings, with explicit incitement to violence against minorities.  
  • On the 28th of September, Hindutva activist Pragya Singh Thakur declared, during a Durga Vahini (the women’s wing of Bajrang Dal) event, that Hindu women should avoid Muslim men and refuse household help from them. Thakur also said, “When the enemy (Muslims) comes, they should be cut in half”, effectively calling for violence. She further suggested avoiding food from Muslim-run shops near temples, stating that when these people “selling prasad (religious offerings) near our temples are caught, they should be trashed and handed over to law enforcement”. Thakur’s remarks have triggered strong political backlash: politicians of the opposition condemned her statements and accused the BJP of deliberately fueling anti-Muslims tensions to divert attention from pressing issues. Thakur’s remarks form part of a long-standing pattern of inflammatory statements and hate speech targeting Muslims, often calling for violence against perceived “enemies”, and promoting boycotts of Muslims.  

Religious Freedoms and Minority Rights   

  • On the 2nd of September, the Union Home Ministry issued an order in relation to the Immigration and Foreigners Act, 2025 stating that members of minority communities from Afghanistan, Bangladesh and Pakistan including Hindus, Sikhs, Buddhists, Jains, Parsis and Christians who arrived in India until the 31st of December 2024 to avoid religious persecution will be allowed to stay in the country without a passport or other travel documents. Earlier, the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA), which came into force last year, only applied to those who came to India on or before the 31st of December 2014 for eligibility to acquire citizenship. The order does not provide citizenships, but allows Hindus, Parsis, Sikhs, Buddhists, Jains and Christians purportedly fleeing persecution from India’s Muslim-majority neighbours – namely, Pakistan, Afghanistan and Bangladesh – to stay in the country. The exclusion of Muslims from the Act’s provisions has sparked concerns and protests from thousands of citizens across the country.   
  • On the 15th of September, the account “BJP Assam Pradesh” posted on X an AI-generated video captioned “Assam without BJP” with a series of AI-generated images appear, including: a man in a skull cap cutting meat by the road; Assam Congress Chief Gaurav Gogoi and Senior Congress leader Rahul Gandhi standing in front of the flag of Pakistan; men in skullcaps and women in burqas and hijabs at different locations such as tea gardens, airport, an amusement park and a stadium in Guwahati and walking across a border fence, with the label ‘illegal immigrants’. The video- defined by journalists as a “textbook example of fearmongering for votes”- ends with a text saying “90% Muslim population”, followed by “Choose your vote carefully”, an underlying message to voters is that if any other party (than then BJP) comes to power, Muslims will be allowed to live following their religion. This is not only a violent message to the Muslim community in Assam, but also a violation of the Representation of the People Act, 1951. Both Section 123(3A) and Section 125 prohibit appeals on religious grounds and promotion of enmity during elections, yet no action has been taken by the Election Commission until now.   
  • On the 30th of September, the Election Commission of India released Bihar’s final electoral list after the three-month long Special Intensive Revision (SIR). The final count of voters revealed that 47 lakh voters, who were on the rolls as of June 2025, have been excluded from the final electoral roll. The exercise has been criticized as an attempt to validate citizenship under the pretext of updating electoral rolls, and as a way to introduce the National Register for Citizens (NRC) indirectly. The Supreme Court is scheduled to hear the final arguments in the case against the SIR on October 7. In its previous hearing, the court stated that even if the voter list is published, it can still step in if any illegality is found. 

Internet and Technology   

  • India’s massive IT sector is facing a lengthy period of uncertainty with customers delaying or re-negotiating contracts while the United States is considering a 25% tax on American firms using foreign outsourcing services, analysts and lawyers said. India $283 billion information technology sector has thrived for more than three decades exporting software devices, with prominent clients including Apple, American Express, Cisco. 
  • On the 19th of September, US President Donald Trump disclosed that a $100,000 fee will be imposed on new H-1B visas from the 21st of September. H-1B is a classification of non-immigrant visa in the US that allows US employers to hire foreign workers in specialized fields. People born in India are the largest beneficiaries of the program, with data showing that Indians account for more than 70% of all H-1B petitions approved each year since 2015. This move has caused confusion and worry between IT companies, both Indian and American. Major employers like Microsoft, Amazon and JPMorgan urgently advised staff on H-1B visas outside the country to return to the US before the 21st of September deadline. The Indian government issued a statement expressing concern that the measure is “likely to have humanitarian consequences by way of disruption caused for families”.   

Political Parties   

  • On the 1st of September, the Supreme Court asked the Bihar legal services authority to deploy para-legal volunteers to help voters and political parties file claims and objections in the state’s Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls. The volunteers have been asked to submit confidential reports to district judges, which will be reviewed on the 8th of September. Meanwhile, the Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD) party has criticised the exercise as precipitous and argued that it might disenfranchise vulnerable voters by disallowing commonly used documents like Aadhaar and ration cards. RJD had sought an extension of the deadline for claims and objections in the poll revision exercise ahead of elections in Bihar. The EC responded that many objections filed by political parties were for exclusion rather than inclusion.  
  • On the 28th of September, The Reporters’ Collective published an investigation in which it denounces repeated attempts to purge nearly 80,000 Muslim voters from Bihar’s Dhaka constituency electoral roll by wrongfully claiming that all of them are not Indian citizens. This large-scale and targeted voter deletion effort sought to wrongfully remove about 40% of eligible voters in Dhaka, a border constituency on East Champaran that the BJP wrested from the RJD in the 2020 assembly elections by just over 10,000 voters against the total polled 208,000 votes. To get these Muslim voters deleted, formal written submissions were made to the Election Commission of India’s (ECI) district officer (Electoral Registration Officer) and to the Chief Electoral Officer (CEO) of Bihar, one of them in the name of the personal assistant of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)’s MLA from Dhaka. The Reporters’ Collective established that this was a systematic and targeted attempt to single out and delete Muslim voters in the Dhaka constituency. The sitting BJP MLA did not respond to these revelations.  

Police and authorities  

  • On the 4th of September, the Rajasthan police demolished the reported illegal properties of three men who are accused of murdering a farmer for opposing illegal poaching. According to the police, the deceased farmer, Khet Singh, had tried to stop hunters from killing deer, and in retaliation, the accused allegedly attacked him with sharp weapons. On the 5th of October, Jaisalmer district authorities demolished five illegal shops linked to the accused and removed fencing from a large area of land that the administration said the accused had encroached upon. The murder of Singh had triggered tension in the region, with protests arising. The police used lathicharge and tear gas to disperse the crowd and detained over two dozen protestors. In a strong rebuke of the practice known as “bulldozer justice”, the Supreme Court ruled in November last year that it is entirely unconstitutional to demolish a person’s house without following due legal process, merely on the basis of an accusation or conviction in a criminal case.  

Judiciary  

  • On the 2nd of September, the Union Home Ministry issued an order in relation to the Immigration and Foreigners Act, 2025 stating that members of minority communities from Afghanistan, Bangladesh and Pakistan including Hindus, Sikhs, Buddhists, Jains, Parsis and Christians who arrived in India until the 31st of December 2024 to avoid religious persecution will be allowed to stay in the country without a passport or other travel documents. Earlier, the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA), which came into force last year, only applied to those who came to India on or before the 31st of December 2014 for eligibility to acquire citizenship. The order does not provide citizenships, but allows Hindus, Parsis, Sikhs, Buddhists, Jains and Christians purportedly fleeing persecution from India’s Muslim-majority neighbours – namely, Pakistan, Afghanistan and Bangladesh – to stay in the country. The exclusion of Muslims from the Act’s provisions has sparked concerns and protests from thousands of citizens across the country. 
  • On the 2nd of September, the Delhi High Court dismissed the bail pleas filed by student activist Gulfisha Fatima and other eight accused people in the 2020 riots “larger conspiracy” case. On the 7th of September, Fatima filed a petition in the Supreme Court challenging the order of the Delhi High Court denying her bail. Fatima, who was in the forefront of organising protests against the Citizenship Amendment Act, was arrested on the 9th of April 2020, and has been under custody ever since over allegations under the Unlawful Activities Prevention Act (UAPA).  
  • On the 17th of September, Delhi courts acquitted the accused in at least 17 cases related to the 2020 Delhi riots citing “fabricated” evidence, “fictitious” witnesses, and “foisted” cases. A review of 93 acquittal orders by an Indian newspaper revealed a clear pattern of judicial censure. In nearly one of every five cases, judges flagged serious misconduct by the Delhi Police. Of the 116 riots cases with verdicts delivered, 97 have ended in acquittals. In at least 12 orders, judges found police had introduced “artificial” witnesses or apparently “fabricated” evidence. In two other cases, witnesses testified that police officials had dictated their statements. “Such instances lead to serious erosion of the faith of the people in the investigating process and the rule of law”, said a judge on the matter. These judicial rebukes suggest a systemic failure in the investigation into one of the city’s worst episodes of communal violence.  
  • On the 18th of September, a Delhi court stayed the ex parte order restraining several journalists from publishing stories “defaming” Adani Enterprise Limited (AEL). The issue goes back to the 6th of September, when the court of Rohini, a city in Northwest Delhi, passed an ex parte interim order directing a number of journalists and activists to remove articles and social media posts allegedly defaming AEL and to not publish such material against the firm until the next hearing. Journalist bodies have expressed concern and disappointment over the ex parte order as well as for the formal request to take down material that mentioned the Adani Group. On X, the Press Club of India defined the ex parte order as an “act of egregious judicial overreach”, saying that “the court has put its stamp on the power to impose unrestrained censorship in the hands of corporate entities”. The journalist body added that the order is unprecedented in its scale and scope for its potential misuse to silence the press. The Editors Guild of India (EGI) also commented on the episode, saying that “they risk chilling legitimate reporting, commentary, and satire, and undermine the fundamental right to freedom of speech and expression”. EGI called free press an essential feature of democracy and added that any system that allows private interests to unilaterally silence critical or uncomfortable voices poses a serious risk to the public’s right to know. 

Business & economy  

  • On the 15th of September, Prime Minister Narendra Modi inaugurated a 2,4000 MW coal-based thermal power plant in Pirpainty, Bhagalpur, Bihar, as part of multiple development projects aimed at making the state self-reliant in energy. The Rs 25,000 crore project (approximately €2.7 billion) will be built, owned and operated by Adani Power Ltd, a subsidiary of the Adany Group, under a 25-year lease of 1,020 acres of land at Rs1 per acre per year (approximately €0.012 per acre). Villagers have raised concerns over inadequate compensation for their agricultural lands, many of which were previously acquired by the state. Villagers also alleged that some who tried to go to Bhagalpur to meet PM Modi during his visit to the city on the 15th of September to talk about these concerns were arrested and prevented from meeting him. Farmers worry that, while they may receive a one-time compensation, they will lose their means of livelihood. Some villagers told to journalists that the state government had listed those lands as “barren” when they took over the plots for power plants, although the plantations of mango and litchi present in the area are vital for local livelihoods. The project has also sparked criticism on environmental and health grounds, as a new coal-fired plant is expected to worsen air pollution, arsenic contamination and associated health problems.   

India in the World 

  • On the 4th of August, US President Donald Trump threatened to raise tariffs on Indian goods over India’s continued purchase of Russian oil, accusing Indian oil refiners of prioritizing ‘big profits’. President Trump had already announced 25% tariffs on Indian imports in July, and, on the 6th of August, announced an additional 25% tariff to be imposed on Indian goods from the 27th of August, ‘To deal with the national emergency described in Executive Order 14066’ (relating to Russia’s actions in Ukraine). In response, the Indian Ministry of External Affairs reasserted its position that the additional tariff is “extremely unfortunate” and stated that the US and EU continue to trade with Russia themselves. The Ministry added that “India will take all actions necessary to protect its national interests.” Leader of the Opposition, Rahul Gandhi, has labelled the 50% tariff “economic blackmail.”  The US and India are seeking to establish a free trade agreement; however, US officials cited India’s protectionist market as well as “geopolitical issues” (including India’s membership of the BRICS and purchases of Russian oil) as the current issues standing in the way of an agreement. 
  • Both the EU and US have sanctioned Indian companies for purchasing and exporting Russian oil and supplying Russia with dual use technologies, enabling the Russian government to circumvent sanctions. Despite that, Russian-backed Indian refiner Nayara Energy exported its first shipment of gasoline on the 5th of August.  
  • On the 9th of August, just one day after the US imposed a 50% tariff on Indian goods, the Ministry of External Affairs announced that the government ‘welcomes’ a US-Russia summit as it holds ‘the promise of resolving the Ukraine conflict and unlocking opportunities for peace.’  

 Civil society, human rights defenders, and journalists 

  • On the 7th of August, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu met with senior Indian journalists in Jerusalem to answer their questions and sign autographs during a visit that also involved discussions with the Indian ambassador to Israel about expanding bilateral cooperation in security and economic areas. The meeting came as the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) and 15 other media and human rights organisations issued a joint letter demanding an end to the forced starvation and killing of journalists in Gaza by Israel. In its joint statement, the CJP said that “the journalistic community and the world bear an immense responsibility to support our colleagues in this noble profession”.  
  • On the 21st of August, eighteen opposition political party MPs have have released a statement to the media expressing concern at the Bharatiya Janata Party-led Assam government’s repeated use of a sedition law against the founding editor of The Wire – an Indian independent news website-, its editors, journalists and columnists who have written for it. In the statement they express concern over the harassment by the Assam Police to the journalists, misusing Section 152 of the BNS, a section of the Indian criminal code against acts that endanger India’s sovereignty. “The summons to journalists is a blatant attack on press freedom and democracy itself. The BJP government in Assam is misusing rebranded sedition laws to intimidate independent voices and silence criticism”, part of the statement reads.  
  • On the 22nd of August, the Assam police registered a First Information Report (FIR) against Delhi-based journalist Abhisar Sharma under multiple sections of the Bharatiya Nyay Sanhita (BNS) over a video in which Sharma mentions critical remarks by high court judge Justice Sanjay Kumar Medhi about Assam’s government’s transfer of tribal land to a private company. In the video, Sharma also accuses Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma of using communal hate and violence for political gain. The complaint against Sharma alleges that the video “contained statements ridiculing and denigrating the duly elected Governments of Assam and the Union of India” and the Assam Police in its FIR against Sharma has invoked section 152, charging him of acts “endangering sovereignty, unity and integrity of India”. The incident, which happened days after the Assam Police summoned some of The Wire’s journalists under Section 152, highlights how sedition laws are weaponized to silence criticism and intimidate the press. 
  • On the 30th of August Deep Saika, an Indian reporter, was shot in a Naga village in the Senapati district of Manipur. One week before the incident, on the 23rd of August, the reporter was threatened by Nagaland deputy Chief Minister and senior Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader Y. Patton for a news report for Hornbill TV in which Saika accused Patton of not having visited Naga villagers while the Assam government was carrying out an eviction drive at the Rengma Forest Reserve, a land which has a boundary dispute case in the Supreme Court. Deep Saika is now in a stable condition. Hornbill TV has issued a statement condemning the attack as “not just an assault on his person but a direct attack on press freedom”.  

 Hate Crimes and Hate Speech against Minorities 

  • On the 10th of August in Assam, a state in northeastern India, a Miya Muslim man was allegedly threatened by a group of people who told him to “leave this place” and accused him of not being “a proper Bangladeshi”, despite having shown them his Aadhaar card. Shortly after, the group of people came with a bulldozer and allegedly demolished the maktab, a traditional Islamic elementary school, in which the Muslim man was working. The incident is not an isolated case, but part of a wider pattern of intimidation and displacement, with Miya Muslims being the most affected. The Chief minister of Assam has repeatedly referred to the evicted families as “illegal Bangladeshis” in several posts on X, and these statements have fueled at least 18 incidents across 14 districts. The incidents included celebrations of forced evictions of Muslims, hate speech on social media and public calls for further demolition of settlements belonging to “illegal immigrants”. Many of these attacks were organized or supported by Bharatiya Jana Sangh (BJP) leaders and their affiliates as part of a broader rise in evictions across Assam since the BJP came to power in 2016. 
  • On the 22nd of August, an independent Indian news website published a report on the growing phenomenon of mass evictions targeting specific groups, such as Muslims and Bengali speakers, with the pretext that the affected individuals are not Indian citizens. The report came days after Sunali, an eight-month pregnant woman, was detained by the Delhi police on suspicion of being “Bangladeshi”, before being allegedly blindfolded and pushed into Bangladesh during the night alongside her husband and eight-year-old son. The family of the woman claims that, even though the couple showed police ID cards, police still handed them over Border Security Forces (BSF) accusing them being “Bangladeshi”.  Since Sunali and her family are undocumented in Bangladesh, they now have to stay in hiding, meaning that Sunali cannot get access to the healthcare she needs as a pregnant woman. Bhadu Sheikh, Sunali’s father, has now filed a case in the High Court. This episode is one of many incidents of harassment against Bengali-speaking Muslim migrant workers that have occurred in India’s states in recent months.  
  • On the 28th of August, the BBC published a reportage on 40 Rohingya refugees who were allegedly deported by the Indian government to Myanmar in early May 2025. On the 6th of May, the refugees, who had UNHCR refugee cards and lived in different parts of Delhi, were allegedly taken to their local police stations under the guise of collecting biometric data- process mandated by the Indian government. The next day, after being transferred to the Inderlok Detention Centre, they were flown from Hindon airport, east of Delhi, to the Andaman and Nicobar Islands, an Indian territory in the Bay of Bengal. Once there, they were allegedly bound, blindfolded and taken onto a naval vessel, where some were beaten and humiliated. On the 8th of May they were forced into small boats, given life jackets, and told to swim ashore. They later discovered they had been left in Myanmar, where local fishermen found them. Commenting on the news, Thomas Andrews, the UN’s special rapporteur on the situation of human rights in Myanmar, says there is “significant evidence” proving these allegations. On the 17th of May two family members of the refugees filed a petition urging India’s Supreme Court to bring them back to Delhi, to immediately stop similar deportations and to offer compensation to all 40 individuals. India’s Supreme Court agreed to hear arguments on the 29th of September to decide whether Rohingya can be recognized as refugees. 

 Religious Freedoms and Minority Rights 

  • On the 2nd of August, the National Investigation Agency (NIA) granted bail to two catholic nuns from Kerala and a tribal man who were initially charged with religious conversions and human trafficking. The three were arrested on the 26th of July at Durg Railway Station in Chhattisgarh, accused of converting and trafficking three tribal women who were travelling with them. According to the allegations, the nuns were accompanying the women to place them in convents in Agra, Uttar Pradesh, for domestic work. The incident escalated when a railway ticket examiner asked the women for their tickets, and the nuns intervened to say that they had them. Shortly after, the examiner informed local members of Bajrang Dal, a Hindu extremist militia organisation, who arrived within minutes and pressured police officers to register a First Information Report (FIR). Despite family members of the three women confirming they were already Christians prior to the incident, the police proceeded with the arrests, backed by Bajrang Dal members who allegedly forced the three tribal women to give false statements against the nuns. The arrests sparked outrage among political and religious leaders in Kerala, who questioned why police acted despite evidence showing no forced conversion or human trafficking had taken place. The case is seen as part of a broader pattern of Hindu extremist organisations weaponising the so called ‘Anti-Conversion Laws’ to target religious minorities.   
  • On the 4th of August, the Religious Liberty Commission of the Evangelical Fellowship of India (EFIRLC) released a report in which it documented 334 incidents of systematic targeting against Christians across India between January and July 2025. The incidents are all verified and reflect an “alarming consistency” of targeting Christian communities across 22 states and union territories. Uttar Pradesh and Chhattisgarh emerged as “primary hot spots” not only for the immediate violence, but also for the misuse of laws, including the Anti-Conversion Laws, to intimidate Christians. The report also disclosed 13 cases in which Christian families were denied burial rights, in some cases even on private property.  
  • On the 8th of August, the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of India (CBCI) released a statement, strongly condemning the mob attack against two Catholic priests and a catechist which took place on the 6th of August in Jaleswar, Odisha. One media outlet reported that the mob comprised of nearly 70 Bajrang Dal members, which “stopped, abused, manhandled and falsely accused of religious conversion”. The police failed to intervene and, so far, no FIR had been filed against the perpetrators. The CBCI highlighted in their statement that this attack was not an isolated incident, but part of the increasing violence against Christian minorities in India and defined it as a violation of constitutional rights and human dignity of minorities. 
  • On the 10th of August a group of people attending a Sunday prayer at a local pastor’s premises in Bihar were attacked by 30-40 members of the Hindutva militant organisation Bajrang Dal carrying iron rods, sticks and pistols. Bajrang Dal district president Poddar declared that the group found evidence of “conversion activities”. Police are investigating and have identified those involved in the assault, filing charges against them.  
  • On the 10th of August, St. Xavier’s College in Mumbai cancelled its annual lecture commemorating Jesuit priest Fr. Stan Swamy, an Adivasi rights activist who was one of the 16 human rights activist and academics arrested by the National Investigating Agency after being accused of being part of a “chilling Maoist conspiracy” to assassinate Prime Minister Narendra Modi. Swami, who was 84 at the time of his arrest, died in custody due to pre-existing health conditions and Coronavirus. The annual lecture at St Xavier’s College was organised as part of the World Indigenous Day celebrations, but it was cancelled after the Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad (ABVP) -a Hindu nationalist student organisation- accused the college’s administration of glorifying a person accused in a “terror case.” The ABVP is a Hindu nationalist student organisation.   

 Internet and Technology 

  • On the 6th of August, a review of court filings conducted by the news agency Reuters showed that federal and state agencies ordered X to remove around 1,4000 posts or accounts between March 2024 and June 2025. More than 70% of these removal notices were issued by the Indian Cybercrime Coordination Centre, which is within the Home Ministry headed by Home Minister Amit Shah. This agency developed the Sahyog Portal, where all social media platforms are supposed to register, but X has not joined defining it as a “censorship portal”. To counter X in court, the government filed a 92-page report drafted by the Cybercrime Unit to show that X is “hosting illegal content”. The unit analysed 300 posts it deemed unlawful, including misinformation, hoaxes, and child sexual-abuse material.  In the June 24th filing, X said some of the blocking orders issued by officials “target content involving satire or criticism of the ruling government, and show a pattern of abuse of authority to suppress free speech”. The government’s decision to allow police and all central and state agencies to issue takedown notices for “any information which is prohibited under any law” is seen as a direct threat to free speech and ability to dissent, two rights expected to flourish in a democracy.  

 Political Parties    

  • On the 1st of August, the Election Commission of India (ECI) published the draft voter list after conducting a ‘Special Intensive Revision’ (SIR) ahead of the Bihar state elections. The draft list excluded 6.5 million voters due to their death, permanent relocation or replication of their name in the electoral list. The Communist Party of India (Marxist-Leninist) Liberation submitted a complaint after finding legitimate voters’ names being removed “without any reason”. The party also stated that “Voters from disadvantaged economic backgrounds are mainly in the list of names which were deleted.” Similarly, the Rashtriya Janata Dal, mainly based in Bihar, submitted a complaint to the Chief Election Officer, alleging that many deceased voters’ names were in the list whilst genuine voters had been removed.  
  • On the 7th of August, Leader of the Opposition Rahul Gandhi held a press briefing, in which he alleged that the Election Commission of India (ECI) ‘colluded with the BJP to win the Maharashtra elections’ and to ‘steal elections’ in one Karnataka constituency during the 2024 Indian general election. Gandhi raised multiple allegations including duplicate votes, invalid or fake addresses, an unusually larger number of voters registered at the same residence and misuse of the new voter registration form. On the 8th of August, Gandhi released a video in which he questions the neutrality of the ECI, and reiterates the claim of a ‘vote chori’ or ‘vote theft’, adding that, during multiple state elections both the Congress Party and INDIA opposition bloc found that the results did not reflect the ‘public mood’ on the ground. Priyanka Gandhi, leader of the Indian National Congress Party, supported her brother’s claims, adding that ‘there’s been massive foul play.’ The BJP responded to the claims by accusing Gandhi of ‘selected outrage’ for only questioning the ECI in elections they lost. In response to the allegations, on the 8th of August the ECI challenged Gandhi to submit his ‘vote theft’ claims under oath or ‘stop misleading the public.’  
  • On the 11th of August, the leader of the Rashtriya Janata Dal, Tejashwi Yadav, claimed that the Deputy Chief Ministry of Bihar, Vijay Kumar Sinha, holds two voter cards and is registered to vote in two constituencies. Hours later, the Election Commission of India served a notice to the Deputy Chief Minister, seeking to understand why he has two IDs. Bihar, which is currently led by the BJP government, is headed to the polls in October or November, with many viewing the upcoming election as a test of the ECI’s independence.  

 Police and authorities 

  • On the 21st of August, two Jammu and Kashmir police officers and four police personnels were arrested by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) for their involvement in the custodial torture of a policeman in 2023. The incident had taken place in February 2023 in Kupwara, when Khursheed Ahmad Chohan, a police constable was illegally detained during what was presented as a narcotics inquiry. According to the Supreme Court documents, he was allegedly tortured for six days, during which his testicles were surgically removed and “vegetative particles” forced into his rectum. When Chohan’s wife told the Kupwara police about the severity of the assault, they did not act against the alleged perpetrators and insinuated that Chohan suffered a self-inflicted wound. The case reached a turning point when Chohan’s wife filed a Right to Information Act (RTI) in order to obtain Chohan’s medical examination report conducted after the alleged torture. On the 21st of July 2025, the Supreme Court criticised heavily the police investigation, observing that it “reveals a disturbing pattern of systematic cover-up” and “abuse of authority”. 

Judiciary 

  • On the 4th of August, the Supreme Court of India stayed proceedings in the ongoing defamation case against Leader of the Opposition, Rahul Gandhi. The case was instituted against Mr Gandhi in 2023, after he made comments to the media that China had taken over 2000 square kilometers of Indian territory during border skirmishes between Indian and Chinese soldiers. The retired Border Roads Organisation officer, which instituted the defamation case, argued that Gandhi defamed the Indian Army. During the recent court proceedings, Justice Dipankar Datta criticised Gandhi for his remarks, asking if he had ‘any credible proof’, adding that Gandhi should have aired his views in Parliament rather than on social media, arguing that freedom of speech does not mean a ‘responsible leader of the opposition would do all this.’ In response, Gandhi’s advocate argued that the law of defamation ‘cannot be used to freeze dissent to government policies.’ The opposition INDIA bloc parties released a statement on the 5th of August, calling the judges’ comments ‘unwarranted’, adding that ‘it is the responsibility of political parties, especially of the Leader of the Opposition, to comment on issues of national interest. When a government fails so spectacularly to defend our borders, it is very citizen’s moral duty to hold it accountable.’ Congress Party leader Priyanka Gandhi defended her brother stating that he has the upmost respect for the Army and would never say anything against it.  
  • On the 12th of August, Mintu Paswan, a Bihar resident who was declared dead by the Election Commission of India (ECI) in its ongoing Special Intensive Revision (SIR), appeared in the Supreme Court, demonstrably alive. Paswan declared in an interview that while striking off his name from the list “they did not ask for any documents” but to add his name “they are asking for so many”. Paswan is among the 6.5 million voters who have been left out of the draft elector poll published by the ECI on the 1st of August. Activist Yogendra Yadav, who is challenging the ongoing exercise in Bihar with the aim of showing how electors have been wrongfully deleted by the poll body, said in court that “mass exclusion is not a failure of implementation of SIR, it’s a design.” 
  • The Election Commission has told the Supreme Court, as part of the poll body’s controversial Bihar Special Intensive Revisions, that claims and objections on the draft electoral rolls can be filed even after the 1st of September. Since the start of Bihar’s SIR, new reports of arbitrary removals, deletions and the withholding of information were received. The Court was reported to say that “the process (of filing objections) will continue until the last date of nominations, and all inclusions/exclusions are integrated in the final roll”.  

 Business & economy 

  • On the 6th of August, the US put a 50% tariff on Indian cotton exports. As a response, the Indian government removed the 11% import duty on foreign cotton. Cotton plays a big role in Indian economy, sustaining six million farmers and forty-five million people through the textile workforce. The decision allowed cheap cotton from countries like Australia and Egypt to be imported, determining a price fall of 4% within days after duty removal. Many farmers, who were already selling below the minimum support price (MSP), will be dramatically affected.  
  • On the 12th of August, a video clip showing Justice Sanjay Kumar Medhi reacting to the allotment of 3,000 bighas of land in Assam’s Dima Hasao district to a private cement company went viral. The video was filmed during a Gauhati High Court hearing in which emerged that land had been allotted for 30 years to Mahabal Cement Pvt. Ltd. The land in question had been used, until now, by indigenous communities for their cultivations. Protests erupted when excavation machines arrived on the land to clean it, without the indigenous communities’ consent. Meanwhile, political tensions rose after Congress leader Gaurav Gogoi accused Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma of transferring tribal land to the Mahabal Cement. Since December 2024, residents of the allotted area have challenged the decision in Court, claiming their families have lawfully lived on and cultivated these lands since 1975. 

 

India in the World 

  • On the 2nd of July, Prime Minister Modi embarked on his multi-nation diplomatic visit to Ghana, Trinidad and Tobago, Argentina, Brazil, and Namibia for the BRICS Summitt in Rio de Janeiro. In a statement, PM Modi declared to be “confident” that the trip “will reinforce bonds friendship across the Global South,” and said that the conversation with Argentinian counterparts will focus on “cooperation the areas of agriculture, critical minerals, energy, trade, tourism, technology, and investment.” 
  • On the 14th of July, External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar arrived in Beijing to attend the Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) and to meet with Chinese vice-president Han Zheng and Chinese foreign minister Wang Yi. In his opening statement, Mr Jaishankar affirmed that relations with China had “been steadily improving” since President Modi met with Chinese President Xi Jinping in October 2024. The meeting was the first high-level dialogue between the two countries since the 2020 military incursions in the Galwan Valley, Ladakh, which led to a de-escalation of relations for four years. Since the meeting between the Prime Minister and President, relations between the two countries have started to normalise.  
  • On the 31st of July, US President Donald Trump announced a 25% tariff on Indian imports to the US, which came into effect on the 7th of August. The President also alluded to further tariffs, adding that India will face ‘a penalty’ for importing Russian energy and military equipment. In his announcement on the social media platform Truth Social, the President added that India has ‘the most strenuous and obnoxious non-monetary trade barriers of any country’. In response to the announcement, the Indian Ministry of Commerce stated they are studying the implications of the tariff, adding that ‘The Government attaches the utmost importance to protecting and promoting the welfare of our farmers, entrepreneurs, and MSMEs.’ They reiterated their commitment to signing a bilateral trade deal with the US by the end of 2025, adding they will ‘take all steps necessary to secure the national interest.’ 

Civil society, human rights defenders, and journalists 

  • On the 13th of July, the Ballia police station in Uttar Pradesh registered a First Information Report (FIR) against veteran journalist Ajit Anjum over his coverage of the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) in Bihar. The SIR is the preparation of electoral lists through house-to-house visits to determine the eligibility of households, as indicated by Section 21(3) of the Representation of the People Act of 1950, which permits it to revise electoral rolls “in such manner as it thinks fit”. The SIR has been criticized for the additional documents that it requires electors to furnish to determine their citizenship and right to vote. In the video posted on his YouTube channel on the 12th of July, Mr Anjum alleged large-scale irregularities in the voter list in the Sahebpur Kamal assembly constituency. He has been charged with spreading disinformation. The district administration described the contents of Mr Anjum’s video as “baseless”, “misleading” and intended to “incite public sentiment”. On his account on X, Mr Anjum said that he had received threats to remove the video, but he refused.  
  • On the 4th of July, female journalist Sneha Barve was attacked by a mob and beaten whilst she was reporting on allegations of illegal construction on disputed land in the state of Maharashtra. Barve, who founded the YouTube based news channel Samarth Bharat Pariwar, was struck by a wooden rod before being taken to hospital. The Committee to Protect Journalists reported that Barve has previously been targeted for reporting on similar issues at least two other times. In 2023, another journalist, Sashikant Warishe was murdered after he reported on a land dispute in the state.   
  • On the 24th of July, the Committee to Protect Journalists urged the Chief Minister of Maharashtra to ‘urgently guarantee Sneha Barve’s safety to send a clear message that attacks on the press will not be tolerated.’ The statement was made after Barve, who was assaulted on the 4th of July, received new death threats for her reporting. Barve was accosted by one of her attackers on the 24th of July, who told her ‘this time, we should finish the matter for good.’ Just a few days earlier, on the 18th of July, the son of Barve’s alleged main attacker visited the journalist’s father, threatening to harm her whole family.  CPJ India’s representative, Kunal Majumder reiterated that whilst Barve and her family face new threats, ‘the main suspect in her assault walks free.’ The case is representative of the violence journalists are increasingly facing for their reporting, and the impunity perpetrators receive.  

 Hate Crimes and Hate Speech against Minorities 

  • A report released by the Association for Protection of Civil Rights has documented a systematic increase in hate speech against Muslims, Dalits, Adivasis, and Christians minorities. Key findings of the report include a total of 947 hate crime incidents recorded in the first year of Prime Minister Modi’s third term in office, out of which 345 were hate speech incidents and 602 were hate crimes. Out of the 345 hate speech incidents, 178 were made by individuals associated with the BJP, with the highest number in BJP-governed states, including Uttar Pradesh and Madhya Pradesh. 

 Religious Freedoms and Minority Rights 

  • Since the resumption of hostilities between two anti-military junta forces in Myanmar on the 2nd of July, around 4,000 refugees from Myanmar have sought protection in the Indian state of Mizoram, which borders Myanmar. Robert Zoremtluaga, head of the Champhai District Committee on Myanmar refugees said that the newly arrived are currently placed in Zokawthar and in a community hall in Saikumphai. Refugees from the country have been seeking refuge in Mizoram since 2021. Despite demands from the central government not to let refugees enter the country, the state government, civil society and residents of Mizoram have provided humanitarian assistance to the refugees, as they share ethnic and familial ties with them. However, since March 2025, activists and village councils have asked refugees to stop trading and leaving their designated camps, as the uncontrolled movement was ‘threatening national security, changing the demography, and draining local resources.’ The situation is further complicated by India’s lack of specific legislation on refugees and failure to ratify the Refugee Convention, which means refugees are treated as illegal migrants. 
  • On the 2nd of July, a team of People’s Union for Civil Liberties (PUCL) and Association for Protection of Civil Rights (APCR) members conducted a fact-finding exercise in the villages of Paud and Pirangut in Pune district of Maharashtra, after Muslims residing in these villages were allegedly forced to flee due to intimidation, communal violence and economic boycotts. The PUCL and APCR opened their  investigation after reports that illegal posters calling for a boycott of Muslims surfaced. Whilst many members of the Muslim community have resided in the villages for decades, the posters referred to them as ‘non-native’. The PUCL and APRC found that the posts, in combination with harassment and threats have created ‘a palpable climate of fear, shuttered businesses, disrupted lives, and displaced families.’  
  • On the 18th of July, the Foothills Naga Coordination Movement (FNCC) declared an indefinite bandh or general strike to protest the movement of the Kuki ethnic community in Naga inhabited areas of the foothills of Manipur. The ‘peaceful but firm protest’ was launched against ‘threats to ancestral land, identity and security’ of the Naga community, one of the ethnic communities in the state of Manipur. One of the main sources of concern is the construction of the ‘German’ Road, which was constructed during the ongoing ethno-religious conflict in Manipur to connect Churachandpur to Kangpokpi. The road was allegedly named after a Kuki militant leader German. H. Kuki. The FNCC also opposes further construction of proposed roads which currently pass through Naga ancestral communities but have been planned without the ‘prior knowledge or consent of the Naga people.’  
  • The Wire documented human rights abuses against Bengali-speaking migrant workers from West Bengal in multiple BJP-led states, including Odisha, Delhi, Assam, Maharashtra and Jharkhand. Victims of the abuses recount being taken by law enforcement and Border Security Forces (BSF), beaten, having their documents removed and being falsely accused of being “Bangladeshi infiltrators”. A similar episode occurred in June, when the BSF initially deported 140 migrant workers to an interrogation camp in Pune and later to West Bengal. The episodes are part of a pattern of human rights abuses against Bengali-speaking migrant workers. Numerous people describe being arbitrarily arrested in Maharashtra, despite showing valid Indian identification and Voter IDs, and expressed fear of speaking Bengali in public. According to the Migrant Workers’ Unity Forum, there is no clear count of how many workers are missing or have been deported to Bangladesh.   
  • On the 23rd of July, Human Rights Watch reported that Indian authorities ‘unlawfully expelled’ hundreds of Bengali Muslims to Bangladesh. Between the 7th of May and 15th of June, Border Guard Bangladesh reported that India expelled over 1500 Muslims to Bangladesh, including 100 Rohingya refugees from Myanmar. Human Rights Watch Asia Director Elaine Pearson stated that ‘the authorities’ claims that they are managing irregular immigration are unconvincing given their disregard for due process rights, domestic guarantees, and international human rights standards.’ She added that the expulsions of Bengali Muslims are ‘fueling discrimination’ in the country. In the aftermath of the Pahalgam Terrorist Attack, authorities in BJP-led states deliberately targeted Muslims, accusing them of being illegal migrants and launching campaigns which targeted Muslims regardless of their citizenship status. In some cases, border guards have been accused of threatening and beating detainees to force them to cross the border to Bangladesh. 

 Internet and Technology 

  • At the end of June, a draft of the Karnataka Misinformation and Fake News (Prohibition) Bill was leaked to the press. The Bill has been met with huge controversy and labelled a ‘tool of repression disguised as well-intentioned legislation.’ The Bill has been criticised by a multitude of organisations, including Foundation The London Story and Internet Freedom Foundation, for criminalising speech without clear definitions, independent oversight or meaningful safeguards to stop the legislation becoming a tool for repressing freedom of expression. The scope of the Bill is particularly contentious, as the regulating authority is tasked with curbing content deemed ‘disrespectful of Sanatan symbols’. The term is not defined in the draft, and ‘risks shielding not just religious belief but majoritarian ideology from scrutiny’, as many proponents of violent Islamophobic content use Hindu imagery and values as a unifying label. In response to the uproar from civil society, on the 26th of July, the Karnataka government dropped the ‘Fake News’ clause in the latest draft of the Bill, including any reference to ‘disrespect of Sanatan symbols’.  
  • On the 11th of July, Radhika Yadav, a 25-year-old state-level tennis player, was allegedly shot dead by her father in Gurugram. Whilst Yadav’s father allegedly confessed to the crime, a parallel narrative propogated by Hindu nationalist extremists on social media platforms framed the murder as an act of honour to protect her from ‘Love Jihad.’ The police have not corroborated any allegations that she was in a relationship with a Muslim man. Some posts suggested that by killing her, Radhika’s father had ‘prevented a worse outcome’, if she had converted to Islam. The case is representative of how Hindu nationalist extremist actors continue to use online platforms to frame women as part of broader ideological battles.  
  • On the 29th of July, arguments on the constitutionality of the Sahyog Portal in the X vs Union of India case were concluded. The case began in April 2025, when X filed a petition in the Karnataka High court challenging its forced onboarding into the Sahyog Portal, where government agencies issue takedown notices. The portal was originally created as a health and public safety tracking tool, enabling different ministries and law enforcement agencies to coordinate their work and combat pandemic misinformation and fraud campaigns. In late 2024, the portal was repurposed to focus on content regulation, a decision made internally by the Ministry of Home Affairs without a debate in the Indian parliament or implementation of new legislation. The portal enables agencies to issue takedown notices to social media companies whilst circumventing the provisions and procedural safeguards set out in Section 69A of the IT Act. If platforms fail to comply, they can lose their intermediary immunity. Platforms have reported that they do not receive legal reasoning behind orders they receive via the portal and there is no built-in appeals mechanism. In their case, X argues that the Sahyog portal ‘effectively creates a parallel regime with no statutory basis, violating the doctrine of due process and constitutional free speech guarantees.’ 

Political Parties    

  • Police in Kerala’s Kasaragod district have filed three separate cases against individuals accused of orchestrating a hate campaign on social media targeting the late V.S. Achuthanandan. Achuthanansan, who died on the 21st of July, was a former Chief Minister of Kerala and Secretary of the Communist Party of India (Marxist). The cases, registered under non-bailable provisions related to hate speech, were filed at the Bekal, Kumbala, and Nileswaram police stations. The individuals booked include Abdullah Kunhi (under Kumbala police jurisdiction), Fayaz Thotty (under Vehicle Station limits), and Rashid Moidu (in the Nileswaram area), who posted inflammatory content on Facebook and promoted the alleged hate campaign through their WhatsApp statuses. According to authorities, the accused intentionally circulated defamatory material meant to demean Achuthanandan’s legacy in fighting for labour rights, land rights, education, women’s right, anti-corruption measures and environmental protection, with the potential to incite public unrest and communal tensions. 

Police and authorities 

  • On the 21st of July, the Bombay High Court acquitted all 12 men who were convicted of “participating” in the deadly serial train attacks of the 11th of July 2006. The High Court bench, comprising Justices Anil Kilor and Shyam Chandak, found that the “confessional statements were not found to be truthful and complete” and the men confessed after being subject to torture. The family of one of the formerly convicted men- Shaikh Mohammed Ali Alam Shaikh- denounced the abuses by law enforcement over the years. According to their testimonies, members of Mumbai’s police kept visiting Mr Alam Shaikh’s family to intimidate them. The case sheds light on the use of torture by police to extort confessions.  
  • A report by the Association for Protection of Civil Rights, which denounces hate crimes against minorities in India, exposed the police’s inactions, alleging that law enforcement’s response remained largely passive or complicit during crimes committed against minorities. As reported by The Wire, of 602 hate crimes documented in the year, only 13% resulted in first information reports. 

Judiciary 

  • On the 14th of July, Delhi University professor Apoorvanand and human rights defender Aakar Patel filed a petition to the Supreme Court asking for a temporary halt of the directives issued by Uttar Pradesh and Uttarakhand state governments which require restaurant owners to display their names. The petitioners argue that the state governments’ orders violate several constitutional provisions as well as the previous Supreme Court judgement which found that they were not ‘backed by law nor necessary for the stated purpose of public order or food safety compliance.” The petitioners also argue that the orders impact the privacy and dignity of restaurant owners as it will lead to ‘discriminatory profiling’.  
  • On the 16th of July, the Calcutta High Court has sought an affidavit (written statement of facts) from the West Bengal government, the Central government, and the Delhi government in response to a petition filed by relatives of a Bengali migrant who was arrested and deported from Birbhum district. A division bench comprising Justices Tapabrata Chakraborty and Reetobroto Kumar Mitra requested the affidavits after learning that similar petitions had also been filed in the Delhi High Court. The petitioners’ lawyer stated that, following the filing of the petition, the petitioner’s relatives were also detained by Delhi police but were subsequently released. The case seems to be one of many arrests of Bengali citizens. Commenting on the order signed by the High Court, senior counsel for the state remarked: “Who will decide (to detain)? The appropriate authority is not the police or constable. You cannot pick up someone just because they are speaking Bengali. […]”. 

 Business & economy 

  • On the 7th of July, Adani Properties, the real estate firm of Adani Group, signed an agreement with state agency Maharashtra Housing and Area Development Authority (Mhada) for the redevelopment of Motilal Nagar in the suburb of Goregaon (Mumbai). In the inauguration ceremony,  Mhada vice-president and CEO Sanjeev Jaiswal, declared the project a ‘Special Project’ which will deliver 397,100 square metres of apartments and commercial spaces. The redevelopment, the second largest after the Dharavi slum, has met the resistance of Motilal Nagar’s residents. Yuvraj Mohite, president of Motilal Nagar Vikas Samiti, said that residents- who now fear eviction and deportation- remain firm in their opposition to the redevelopment plan, which was approved without their consultation.  

 

India in the World 

  • On the 12th of June, flight AI171 from Ahmedabad, Gujarat to London crashed moments after the take-off. The plane crashed into the residential campus of the Byramjee Jeejeebhoy Medical College and Civil Hospital, killing 241 passengers and 29 people on the ground, including 5 medical students.  In the aftermath of the crash, vigils were held across the world for the victims who came from India, the UK, Portugal and Canada.  
  • On the 1st of June, India’s foreign ministry announced that, over 1,000 Indians have been deported from the US since January, as part of President Trumps ongoing campaign against undocumented migrants. Spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal advised that over one hundred of nationals were deported on US military flights, while the rest have taken commercial flights back to India. He also reiterated the “close cooperation between India and the United States on migration issues”. Mr Jaiswal also added that in 2023-2024, 330,000 Indians students had gone to the US for studies, making India the largest source of international students in the country.   
  • On the 3rd and 4th of June, Australian deputy prime minister and minister for defence Richard Marles visited India for a two-day trip and met with his counterpart Rajnath Singh. In the meeting with the Chief Defense Staff in Delhi, Mr Marles expressed condolences to the families of the victims of the Pahalgam attack and condemned the terrorists. The discussions encompassed Indo-Australian defense, strategic cooperation and security, including industry collaboration, cyber and new emerging technologies, counterterrorism, and maritime security, at the end of which “both countries expressed satisfaction at the growing strategic convergence between the two countries”.  
  • On the 4th of June, Pakistan’s Foreign Minister Ishaq Dar advised that the chance of the recent India- Pakistan conflict restarting  is remote, as ‘the ceasefire is holding and all steps regarding withdrawal of troops have been implemented by the two sides in letter and spirit.” Despite these reassurances, on the 20th of June, Indian Home Minister Amit Shah announced that the Indus Water Treaty, which was suspended in the aftermath of the Pahalgam Terrorist Attack, ‘will never be restored.’ The treaty guarantees 80% of Pakistani farms’ access to water. Whilst legal experts have clarified that the treaty cannot be suspended unilaterally, Shah has advised that a canal will be constructed to redirect water which was originally flowing to Pakistan to the Indian state of Rajasthan.  
  • Hours after United States announced the strikes on three Iranian nuclear sites, Prime Minister Narendra Modi spoke with Iran’s President Masoud Pezeshkian for the first time since the start of the conflict between Iran and Israel. In a post on X, PM Modi stated he expressed “deep concern at the recent escalations and called for restoration of regional peace, security and stability.” The Prime Minister added that “the two leaders reiterated a shared commitment to continue to work for strengthening bilateral cooperation in different areas including trade and economic cooperation, science and technology”.   

Civil society, human rights defenders, and journalists 

  • On the 1st of June, around 500 people joined the peaceful rally organized by grassroots civil society group Mumbai for Peace denouncing growing hatred and intolerance across the country and calling for peace and inclusion. The protesters marched from Kotwali garden to Dadar, known as the “nerve centre of Ethno-Nationalist Hindutva politics” in the city. Dadar is also home to the resting place of Dalit leader and chief of architect of the Indian constitution Dr. B.R. Ambedkar. The end location was deliberately chosen to ‘reassert the commitment of the citizens to the Indian constitution in its 75th year and its values of equality, non-discrimination, dignity, secularism and unity.’ One of the attendees of the march, Chayanika Shah, shared in an Instagram post that people gathered together to spread the message that “we all belong”! That we stand for inclusion, for love, for friendship, for respect”.  
  • On the 9th of June, The Quint published an opinion piece written by Umar Khalid, one of the student activists arrested and detained under the draconian Unlawful Activities Prevention Act (UAPA) in the Delhi Riots case.  In the article, which Khalid wrote from Tihar Jail, Khalid reflects on Dostoevsky’s The House of the Dead, which is a fictional account based on the author’s own experience of imprisonment under the Tsarist regime in 19th century Russia. He reflected on ‘how little has changed when it comes to experiences of imprisonment’ adding how he ‘felt as if he was narrating things and occurrences that I see around myself here at Tihar.’ He added that his own experience of returning to jail after being granted 7 days of interim bail had invoked the feeling that ‘makes one feel like a state somewhere between life and death’, something which Dostoevsky refers to as ‘The Graveyard of the Living in the book.‘ He added reflections on nurturing hope in prison. The article was released shortly before the fifth anniversary of Khalid’s incarceration. He remains incarcerated along with other human rights defenders who, like Khalid, have been accused of being ‘masterminds’ of the 2020 Delhi Riots.  
  • On the 4th of June, the Supreme Court requested a response from the Madhya Pradesh government regarding a petition by two journalists who claimed they were assaulted by police while covering illegal sand mining. The bench, consisting of Justices Sanjay Karol and Satish Chandra Sharma, declined to provide temporary protection from arrest to the journalists who have allegedly been threatened while working in Madhya Pradesh, suggesting seeking protection from the Madhya Pradesh or Delhi High Courts. 

 

Hate Crimes and Hate Speech against Minorities 

  • On the 3rd of June, the Vice President of Jamaat-e-Islami Hind, Malik Motasim Khan, condemned the recent waves of violence against Muslims, Dalits and other minorities. Khan’s comments were made in response to the recent anti-Muslim violence in Aligarh, where four Muslim men were accused of transporting beef and beaten with belts and sticks by an angry mob. Mr. Khan denounced the violence adding, it is representative of “a disturbing pattern of mob lynchings and hate crimes against Muslims, Dalits, and other marginalized groups, often under the guise of cow protection or love jihad”. He also condemned the “climate of impunity” for mob lynchings and the illegal demolitions of Muslim properties, homes, and educational institutions.     
  • In a statement published on the June 23rd, UN experts demanded India immediately end “its practice of arbitrary and punitive demolitions affecting low-income households, minorities and migrants”, which they labelled as ‘an aggravated form of human rights violations.”. The experts, which included the UN Special Rapporteurs on Adequate Housing, Freedom of Religion or Belief, Minority Rights and Human Rights of Migrants, noted that, despite the Indian Supreme Court’s landmark ruling which established safeguards against arbitrary demolitions, cases of so called ‘bulldozer justice’ persist. What’s more, authorities seek to justify these measures by citing vague concerns over national security, and illegal migrants. However, demolitions continue to be undertaken without any inquiry into the veracity of such allegations. The experts added that “India must ensure that urban development is pursued in a manner consistent with both domestic guarantees and international human rights standards.” 
  • On the 26th of June, the Global Torture Index 2025, developed by the World Organisation Against Torture (OMCT), classified India as a “high risk” country for torture and ill-treatment. The factsheet highlights that incidents involve beatings, custodial deaths and extrajudicial killings specifically directed at “marginalised communities such as Dalits, Adivasis, Muslims, LGBTQIA+ individuals and migrant labourers”. Similarly, the report published on the 27th of June by Redress, an international organisation that works for justice for survivors of torture, denounced a systematic pattern of torture “carried out by State authorities with impunity”, particularly against minority communities including Dalits, Adivasis, and religious minorities; and against “civil society dissenters”. 

 

Religious Freedoms and Minority Rights 

  • The Association for Protection of Civil Rights has published data on hate incidents against Muslims in India in the weeks after the Pahalgam Terrorist Attack. In  the two weeks following the attack, the Association registered 184 incidents, including mob assaults, vandalism, hate speech and killings in 19 states, affecting 316 victims. These episodes are part of the wider systematic persecution of minorities and marginalised communities in India, fomented by the incumbent Bharatiya Janata Party. Senior Supreme Court advocate Prashant Bhushan remarked that“BJP politics in India today depends most entirely on fomenting hatred against Muslims and minorities, and on polarizing the country between Hindus and minorities”. This was evident in the aftermath of the attack, when “the focus was shifted to bashing Pakistan and bashing Indian Muslims.” The findings have been echoed by Suchitra Vijayan, Executive Director of The Polis Project, who described the violence against minorities in India as “a state-backed blueprint” affecting in particular BJP-led states, which have increasingly become a “laboratory of violence”. UN Special Rapporteur on Minority Issues, Professor Nicolas Levrat, reiterated the comments when he condemned India’s failure to protect Muslims after the attack.  The Special Rapporteur stressed that India is a party to theInternational Convention on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR) and must therefore guarantee the freedom of religion or belief for all citizens. He added that, given the systematic violence against minorities, “India is not living up to its standards”.    
  • On the night between the 8th and the 9th of June, the discovery of suspected cattle remains from a temple in Dhubri, Assam, led to violent clashes and 38 arrests. The incident took place in the Muslim-majority district in western part of Assam, where Hindus and Muslims pelted stones at each other, causing panic in the city. The arrests took place under the Assam Cattle Preservation Act (which regulates the slaughter, transportation, and sale of beef in Assam) and provisions of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita pertaining to acts intended to outrage religious feelings. Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma ordered the police to arrest “all criminals in Dhubri” and issued night-time “shoot at sight orders”. Nazrul Hoque, local MLA from the All-India United Democratic Front (AIUDF) alleged that the Chief Minister’s directives were disproportionate to the situation on the ground. 
  • On the 11th of June, a coalition of 18 human rights organisations, including the Indian American Muslim Council, Genocide Watch, Hindus for Human Rights and The Polis Project, organised a panel with Professor Nicolas Levrat, the United Nations Special Rapporteur on Minority Issues. According to Mr Levrat, “India very obviously failed to live up to its international obligations to protect Muslims from a wave of hate crimes following the April 22 terror attack in Pahalgam, Kashmir”. Citing 184 anti-Muslim hate incidents across 19 states within six days, Mr Levrat spoke of “incendiary violence” and urged India to uphold its duty under international law to protect religious freedom. 
  • On the 15th of June, tensions erupted in Manipur between Meitei and Kuki-Zo communities over an alleged dispute over farmland. There is no official confirmation on the exact number of victims, but Manipur police deployed additional personnel in the area to restore order. In one of the alleged videos that went viral, members of different communities were seen throwing stones at each other after Meitei farmers attempted to plough a paddy field near a Kuki village. The episode is part of the ongoing ethno-religious conflict between the two groups, which began in May 2023.  
  • On the 30th of June, the government of Maharashtra officially withdrew its decision to make Hindi the compulsory third language in primary schools. The announcement, made by Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis at the State Assembly, came after protests from opposition parties and civil society organizations, which accused the government of deliberately attempting to impose Hindi at the expense of regional languages and cultural identities. The Chief Minister also announced that a new expert committee has been formed to advise the government on the National Education Policy (NEP), which requires schools to teach three Indian languages. In April, the government chose Marathi, English and Hindi as compulsory languages, sparking protests from the opposition and civil society for not taking into consideration linguistic minorities.  

 

Internet and Technology 

  • On the 6th of June, Starlink received a license to launch commercial operations in India. The Department of Telecommunications has previously granted licenses to OneWeb and Reliance Jio, the second of which is owned by Modi-backed oligarch Akesh Ambani’s company Reliance Industries. Elon Musk previously met Prime Minister Modi during Modi’s visit to the US, where they discussed Starlink and the Indian governments’ concerns over the satellite internet constellation’s security issues. Whilst Starlink now has a commercial license, the company cannot start operating in India before obtaining a separate license from India’s space regulator.  

 

Political Parties    

  • On the 1st of June, during his visit to West Bengal, Union Home Minister Amit Shah harshly criticised Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee, accusing her of prioritising appeasement politics over national interest to obtain Muslims’ votes. Speaking to BJP members and to his supporters, Mr Shah also accused Banerjee of “insulting people of this country” by opposing Operation Sindoor in the aftermath of Pahalgam terrorist attack. 
  • On the 2nd of June, the Chhattisgarh Police arrested Brijmohan Singh, a serving Congress leader from the Durg district, and Arun Tiwari, an ex-MLA, for allegedly making “objectionable” remarks about Prime Minister Narendra Modi on social media. Mr. Tiwari was taken into custody under sections section 296 (obscene act) and 352 (intentional insult) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, while Congress leader Brijmohan Singh was arrested under sections 296 (obscene act) and 353 (public mischief). 

Police and authorities 

  • On the 2nd of June, members of the Indian community abroad issued a statement condemning the extrajudicial killings carried out by the security forces in Bastar, Chhattisgarh on the 21st of May. In their statement, organisations including The London Story, InSAF India, India Labour Solidarity and Hindus for Human Rights condemned “in the strongest possible terms, the continued killing of people by state and central forces in Adivasi regions” and described the state’s actions as a “pattern of calculated cruelty to kill its own citizens without any due process.” The killings were part of Operation Kagar, launched by the government of India in April 2025 to make India “Maoist-free” by March 2026. In response to the operation, on the 9th of June, five Indian political parties sent an open letter to PM Modi, urging him to stop the “extrajudicial killings” and the “militaristic approach that treats the Adivasis” in Chhattisgarh “with unmitigated hostility”. 

 

Judiciary 

  • On the 4th of June, the All-India Muslim Personal Law Board (AIMPLB) strongly criticized the Government’s plan to launch a digital platform to register all Waqf properties across India. The ‘UMEED portal’ has been met with strong criticism from Muslim communities, and the AIMPLB argued that it amounts to ‘contempt of court’, as they argue the portal is based on recommendations from the recent Waqf Amendment Bill, which is still being challenged in the Supreme Court.  The Board plans to challenge the latest government initiative in the Supreme Court.  

Business & economy 

  • On the 5th of June, International Solidarity for Academic Freedom in India (InSAF India) and London Mining Network held a dialogue with Rinchin and Prashant Paikray, experts on violations of Adivasi rights in the areas of north Chhattisgarh and Odisha. The panel highlighted how India has enabled Indian and foreign corporations to perpetuate environmental destruction and human rights and Adivasi land rights abuses, justifying it as “national development and climate responsibility”.  

India in the World 

  • On the 7th of May, the Indian government launched Operation Sindoor in response to the Pahalgam Terrorist Attack which killed 26 people including 25 Indian nationals. The Indian Army launched missile strikes targeting terrorist infrastructure in Pakistan and Pakistan-administrated Kashmir which the government believes was responsible for the terrorist attack. In response to India’s strikes, Pakistan launched Operation Bunyan Marsoos on the 10th of May, using drones to strike targets in various states including in Indian administered Kashmir, the Punjab, Gujarat and Rajasthan. The Indian Foreign Secretary, Vikram Misri, accused the Pakistani Army of carrying out drone attacks on Gurudwaras and churches, injuring civilians. After tensions rapidly escalated into a near-nuclear confrontation, India and Pakistan started eight-hour negotiations, mediated by the US, which culminated in a ceasefire.  
  • Despite the ceasefire, the Indus Water Treaty, which ensures 80% of Pakistan’s farms access to water, remains suspended. The Treaty, which was established in 1960, has never been suspended before, even during previous India-Pakistan wars. The suspension of the Treaty means an immediate halt to data sharing, joint oversight and cooperation, which means Pakistan no longer has access to advance, data related to river flows, flood forecasting and drought risks.  
  • On the 13th of May, India expelled a Pakistani official working at the Pakistan High Commission for allegedly being involved in espionage. In response, Pakistan expelled an Indian staff member at the Indian High Commission.  
  • Beginning on the 22nd of May, All Party Delegations began visits to countries across the world, to discuss the Pahalgam Terrorist Attack, India-Pakistan Conflict and India’s ‘zero-tolerance stance on terrorism.’ In May alone, All-Party Delegations met with officials from a variety of countries including Italy, France, the US and Russia, to reaffirm India’s united and resolute stance against terrorism.       
  • On the 6th of May, the Indian and UK governments announced they finalised a UK-India trade agreement. Whilst the British government has called the deal the ‘biggest and most economically significant’ trade agreement the UK has made since Brexit, only a select number of goods have been included. The UK and India agreed to finalise the agreement before the end of 2025, a timeline also set out in EU-India trade negotiations. The UK deal now sets a precedent that finalising an agreement with India in such a short timeframe is a possibility. India Labour Solidarity criticised the agreement, stating that it was ‘a missed chance for justice’ by the British government, which remained silent on workers’ rights, illegal corporate land grabs, ongoing attacks on farmers, Adivasis, religious minorities and marginalised communities.  

 

Civil society, human rights defenders, and journalists 

  • On the 1st of May, the Network of Women in Media India (NWMI) demanded that the Indian government drop criminal cases against Neha Singh Rathore, Madri Kakoti and Shamita Yadav, satirists and political commentators. Rathore and Kakoti were charged with ‘inciting secession, armed rebellion’ for posting videos to their social media accounts which criticised the governments intelligence and administrative failures after the Pahalgam Terrorist Attack. Yadav was accused of sharing ‘anti-Bharat propaganda’ for posting videos which condemned the security lapses of the Union government in the wake of the terrorist attack. NWMI pointed out that the survivors of the attack have raised the same questions and criticisms, and that the charges amount to an ‘authoritarian response to critical and dissenting opinions.’  
  • On UNESCO World Press Freedom Day, Reporters Without Borders (RSF) published their annual Global Press Freedom Index, released by Reporters Without Borders (RSF), classing India’s Press Freedom Situation as “very serious”, the worst classification. India now ranks 151st out of the 180 countries reviewed. The 2025 report criticised the lack of media plurality due to the rise of the so-called ‘Godi media’, which combines BJP propaganda and populism, and the increasing monopolisation of media outlets by Modi-backed oligarchs such as Gautam Adani and Mukesh Ambani. Equally, journalists are increasingly subject to intimidation, arrest under draconian laws such as the UAPA, harassment and doxxing.   
  • On the 9th of May, the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ) condemned the Indian government’s decision to block access to The Wire, an independent news site. The incident was just one example of mass media censorship after the Pahalgam Terrorist Attack and Indian Army’s launch of Operation Sindoor. In response to the widespread censorship, CPJ Asia Program Coordinator Beh Lih Yi remarked ‘Facts must not be the casualty in any conflict’, adding that this was ‘an alarming attempt to stifle critical journalism at a time when independent reporting is more essential than ever.’  
  • On the 18th of May, University professor Ali Khan Mahmudabad was arrested by the Haryana Police for two social media posts he made commenting on the India-Pakistan war. In the posts, Mahmudabad criticised those ‘who are mindlessly advocating for war, but they have never seen one, let alone lived in or visited a conflict zone.’ In the second post, the professor wrote that he was happy to see right wing commentators applaud the Muslim female officer who was one of two women officers delivering daily briefings. He added that ‘they should also demand that the victims of mob lynching, arbitrary demolitions, other who are victims of the BJP’s hate mongering be protected as Indian citizens.’ In response to his posts, he was charged with endangering national sovereignty and promoting enmity between groups. On the 21st of May, Professor Mahmudabad was granted bail by the Supreme Court of India. His arrest has sparked outrage in India; Constitutional Conduct, a group of retired former civil servants, called his arrest ‘outrageous and absurd’, adding that both of his posts were ‘thoughtful and measured’. Mallikarjun Kharge, President of the Congress Party posted on X that the arrest ‘shows how fearful the BJP is of any opinion, disliked by them.’  
  • On the 21st of May, 27 Maoist insurgents, including senior leader Nambala Keshava Rao, were killed by Indian security forces in Chhattisgarh as part of ‘Operation Kagar’, a military campaign aimed at eradicating the Naxalite movement by 2026. The killings came just weeks after Maoists offered conditional peace talks with the government. 54 civil society organisations supported said talks, urged both sides to declare a ceasefire and prioritise the rights and safety of the Indigenous Adivasi community and rural communities who reside in the same area as the Maoists. Security services have long been documented subjecting Adivasi communities, who live on mineral-rich lands, to extrajudicial killings, sexual violence, arbitrary detentions, and enforced disappearances. These abuses are driven by efforts to displace Adivasis from their land in order to extract critical raw materials without the free, prior, informed consent of the indigenous community. Indian diaspora organisations have condemned the recent killings of the Maoists, citing the alleged extra-judicial killings, deliberate incineration of bodies, harassment of grieving families, and the denial of dignity in death as a clear violation of Article 21 of the Indian Constitution, and tantamount to War Crimes. 

 

 Hate Crimes and Hate Speech against Minorities 

  • Following the terrorist attack in Pahalgam, Kashmir, India Hate Lab (IHL) recorded a huge surge in anti-Muslim hate speech across 9 states in India. Between the 22nd of April, when the attack took place, and the 2nd of May, IHL documented 64-in person hate speech events, where Muslims were referred to as ‘green snakes’, ‘piglets’, insects and ‘mad dogs.’ During the rallies, Right-wing Hindu nationalist influencers and religious figures made explicit calls for violence against Muslims, economic boycotts targeting Muslim businesses and the eviction of Muslim tenants. Most of the events were organised by Hindu nationalist groups such as the Vishwa Hindu Parish (VHP) and the Bajrang Dal (a Hindu nationalist militia with close ties to the BJP). 
  • On the 23rd of May, two days after 27 Maoist insurgents were killed in the central state of Chhattisgarh, the BJP Karnataka shared an image with a hate symbol on their X account. The AI-generated image depicted Union Home Minister Amit Shah standing behind a gravestone in a graveyard holding a cauliflower. The gravestone reads ‘Naxalism Rest in Peace’, with Mr. Shah smiling. The cauliflower is a reference to the 1989 Bhagalpur Riots, when over 100 Muslims were killed, buried in a mass grave, and covered with cauliflower saplings to cover up the atrocity. The symbol has been used numerous times to reference mass killings as a ‘solution’. During communal riots, Hindu extremist influencers have posted images of cauliflowers on social media, referencing mass murder as a so called ‘solution’ to the violence. At the time of writing, BJP Karnataka’s post remains on X, with 3.5 million views.  

 

Religious Freedoms and Minority Rights 

  • On the 3rd of May, the Municipal Commissioner’s Court in Shimla, Himachal Pradesh, declared the Sanjauli Mosque illegal and ordered its demolition. The Municipal Corporation Commissioner Bhupendra Kumar Atri stated that the mosque lacked the required approvals and violated building regulations. The decision marks an end to the 15 year case, during which time three floors of the mosque were previously ordered to be dismantled in the aftermath of violent protests in Shimla. The complete demolition of the mosque reflects a broader patter of cultural heritage erasure in India, where Hindu nationalists seek to demolish the religious sites of religious minorities including Christians and Muslims.   
  • On the 4th of May, The Wire reported that the Uttar Pradesh government denied permission for the Jeth Mela fair to be held. The decision means that the centuries old fair, which brings together members of the Hindu and Muslim communities, will not take place. Muslims venerate the 11th century military figure Saiyad Salar Masud Ghazi (Ghazi Mian) as a saint, whilst Hindus pray at his shrine to fulfil their wishes. Authorities stated that they denied permission for the fair in order to uphold law and order. However, police across the state have previously banned festivals and fairs linked to Ghazi Mian, arguing that the events honour an ‘invader’ and ‘murderer’. Furthermore,  the BJP has tried to pit Dalits, lower caste groups and Muslims against each other by heralding the story of Suheldev, a chieftain who defeated Ghazi Mian. The decision to ban the fair has been criticised by members of the opposition including Yasar Shah, Samajwadi Party leader and a former MLA, who called it an attempt to erase the community’s identity.    

 

 Internet and Technology 

  • On the 8th of May, over 8,000 X handles were blocked after the Indian government issued blocking orders to the platform. The executive orders mandated X to restrict access to several accounts within India, including the handle of news organisation Maktoob Media. The requests were part of a wider campaign by the government to censor dissenting voices during the India-Pakistan conflict. In response to the orders,  X commented that they did not agree with the infringement on freedom of expression, but decided to enforce them so that the platform could continue to run in India. The company also added that the government had failed to state which posts violated national law or provide justification for blocking the huge number of accounts.  

 

Political Parties    

  • In the aftermath of the Pahalgam terrorist attack, BJP Rajya Sabha MP Ram Chander Jangra delivered a public declaration which sparked controversy. Referring to the young woman who lost her husband in the attack, Mr Jangra declared she should act as a “warrior woman” and put up a fight against the terrorists. The comment was criticised by the opposition, who accused Mr Jangra and the BJP of being “insensitive”, and BJP leader and Union Minister Manohar Lal Khattar labelled Mr Jandra’s remarks as “wrong”. Days after his first comments, the BJP MP claimed that his comments were “distorted” for political reasons and that he had no intention of insulting the widow. 
  • On the 28th of May, members of the legislative assembly from the National Democratic Alliance met Manipur Governor Ajay Bhalla to discuss the possibility of forming a new government. Manipur- which was governed for decades by the BJP- has been under President’s Rule since February. Now, parties of the National Democratic Alliance claim that 44 MLAs are ready to form a new government. Governor Bhalla declared that he will support a decision which is “in the best interests of the people”.  

 

Police and authorities 

  • On the 15th of May, the United Nations announced an inquiry into credible reports that 40 Rohingya refugees residing in New Delhi were detained and blindfolded, flown to the Andaman Islands, transferred to an Indian naval ship and ultimately forced to swim to an island in Myanmar’s territory. The refugees are believed to have held refugee identification documents. Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in Myanmar, Tom Andrews, stated that he was ‘deeply concerned’ by the reports which could ‘represent a serious violation of the principle of non-refoulement.’ India does not have a comprehensive refugee law and has not signed the Refugee Convention; instead, refugees are treated as illegal migrants. Nonetheless, the Special Rapporteur reminded the Indian government of its international obligations, stating the government must ‘immediately and unequivocally repudiate unconscionable acts against Rohingya refugees.’  
  • On the 25th of May, Anurag Arya, Senior Superintendent of Bareilly Police (SSP) in Uttar Pradesh, announced a 15-day drive to identify illegal Rohingya and Bangladeshi immigrants residing in Bareilly. Teams are targeting makeshift settlements as well as people involved in disputes. They will talk to so called ‘suspected individuals’, verify their identity and if they are Bangladeshi or Rohingya, will be transferred to detention centres where their status will be verified in 30 days.  

 

Judiciary 

  • On the 30th of April, the Supreme Court included the digital access in the fundamental rights of citizens. In a remarkable verdict, the Supreme Court said digital access is a fundamental right under Article 21 – right to life and liberty- and crucial to achieve complete inclusion. Justice R Mahadevan commented the ruling saying that “bridging the digital divide is no longer merely a matter of policy discretion but has become a constitutional imperative to secure a life of dignity, autonomy and equal participation in public life,” ordering to the government and to private entities to ensure that digital services comply with accessibility standards to combat this discrimination. 

 

Business & economy 

  • On the 8th of May, The Wire reported that the Indian Department of Telecommunications (DoT) had sent a letter to Starlink, issuing its approval of the satellite internet providers services. The approval comes after Starlink agreed to meet the Indian governments new national security guidelines, which mandate such providers to ensure their service providers keep Indian data within borders. Providers are also prohibited from linking user connections to overseas facilities or terminals. Initially, the government had also required Starlink to monitor terminals near international borders and suggested the implementation of majority Indian shareholders in satellite communications companies but dropped both requirements after the Musk-owned company expressed reluctance in complying. The recent approval of Starlink by the Indian government comes as The Washington Post reported that the US government had pushed come countries which are facing US tariffs to approve Starlink. 

 

 

  

 

 

 

 

 

 

India in the World
  • U.S. Vice President J.D. Vance, and Second Lady Usha Vance began their 4 day visit to India on the 21st of April. During his visit, Vance met Prime Minister Modi to discuss India-US ties. Both countries are seeking to enhance their cooperation in defence, strategic technologies and energy. The visit comes as the US and India work towards signing a trade agreement.
  • On the 22nd of April, 26 people were killed and 10 injured in a terrorist attack in Pahalgam, Kashmir. 25 of those killed were Indian and 1 was Nepali. Survivors of the attack have stated that the terrorists deliberately targeted Hindu men, asking victims for their  name and religion, before killing them. They also highlighted how local Kashmiris came to their aid during the attack. The Resistance Front (TRF), a terrorist organisation that emerged in the region in 2019, has claimed responsibility for the attack. Since then, tensions between India and Pakistan have escalated, and there has been a huge surge in Islamophobic hate speech online, leading to anti-Muslim rallies and attacks on the Muslim and Kashmiri communities in India. In response to the heightened India-Pakistan tensions, leaders and politicians around the world, including UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres,  called for both countries to defuse tensions.
  • On the 29th of April, Prime Minister Modi congratulated Mark Carney on his election win, with Carney becoming the new Prime Minister of Canada. In his post on X, Modi described Canada and India as “bound by shared democratic values and a steadfast commitment to the rule of law”, and declared he is ready to “strengthen their partnership”. The comments mark the restoration of diplomatic relations between India and Canada, which declined in 2024 due to allegations made by the Canadian government that Indian government officials, including Home Minister Amit Shah, were involved in the assassination of a Sikh separatist in Canada.  The tensions between the two states led to the withdrawal of diplomats in October 2024, however New Delhi and Ottawa are now working to restore bilateral ties, starting with the reinstatement of India’s High Commissioners to Canada.
 
Civil society, human rights defenders, and journalists
  • For the first time since the start of the ethno-religious conflict in Manipur in May 2023, organisations from both sides involved in the conflict met for talks in New Delhi. On the 5th of April, delegates from Meitei and Kuki-Zo organisations met officials of the Ministry of Home Affairs to initiate a dialogue to end the ongoing ethno-religious conflict. Measures proposed to end the conflict comprise an “appeal to their people” to refrain from violence against members of the other community, an appeal to the administration to act against those not cooperating, and a programme to facilitate the return of civilians displaced by the conflict. The two parties collaborated for the drafting of a six-point document which was ultimately not signed by the Kuki-Zo side.
  • On the 7th of April, Mr. Neingulo Krome, Secretary General of the Naga Peoples Movement for Human Rights, was prevented from boarding an international flight to Kathmandu. As a human rights defender and advocate for the protection of Indigenous Peoples in Asia, Mr. Krome has been banned by the Government of India from travelling abroad. The Unrepresented Nations and Peoples Organization (UNPO) condemned the episode, calling it an example of the “marked intensification of legal and administrative measures affecting non-governmental organizations, community leaders, and human rights defenders” implemented by the Indian Government in recent years. Concerns were also expressed by the Asia Indigenous People’s Pact (AIPP), which argued that the travel restriction had no “valid explanation or legal justification”.
  • The Sub-Committee on Accreditation (SCA) of the Global Alliance of National Human Rights Institutions (GANHRI), has recommended downgrading India’s National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) from ‘A’ to ‘B’ status. The decision marks the first time the NHRC, which is responsible for the promotion and protection of human rights in India, faces a downgrade. The SCA report noted that the institution has been under review since 2023, with accreditation deferred for two consecutive years. The downgrade will take effect in a year’s time, meaning the body could retain it’s a status if it is able to demonstrate compliance with the Paris Principles. During GANHRI’s 45th session held in March, the SCA reiterated several concerns it has with the NHRC, including the involvement of police in human rights violation, potentially creating a conflict of interest, the lack of transparency in the selection process for committee members and the lack of pluralism in the committee. The SCA has also criticised the NHRC for failing to address the “shrinking civic space and increased instances of targeting human rights defenders, journalists and perceived critics”. The NHRC’s downgrade to category ‘B’ means the institution is now  only “partially compliant with the Paris Principles”  The  NHRC  responded that the SCA’s statements are “misplaced” and “far from reality”.
Hate Crimes and Hate Speech against Minorities
  • Speaking at an online event on the 4th of April, Supreme Court Justice A S Oka declared that most of the hate speech cases presented to the Supreme Court are against “religious minorities or oppressed castes which are in the minority”. According to the Judge, most instances of hate speech are politically motivated, as part of an effort to incite violence and harassment against religious minorities in India. Both Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Home Minister Amit Shah have regularly used hate speech to dehumanise religious minorities and polarise Indian society, including during the 2024 elections.
  • Following the terrorist attack in Pahalgam, Kashmir, India Hate Lab (IHL) has recorded a huge surge in anti-Muslim hate speech across 9 states in India. Between the 22nd of April, when the attack took place, and the 2nd of May, IHL documented 64-in person hate speech events, where Muslims were referred to as ‘green snakes’, ‘piglets’, insects and ‘mad dogs.’ During the rallies, Right-wing Hindu nationalist influencers and religious figures made explicit calls for violence against Muslims, economic boycotts targeting Muslim businesses and the eviction of Muslim tenants. Most of the events were organised by Hindu nationalist groups such as the Vishwa Hindu Parish (VHP) and the Bajrang Dal (a Hindu nationalist militia with close ties to the BJP).
  • Similarly, in the aftermath of the terrorist attack, Hindutva pages, influencers, journalists and politicians made explicit calls for genocidal violence against Indian Muslims and Kashmiris on social media. Platforms such as X and Facebook have become hotbeds for anti-Muslim and anti-Kashmiri hate speech, incitement to violence and disinformation. The online content has real world ramifications, as on the 24th of April, the Jammu and Kashmir Students Association reported that Kashmiris students across the country were allegedly asked to leave their rented apartments. Many students were called “terrorists” and harassed and attacked in Himachal Pradesh. Social media platforms have failed to implement their platform content moderations policies, making them complicit in the avalanche of violent content and subsequent attacks on minority communities.
 
Religious Freedoms and Minority Rights
  • On the 2nd of April, the All India Muslim Personal Law Board (AIMPLB) called on secular parties and BJP allies to reject the Waqf Amendment Bill in Parliament, arguing that it grants ‘sweeping and arbitrary powers to the government’ and cautioning that its approval will lead to nationwide protests. The Waqf Amendment Bill introduces changes to the system of governing Waqfs. Waqfs are donations made by Muslims for the benefit of the community, Mosques, schools, orphanages and graveyards. The AIMPLB has warned that the new provisions will allow the government more control over Waqf properties, calling the Bill unconstitutional for infringing on the rights of Indian Muslims. Prime Minister Modi argued that the Bill is a “watershed moment” for accountability and wrote that it “will boost transparency” in property regulations. On the 4th of April, the Bill was approved by the Lok Sabha and sent to India’s President Murmu for her final approval. Meanwhile, protests erupted across India with people demanding the withdrawal of the Bill.
  • On the 8th of April, nine people were taken into police custody and thirteen into judicial custody after protests against the Waqf Amendment erupted in Murshidabad, West Bengal. The violence escalated when 100 protestors clashed with police. Officials reported that the protestors torched police vehicles and attacked police personnel, and that tear gas was used to disperse the crowd. Immediately after the wave of violence, the District Magistrate of Murshidabad passed a 48-hour order to prohibit assemblies of five or more people to prevent similar episodes, and the West Bengal Home Secretary imposed a 48-hour internet shutdown. Following the protests, West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee reassured minority populations that she would “protect them and their properties”. Meanwhile, the president of the BJP West Bengal, Sukanta Majumdar, demanded Banerjee’s resignation condemning her for “playing the appeasement game”.
  • In the week following the Pahalgam terrorist attack, authorities and security forces in Jammu and Kashmir detained more than 1,500 people for questioning, and demolished properties allegedly belonging to the families of militants in the state.  Whilst leaders in the state have supported action against militants, they have also cautioned the government to distinguish between the terrorist insurgents and civilians in the valley. Kashmiris living in other states have been subjected to harassment and violence in the aftermath of the attack, with killings of Kashmiri Muslims reported in Uttar Pradesh and Karnataka. Human rights defenders and activists are warning that Hindutva groups are carrying out a “a demonization campaign”. Meenakshi Ganguly, the deputy Asia director at Human Rights Watch, urged that the attack ‘should not become a pretext to engage in reprisals and attacks on minorities, including arbitrary arrests or summary punishments.’
Internet and Technology
  • On the 10th of April, MPs from the opposition INDIA bloc sent a joint letter, signed by 120 parliamentarians, to the Union Minister for Information Technology, Ashwini Vaishnaw, demanding the repeal of Section 44(3) of the Digital Personal Data Protection Act (DPDPA). The provision undermines people’s capacity to obtain critical information under the Right To Information (RTI) Act, as it seeks to exempt all personal information from RTI disclosures. Previously, personal information could be withheld only if it was unrelated to public activities or interests, or if its disclosure would constitute an unwarranted invasion of privacy. However, the amendment removes a crucial proviso in Section 8(1), which stated that information which could not be denied to state or union legislature could also not be denied to people. In the letter, the members argued that the DPDPA provision has a ‘draconian impact’ on citizen’s rights and freedom of the press.
  • On the 18th of April, Prime Minister Modi had a telephone conversation with tech billionaire and X-owner Elon Musk to discuss a potential collaboration between India and the US on “technology and innovation”. Modi and Musk’s conversation, which began in Washington D.C earlier this year, comes as India is working to secure a bilateral trade agreement with the US to minimize the effects of the Trump administrations’ tariffs. Describing the interaction with Musk, Modi wrote in an X post that “India remains committed to advancing our partnerships with the US”. Musk, who remains close to the Trump Administration as the head of the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), is also seeking to make inroads in India, having previously signed a Starlink deal with two of the biggest Indian telecommunications firms in March. Musk-owned Tesla is also seeking to expand to India.
  • On the 30th of April, the Supreme Court of India found that ‘the right to digital access emerges as an indistinctive component of the right to life and liberty.’ The decision came in response to cases brought by a group of acid attack survivors and a visually impaired person, who asserted that disabled people find it extremely difficult to complete digital processes, such as the Know Your Customer process. The two-justice bench found that the state is obligated to ‘provide an inclusive digital ecosystem to the marginalised, vulnerable, disabled, and historically excluded sections of society.’ They also issued 20 directions to the government to make Know Your Customer processes more accessible.  The decision comes as more and more services are digitised in India, but digital ecosystems and digital public infrastructure remains inaccessible to many, including rural populations who do not have adequate internet access.
Political Parties 
  • Earlier last month, Akhilesh Yadav, leader of Samajwadi Party- the secular socialist party- harshly criticized the BJP-led Uttar Pradesh government for fostering  an “underground army” that ‘is activated from time to time to defame and insult people.” Speaking at a press conference, Yadav accused the BJP of fomenting hostilities between communities and of protecting corrupt officials.
  • A dispute between the JMM (Jharkhand Liberation Front) and the BJP erupted when Jharkhand minister Hafizul Hassan declared that he prioritises Shariat over the Indian Constitution. Speaking at the protests against the Waqf amendment on the 13th of April, Hassan said that a Muslim “keeps the Quran in his heart and the Constitution in his hand” and accused the BJP of targeting Muslims “to send them to jail”. The BJP responded by calling his words “a blatant insult to Indian democracy”, adding “for those who have Sharia in their hearts, the doors to Pakistan and Bangladesh are open.” Hassan later clarified his words, saying that as a Minister he ‘believes in the Constitution and function sin accordance. Shariat too has its own place.”
  • On the 16th of April 2025, the All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (AIADMK) general secretary and leader of the Opposition Edappadi K. Palaniswami declared there would be no coalition government in case of an AIADMK- BJP alliance victory in the 2026 Assembly elections. The announcement came one week after the two parties strengthened their electoral ties, with Union Home Minister Amit Shah declaring that a “coalition government” would be formed after the elections. The AIADMK-BJP alliance will run under the leadership of AIADMK general secretary Palaniswami against the incumbent Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DKM) government. However, speaking to media days after the announcement,  Palaniswami specified that no coalition government will be formed in case of AIADMK’s victory and argued that Minister Shah did not speak of “power sharing in the State”.  He also stated that the AIADMK is expecting other parties to join the coalition before next years’ elections.
  • On the 17th of April, the Indian government informed the Supreme Court that the Central Forensic Science Laboratory (CFSL) had completed the forensic report on the authenticity of audio recordings which allege former Manipur Chief Minister N. Biren Singh played a role in the ethno-religious conflict in Manipur.  The audio clips, which were released in August 2024, allegedly recorded Mr. Singh declaring in private that he had “initiated the war against the Kuki-Zo people to save Meitei civilization”. In the tape, Mr. Singh also allegedly said that Meitei groups were allowed to loot arms and ammunition from the Manipur state government. Upon the release of the tape, Mr. Singh denied the authenticity of the recording, however, the Kuki Organisation for Human Rights Trust (KOHUR) have argued that the tape proves the ‘complicity and involvement of the State machinery’ in the violence against the Kuki-Zo community.  The forensic report will be presented during the Supreme Court’s hearings starting in May.
  • In the aftermath of the Pahalgam Terrorist Attack, Kashmir Chief Minister Omar Abdullah described himself as “shocked beyond belief”, and the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) president Mehbooba Mufti called for “an investigation to bring the perpetrators to justice and examine potential security lapses”. People’s Conference leader Sajad Lone condemned the “cowardly act aimed at destabilising Kashmir’s tourism industry and economy.” On his post on X, PM Modi wrote that he will ensure that those responsible of the attacks will “not be spared” and that his “fight against terrorism is unshakable and it will get even stronger”.
Police and authorities
  • On the 29th of April, the Supreme Court strongly condemned the Madhya Pradesh government for protecting the policemen involved in the murder of Deva Pardhi, a 24-year-old man from the Pardhi tribe. Deva and his uncle were allegedly arrested by police during his Haldi ceremony, a pre-wedding Hindu ceremony. Both were severely tortured by the police whilst in custody. Despite medical reports identifying police brutality and violence as Deva’s cause of death, the police officers identified as responsible remain free with no charges filed against them. Deva’s mother filed a petition to the Supreme Court, which called the state’s behaviour  “inhumane”. This killing is part of widespread and systematic abuses against the Pardhi community; nearly every family in the community has experienced human rights violations and police brutality.
  • A report published in early April by the NGO Common Cause and Lokniti Programme of the Centre for the Study of Developing Societies (CSDS) found that Indian law enforcement authorities act with prejudice and societal bias. The report, titled ‘The Status of Policing in India Report (SPIR) 2025’, is based on a survey of members of the Indian Police Service from over 17 States. The survey found that members of law enforcement act with prejudice on caste, religion and political affiliation and that there is a lack of compliance towards arrest procedures in the Indian state (with 70% of Karnataka’s and 94% of Kerala’s police officials acknowledging that they “rarely follow prescribed procedures”). Among other worrying findings, more than a quarter of interviewed police personnel declared to condone mob violence in cases of reprisal- legitimising vigilantism. Gujarati police expressed the highest prejudice against Dalits and Adivasis- who they believed were “naturally inclined to commit crimes”- and more than 60% of police in New Delhi defined Muslims as “naturally inclined towards crime”. Commenting on the report, Mihir Desai, vice president of People’s Union for Civil Liberties, told Frontline that there is a need for a reform in the police sector to hold the police accountable.
Judiciary
  • On the 7th of April, the Supreme Court of India reprimanded the Uttar Pradesh Police for converting civil  disputes into criminal cases, describing the practice as a ‘complete breakdown of the rule of law.’ In the case the Court presided over, the police had converted a civil case over a monetary transaction into a criminal case in order for the money to be recovered. The Court warned the Uttar Pradesh Police that they will be sanctioned if the police continue this practice. The Court also asked the Director of Police to sign an affidavit on the measures taken to comply with the Court’s direction.
  • On the 17th of April, a three-judge bench comprising of Chief Justice of India Sanjiv Khanna, Justice Sanjay Kumar and Justice KV Viswanathan passed an interim order on the constitutionality of the Waqf (Amendment) Act, 2025. The interim order focuses on two aspects of the Amendment, specifically the provisions which permit to nominate non-Muslims members to the Waqf Council and the expropriations of Waqf properties. Thanks to the interim measures, no elected members will be replaced by non-Muslims and no waqf properties will be expropriated. The interim measures will stay in place until the next hearing, scheduled for the 5th of May 2025.

 

 

 

India in the World 

  • On the 16th of March India and New Zealand resumed free trade negotiations after a 10-year break, with talks set to begin this month. The decision was made during New Zealand Prime Minister Christopher Luxon’s visit to New Delhi, where he met Prime Minister Modi. Both countries also signed a defence pact to boost maritime security and discussed digital trade cooperation. Previous trade negotiations between the two countries stalled over India’s protectionist dairy sector. The renewed talks come as India expands global trade ties. 
  • On the 21st of March, India expressed hope for rebuilding ties with Canada ‘based on mutual trust and sensitivity’. The statement was made after Mark Carney replaced Justin Trudeau as Prime Minister of Canada. Relations between the two countries declined in October 2024, when Prime Minister Trudeau accused Indian agents of potentially being involved in the assassination of Sikh separatist Hardeep Singh Nijjar in Canada. Both countries subsequently expelled diplomats. Recently, Canadian intelligence chief Daniel Rogers visited India, signalling efforts to mend ties. Both nations reportedly see Trudeau’s exit as a chance for a fresh start. 
  • On the 28th of March, the Kremlin confirmed that President Vladimir Putin has accepted Prime Minister Modi’s invitation to visit India later this year. The announcement was made in Moscow by Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov during the “Russia and India: Together Towards a New Bilateral Agenda” conference. The visit, which has been met with surprise in diplomatic circles in India and internationally, will be Putin’s first trip to India since Russia’s illegal invasion of Ukraine in 2022, and the ICC issued an arrest warrant for Putin for alleged war crimes. In July 2024, both countries engaged in bilaterial talks where they discussed developing “balanced and sustainable bilateral trade in the long term” with increased Indian exports to Russia, industrial cooperation and investment partnerships. Putin’s visit is expected to coincide with an Indo-Russian Strategic Partnership.   

Civil society, human rights defenders, and journalists 

  • On the 4th of March, human rights activist Khalid Saifi, who was jailed for five years in the 2020 Delhi Riots conspiracy case, urged the Delhi High Court to grant him bail. Saifi, who co-founded United Against Hate, remains incarcerated under the draconian Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA). His lawyer argued that there is no substantial evidence linking him to the Riots, and joining a protest is not grounds for invoking the UAPA against him. He was ultimately granted 6 hours of parole in order to visit his family for Iftar on the 27th of March.  12 of the 18 activists accused of being part of the Delhi Riots ‘main conspiracy’ remain incarcerated under the UAPA. 
  •  On the 21st of March, award winning journalist Irfan Mehraj marked two years in jail under the draconian UAPA. Mehraj was arrested by the National Investigation Agency in March 2023 over alleged links to ‘NGO terror funding’. The Journalist Federation Kashmir (JFK) stressed that press freedom is vital for democracy and urged authorities to ensure journalists can work without fear. The organisation also called for his immediate release, condemning his prolonged detention. 
  • On the 25th of March, Dilwar Hussain Mozaumdar, a journalist covering a protest outside a bank in Assam, was called to report to a police station and subsequently arrested. The outlet Mozaumdar works for has repeatedly reported on financial issues at the bank where the protest was held. Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma is a director of the bank. The Committee to Protect Journalists called the arrest ‘a blatant attempt to intimidate and silence independent journalism’ and demanded his immediate release.  

 Hate Crimes and Hate Speech against Minorities 

  • On the 18thof March, a 13-year-old Dalit girl was allegedly killed by a son of former district president of LJP-R, a party in alliance with the BJP. According to the girl’s father, she was taking part in Holi celebrations with her cousin, when two men started shouting casteist comments and crashed into the girls, killing one of them. The event has caused public outrage. Ved Prakash, a member of the People’s Union for Civil Liberties (PUCL) Bihar, remarked that the incident is “shocking”, especially as police have still failed to make any arrests.  

Religious Freedoms and Minority Rights 

  • A violent clash broke out in Nagpur (Maharashtra state) when Hindutva groups reportedly demanded the removal of Mughal emperor Aurangzeb’s tomb in mid-March. During the clashes, stones were thrown, and vehicles were set ablaze, with an effigy of Aurangzeb allegedly burnt by Hindu extremsists including members of the VHP and Bajrang Dal. Muslim groups protested against the violence and have argued that the police sided with the Hindu right-wing extremists. The case is the latest example of the systematic destruction of non-Hindu cultural heritage in India.   
  • On the 6th of March, a Police Officer in Uttar Pradesh sparked outrage after saying ‘If Muslims cannot accept being coloured during Holi, they should stay at home.’ The Hindu religious festival fell on a Friday during Ramadan this year, meaning many Muslims did not wish to have colours thrown on them as they were visiting the mosque to pray. Despite the significance of the day for both communities, the police officer added that ‘If people of the Muslim community feel that the colours of Holi will corrupt your religion, then do not step out of the house that day.’ On the 9th of March, Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath defended the officers’ remarks, saying ‘he spoke the truth and people should accept it’. Days later, on the 15th of March, a Muslim man who objected to having Holi colours thrown on him, was beaten to death by a Hindu mob in Uttar Pradesh. His death has sparked tensions in the area, prompting a heavy police presence and protests demanding justice. 
  • On the 8th of March, the Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister announced plans to introduce the death penalty for those convicted of forced conversions. His statement comes amid rising rhetoric around “love jihad,” a conspiracy theory used by Hindu nationalist groups to allege Muslim men are coercing Hindu women into conversion through marriage. The proposal has sparked criticism from the Opposition; Congress leaders questioned the definition of forced conversion and accused the government of failing to protect women victims of rape in the state.  
  • On the 11th of March, the Immigration and Foreigners Bill was introduced by Union Minister Nityanand Rai. The bill allows authorities to deny entry or expel foreigners deemed a threat to national security, with no option for appeal. It also mandates strict penalties for visa violations and requires universities and carriers to report foreign nationals. The Congress Party warned that it grants the government unchecked powers to bar foreigners, including dissenters, and lacks an appeal process, violating Article 14 of the Indian Constitution. 
  • On the 17th of March, the All-India Muslim Personal Law Board (AIMPLB) held a protest in Delhi, against the Waqf Amendment Bill, which it claims is an unconstitutional attack on Muslim religious rights. A waqf is a charitable or religious donation which Muslims can make to benefit the community. Properties donated as a waqf cannot be used for another purpose or sold. Waqf donations hold significant cultural value to the Muslim community in India, as they comprise mosques, Muslim schools, graveyards and orphanages. Under the Bill, the government will have more control in regulating waqf properties and adjudicating disputes. The AIMPLB have accused the government of targeting Waqf properties, whilst temple properties remain untouched. The political opposition has also accused the BJP of ignoring the myriad of dissenting voices that have challenged the bill, calling the suppression of these voices ‘undemocratic.’     

 

Internet and Technology 

  • On the 5th of March, X (formerly Twitter) filed a lawsuit against the Indian government, accusing the government of unlawfully censoring content online. In the suit filed in the Karnataka High Court, X accused the Indian government of using ‘an impermissible parallel mechanism’ to block online content and enable government and ministry officials to remove content whilst bypassing a judiciary process set out in the Information Technology Act. The new mechanism, set out in Section 79(3)(b) of the Act enables officials to remove online content by simply sending a notice via the ‘Sahyog’ portal, without judicial review. Apar Gupta, co-founder of the Internet Freedom Foundation stated that ‘through the parallel censorship mechanism, the government had taken an illegal step. There is merit to the claim being made by X in this instance.’  The government responded to X ’s accusations saying that the decision is necessary to stop harmful online content. 
  • In March, X AI bot Grok sparked controversy when it responded to questions using misogynistic Hindi insults. As more users engaged with the bot, they found that it is more critical of incumbent BJP Prime Minister Modi than other opposition leaders, with the AI tool stating that Congress Party leader Rahul Gandhi is more honest than the Prime Minister. In response to these remarks, the Information and Technology Ministry has contacted X and is looking into why the bot used abusive language.  

 Political Parties   

  • On the 7th of March, tensions erupted in the Rajasthan Assembly when Gopal Sharma, a BJP member of the Legislative Assembly, repeatedly addressed Rafeek Khan, the opposition’s chief whip, as “Pakistani”. Sharma’s comments were met with outrage; leader of Opposition Tika Ram Jully called Sharma’s comment “intolerable and condemnable” and Rajasthan Congress president Govind Singh Dotasra declared that the remarks are part of the BJP’s “feelings of hatred and violence” against the opposition.   
  • In West Bengal, BJP politician Suvendu Adhikari made an Islamophobic speech against a Muslim Member of the Legislative Assembly. Adhikiri said: “We will defeat Speaker Biman Banerjee and Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee. After the BJP assumes power […] [we will] throw them out of the House”. In response to the remarks, the incumbent Trinamool Congress (TMC) asked Adhikari to withdraw his comments, but BJP legislators defended the politician. Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee accused Adhikari of using Hinduism “to deny fundamental rights of Muslims” and stated that his words were an attempt to win the BJP’s favour in the hope of being appointed state president. Adhikari called Banerjee “anti-Hindu” and blamed her for not respecting Hindu traditions.  
  • On the 17th of March, BJP politician Asha Nautiyal asked for restrictions on the access of non-Hindus to Kedarnath, the temple dedicated to Lord Shiva. Nautiyal stated that ‘Pilgrims should return from Char Dham [four significant Hindu-pilgrimage sites] with the same faith with which they arrive.’ In response to her remarks, Congress state vice president Suryakant Dhasmana accused Nautiyal of repeatedly targeting religious minorities to create communal divisions and distract people from economic issues such as rising unemployment. The BJP has backed Nautiyal, stating that her words represent the BJP’s vision.   
  • Tamil Nadu Chief Minister MK Stalin has declared that his state will not implement the National Education Policy (NEP) introduced by the central government in 2020. The NEP, mandates three languages to be taught in schools, two of which must be “native to India”. The Chief Minister is against the policy as it will impose Hindi- widely spoken in the North- as a mandatory language in Tamil Nadu. Many southern states like Tamil Nadu see this policy as another example of the central government’s preference for Hindi over other languages, such as Tamil. After Stalin’s announcement, a debate exploded in India’s Parliament, where federal Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan defined Stalin’s party- the Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam- as “undemocratic” for its attempts to “raise language barriers”.  

 

Police and authorities 

  • On the 6th of March, the Punjab Police detained hundreds of farmers on their way to Chandigarh for a protest organized by the Samyukta Kisan Morcha (SKM), a coalition of over forty Indian farmers’ unions. The farmers, who were supposed to start a one-week protest to demand a legal guarantee for minimum price support for basmati rice, potatoes, maize and other crops, were faced by barricades and heavy security measures put in place by the police. According to The Indian Express, several SKM leaders were arrested and detained. In response, protesters burnt effigies of the Aam Aadmi Party led government and the Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann.  
  • In Madhya Pradesh, celebrations after India’s victory against New Zealand in the Champions Trophy erupted into communal violence. On the 9th of March, a Hindu mob gathered in the main square of the city of Mhow, throwing stones at residents and torching vehicles and shops. The police have only investigated allegations against Muslims and have failed to take action against the rioters. After investigations, 12 Muslims were arrested. The inaction of police against Hindu members of the mob sparked a wave of protest among residents, who have complained about police bias.  
  • On the 17th of March, six Muslim students were arrested by the Uttar Pradesh police following a demonstration outside IIMT University in Meerut. The students were part of a larger student protest which demanded the release of a Muslim student who was sent to jail for allegedly sharing a video of namaz (Muslim prayers) being offered on campus. The protesting students have accused the Police of initially agreeing to talks at the police station, only to then detain them once they arrived.  

 

Judiciary 

  • A report published in early March by the International Commission of Jurists (ICJ) denounced a decline in the Indian judiciary’s independence. The ICJ condemned the lack of transparent procedures for the selection of judges, enabling appointments based on ‘improper means and motive’. The ICJ criticised the ‘insular and ineffective’ judicial accountability mechanisms, which make ‘real accountability near impossible.’ The report also highlighted that only 13% of women judges are appointed in the High and Supreme Court, and the judiciary has disproportionately comprised of judges from the Hindu community. The ICJ recommends that the government, with Supreme Court approval, establishes a Judicial Council responsible for judge selection, passes a binding code of judicial conduct to ensure accountability, and calls for greater transparency in case allocation, ensuring judges’ impartiality. 
  • A coalition of thirty-four unions, human rights organisations, and political parties appealed to the Bombay High Court to stop a resolution passed in February in the Maharashtra’s Ahilyanagar district. The resolution forbids Muslim sellers to sell their products and to set up stalls in the annual Shri Kanifnath Yatra, a month-long Hindu festival beginning on Holi (March 14). Members of the coalition called the resolution “arbitrary,” and “discriminatory as it damages Muslim traders.” The Bombay High Court subsequently banned the resolution until April 2025, stating that “the right to work, equality, and protection from discrimination are fundamental rights of all citizens under the Indian Constitution, irrespective of the community or religion they belong to”.   
  • On the 23rd of March, 5 Supreme Court and High Court judges visited Manipur, in an effort to push for peace in the state. During their visit, the judges visited relief camps where they spoke with both Meiteis and Kukis who had been displaced due to the ongoing ethno-religious conflict. The judges expressed hope that there is a constitutional solution to the conflict.

Business & economy 

  • On the 8th of March, while the world celebrated International Women’s Day, Kerala’s Accredited Social Healthcare Activists (ASHAs) marked the 26th day of their protests for fair wages and job recognition. Despite their crucial role in healthcare, especially during COVID-19, Kerala’s largest women’s workforce remains overworked and underpaid. The state refuses to negotiate, calling the protests unnecessary and blaming lack of Union funds. Protests in other states have led to wage hikes, but Kerala’s ASHAs continue their fight for justice. 

 

 

 

India in the World 

  • On the 12th of February, the U.S. deported 104 undocumented Indian migrants, including women and children, as part of President Trump’s immigration policy. Visuals of detainees in chains during the 40-hour flight to Amritsar have sparked outrage in India. Opposition leaders protested outside parliament, questioning Modi’s close ties with Trump. Despite the U.S government’s promises on humane treatment, reports indicate that some women and children were allegedly restrained throughout the flight. While the Indian government insists it is working to ensure dignified treatment, critics argue it has failed to protect its citizens from degrading deportation practices. The next day Modi met Trump at the White House, announcing the US and India will strengthen ties on trade and security. They agreed to double bilateral trade by 2030 and vowed to fight terrorism together.
  • From the 12th to the 14th of February, Prime Minister Narendra Modi visited Paris to co-chair the AI Action Summit with French President Emmanuel Macron. At the Summit, Prime Minister Modi called for collective global efforts on AI governance standards. He also announced India will hold the next Summit at the end of this year. During the visit, Modi held bilateral talks with Macron, reaffirming his commitment to the India-France partnership, signing several cooperation agreements in defence, nuclear energy and space. They also launched an India-France AI Roadmap.
  • On the 15th of February, Indian External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar met Ukrainian Foreign Minister Andrii Sybiha  at the Munich Security Conference to reportedly discuss efforts towards resolving Russia’s ongoing illegal War of Aggression in Ukraine. The meeting came the day after Modi reiterated his position on Russia’s illegal War, stating ‘we are on a side, and that is peace.’ Modi also reaffirmed his view that the two sides must meet at the negotiating table.
  • On the 24th of February, India and the UK restarted free trade talks after nearly a year. UK Business Secretary Jonathan Reynolds met Indian Commerce Minister Piyush Goyal in New Delhi, calling the deal a “top priority.” Negotiations have been ongoing since 2022, but no agreement has been reached. India reportedly wants easier work and study visas, while the UK is pushing for better access to its exports.
  • On the 28th of February, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen, together with the rest of European Commissioners, visited India. Von der Leyen announced that she had agreed with Prime Minister Modi to finalise a Free Trade Agreement by the end of the year. Additionally, the EU and India will develop their security and defence, and connectivity ties, with India connecting the EU to the Indo-Pacific region. The EU and India have been locked in trade negotiations for 16 years due to the Indian Government’s refusal to comply with EU sustainability obligations including the European Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism (CBAM), which is a tariff on carbon intensive products like steel. Von der Leyen’s unexpected announcement about finalising a trade deal soon is concerning for civil society who seek to ensure the European Commission puts human rights at the heart of its relationship with India.  

 

Civil society, human rights defenders, and journalists 

  • On the 1st of February, Zakia Jafri, a key figure in the fight for justice after the 2002 Gujarat Riots, passed away at 86, in Ahmedabad, Gujarat. Jafri was the wife of former Congress MP Ehsan Jafri, who was one of the 1,000 people killed during the anti-Muslim pogrom. Zakia spent decades seeking accountability for the riots and filed a petition to hold then Chief Minister of Gujarat Narendra Modi and other officials responsible for their role in the riots. Her case went to the Supreme Court of India, which ultimately dismissed her plea in 2022. Despite legal setbacks, Jafri worked to ensure the riots and victims were not forgotten. She will be remembered as a relentless advocate for justice.  

 

Hate Crimes and Hate Speech against Minorities 

  • On the 2nd of February former Miss India, Ishika Taneja, sparked outrage for an islamophobic speech she made at a religious event. Taneja called for Hindu unity in India, stating that a ‘pinch of vermillion’, the saffron colour associated the Hindu far-right extremist BJP, ‘saves us from the halala, triple talaq and love jihad.’ Taneja made the speech in front of prominent Hindu priests and BJP leader and former actress Hema Malini. Her Islamophobic rhetoric and explicit reference to the conspiracy theory ‘Love Jihad’, which falsely claims Muslim men lure Hindu women into marriage and forcibly convert them, led to widespread criticism of the widely shared video. 
  • A Muslim student, Rezaul Islam Mondal, was allegedly assaulted by a group of 10-12 Hindutva men on a train in West Bengal, who beat him, pulled his beard, and accused him of being a “Bangladeshi.” The attack reportedly lasted for an hour, despite Mondal insisting he was Indian. His friend’s attempt to record the assault was met with threats. Mondal later filed a complaint, which led to an investigation. 
  • On the 14th of February, a Dalit student was brutally assaulted by three upper-caste Hindu men in Tamil Nadu. The attackers allegedly shouted caste slurs before attacking him while he was returning home. Villagers rushed him to a hospital, where he is receiving treatment. The attack is representative of the persecution Dalits continue to face in India.  
  • Hindutva influencer Aadesh Soni has reportedly called for violent attacks on Christians in Chhattisgarh’s Bishrampur, Ganeshpur, and Jhanakpur villages. In a disturbing social media post, Soni allegedly urged his followers to kill Christians, violate their women, and destroy their homes, accusing them of “brainwashing children” through conversion. He also set a date for the attack claiming support from local authorities.  

 

Religious Freedoms and Minority Rights 

  • On the 22nd of February, a village in Maharashtra’s Ahmednagar district passed a controversial resolution banning Muslim traders from the Kanifnath Yatra, a 700-year-old religious festival held at the Kanifnath shrine. The festival, which has historically welcomed traders from all communities, is now being reshaped by Hindutva groups as a Hindu-only event. Legal experts and rights groups have condemned the ban as unconstitutional, arguing it violates fundamental rights. The district administration has launched an investigation, but right-wing leaders continue to defend the decision. Muslim traders, many of whom have been part of the festival for decades, are preparing to challenge the ban in court, calling it an attack on their livelihoods. 
  • Jamia Millia Islamia University is facing criticism for allegedly failing to follow its 50% reservation policy for Muslim students in PhD admissions for 2024-25. The university is required to reserve 30% of seats for Muslims, 10% for Muslim women, and 10% for Muslim from lower castes, but several departments reportedly ignored these quotas. The controversy began after Vice-Chancellor Mazhar Asif changed the university’s policy language, making minority reservations optional instead of mandatory. Critics say this was a deliberate attempt to reduce Muslim representation and weaken JMI’s minority status. A legal challenge has been filed in the Delhi High Court, demanding the university restore the reservations and follow its own rules. 
  • On the 22nd of February in Madhya Pradesh, an interfaith couple was allegedly assaulted by lawyers inside a district court while registering their marriage. The attack began after the woman, wearing a burqa, revealed her Hindu name. The man was told to confirm his religious identity and upon doing so the lawyers accused him of “love jihad” and allegedly beat him. More lawyers reportedly joined in, escalating the violence. A case has been filed, but no arrests have been made.  
  • On the 24th of February, authorities in Malvan, Maharashtra, demolished a Muslim man’s scrap shop after locals accused him of shouting “Pakistan Zindabad” during an India-Pakistan match. The man and another person were detained and handed to police. The demolition reportedly followed pressure from Hindutva groups and BJP leader Nilesh Rane, who afterwards praised the demolition on social media. The demolition comes months after the Supreme Court of India ruled that such extrajudicial demolitions were illegal, calling them ‘highhanded and arbitrary actions.’   

 

Internet and Technology 

  • PM Narendra Modi met SpaceX CEO Elon Musk in Washington on the 13th of February, discussing opportunities in space, mobility, artificial intelligence, and governance. Musk stated that the recently appointed head of the U.S. Department of Government Efficiency has been exploring collaboration between Indian and U.S. tech sectors.  
  • Meta has reportedly removed multiple accounts and pages linked to BJP legislator T Raja Singh after an investigation by India Hate Lab exposed his continued use of social media to spread anti-Muslim hate speech despite an official ban. Singh had been banned under Meta’s Dangerous Individuals and Organisations (DOI) policy, yet his supporters allegedly created proxy groups to amplify his speeches, including during the 2024 Indian general elections. On the 20th of February, Meta removed two Facebook pages and three Instagram accounts tied to Singh, which had a over 1.1 million followers on the platforms. 

 

Political Parties  

  • On the 8th of February, the BJP won 48 out of 70 seats in the 2025 Delhi Assembly elections. The Aam Aadmi Party (AAP), which has been in power since 2015, secured only 22 seats, while the Congress party failed to win a single seat. Political analysts attributed AAP’s defeat to recent corruption scandals, disconnect from the middle class and the concerns over unfulfilled development promises made by the party in their last term. Additionally, the targeting of Muslim activists and AAP’s failure to protect the minorities, contributed to voters perceiving the party as inactive against Hindutva politics, leading to further dissatisfaction with their term. 
  • On the 9th February, Manipur Chief Minister N. Biren Singh resigned. On the 13th of February, President’s Rule, one of the three emergency measures outlined in the Indian Constitution, was imposed on the state, as the BJP failed to agree upon a replacement for the Chief Minister. Under the measure, the Manipur State Assembly was also suspended. Manipur now holds the record for the state with the most impositions of President’s Rule, with the current imposition marking the 11th time the emergency measure has been used.  On the 20th February, Manipur Governor Ajay Kumar Bhalla announced a seven- day period where militia organisations could surrender their weapons to the state. He later extended the weapons surrender until the beginning of March. Human rights defenders and civil society organisations are concerned that the Indian security services will not uphold the rule of law as the ethno-religious conflict continues, especially as there is now no democratic oversight from the State Assembly. 

 

Police and authorities 

  •   On the 13th of February Delhi Police reportedly detained Jamia Millia Islamia students for 12 hours without informing their families after protests against a university directive restricting demonstrations. Students alleged police were violent, with male officers assaulting women. The university accused protesters of vandalism, but students called the crackdown a deliberate attempt to silence dissent. The students were subsequently suspended, raising concerns over the right to protest at the university. 
  • On the 24th of February, nine Muslim youths were arrested for alleged molestation and forced religious conversion in Rajasthan. Police reportedly framed the case as part of a “conversion racket,” due to pressure from Hindutva groups. However, there is no evidence of forced conversion. Authorities demolished the home of one of the accused, and sent demolition notices to the local mosque and cemetery, raising concerns of collective punishment. Legal experts and activists have condemned the demolitions, citing the Supreme Court’s recent ruling that demolishing homes without due process is ‘high-handed and arbitrary’. Whilst the ruling called for authorities who commit acts of so called ‘bulldozer justice’ to be held accountable, the local right-wing Hindu extremist groups, the VHP and Bajrang Dal, held rallies to demand demolitions.  

 Judiciary 

  • On the 10th of February, a Chhattisgarh High Court acquitted a man convicted of sexually assaulting his wife before her death. The decision has sparked outrage and renewed calls to criminalize marital rape in India. The trial court convicted him in 2019 based on the woman’s dying declaration and medical reports confirming severe internal injuries. However, the High Court overturned the verdict, citing India’s refusal to recognize marital rape as a crime.   
  • On the 12th of February, the Supreme Court emphasized that no child should be denied education while hearing a plea seeking to give Rohingya refugees access to public schools and hospitals in Delhi. The refugees hold United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees cards but were being denied access as they do not have an Aadhaar card (Indian social security card). On the 28th of February, the court ruled that the refugees can approach government schools to enrol, and if they are still denied admission, are able to take their case to the Delhi High Court.  

 

Business & economy 

  • On the 12th of February, the Guardian reported that the Indian Defence Ministry amended security protocols on the Indo-Pakistani border to enable the Adani Group to develop a renewable energy park on what was previously commercially inviable, sensitive territory. The Group is building solar panels and wind turbines just 1 kilometre from the Pakistani border in the Rann of Kutch, which has previously been targeted in India-Pakistan conflict. In response to the report, the Congress Party asked Prime Minister Modi to explain why the decision to amend security protocols was taken and argued that ‘The Modi government’s cronyism is a threat to our national security.’ Prime Minister Modi’s close personal relationship with Gautam Adani, founder and Chairman of the Adani Group has come under increasing scrutiny since Mr Adani’s indictment for a bribery and fraud scheme by the US government. 
  • On the 14th of February, Prime Minister Modi stated to reporters that he had not brought up the US charges against Gautam Adani during his meeting with President Trump. In response to a question posed to him during his visit to the White House, Modi stated ‘I believe every Indian is mine. Two prominent leaders of two countries never discuss such individual issues.’ In response to Modi’s remarks, Congress leader Rahul Gandhi criticised Modi’s lack of transparency on the Adani corruption charges, stating ‘If you ask questions in the country, there is silence. If you ask abroad, it is a personal matter! Even in America, Modi Ji covered up Adani Ji’s corruption!’ 

 

 

India in the World 

  • On the 5th of December, the BJP accused the US State Department, along with the Indian National Congress party, of being part of a ‘deep state’ conspiracy, seeking to destabilise the Indian government. The BJP argued that ‘issues like Pegasus, Adani, caste census, ‘democracy in danger’, Global Hunger Index, religious freedom and press freedom- all appear to draw heavily from international sources.’ The US Embassy responded that the accusations are disappointing. The BJP’s accusation has been met with confusion given the recent events in Canada where Indian officials were expelled for the role they played in the assassination of a Sikh separatist leader, demonstrating the regime’s own role in foreign interference. 
  • On the 8th of January, the Indian Foreign Secretary Vikram Misri met with the Taliban’s acting Foreign Minister in Dubai. India has been increasing engagement with the Taliban since re-opening the Indian Embassy in Kabul in 2022, however, the official meeting is the first high level engagement between both governments. After the meeting, the Taliban called India a ‘significant regional and economic partner’, and India’s foreign ministry remarked that they were considering development projects in the country in a bid to boost trade. The Taliban government has continued to erode the basic human rights of women and girls and persecutes religious minorities, such as the Hazara community, in the country.   
  • On the 8th of January, representatives from the European Commission and Indian government met in New Delhi for the 11th Annual EU-India Human Rights Dialogue. The dialogue was initially scheduled for August 2024, but the Indian government cancelled at the last minute. In the rescheduled dialogue, both sides discussed critical issues such as freedom of religion or belief, freedom of expression and safeguarding the rights of human rights defenders, civil society organisations and journalists. This year, the EU-India Strategic Partnership Roadmap comes to an end, and the EU is seeking to establish a Free Trade Agreement and Digital Partnership with India. In the future, both blocs must agree on concrete steps to ensure they uphold their human rights obligations, so that the dialogue does not become a box ticking exercise before an FTA or Digital Partnership are established. 
  • On the 19th of January India and the European Union reportedly agreed to strengthen economic ties by developing advanced technologies and securing critical raw material supply chains. During a meeting in Brussels, Commerce Minister Piyush Goyal and EU Trade Commissioner Maros Sefcovic discussed building a commercially meaningful trade agenda and expediting negotiations for a fair and equitable Free Trade Agreement. India has allegedly promised to reduce dependence on non-market economies and enhance supply chain resilience. The next round of FTA negotiations is scheduled for March 10-14 in Brussels. Amid these developments, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen has announced that her first trip in her new term will be to India, reportedly to upgrade the EU-India strategic partnership alongside Prime Minister Narendra Modi.  
  • On the 20th of January, Prime Minister Modi congratulated Donald Trump on his inauguration as the 47th U.S. president, emphasising that he looks forward to working together. S. Jaishankar attended the inauguration.  
  • India and France have reportedly agreed to strengthen cooperation in high-end technology sectors, including defense, space, and artificial intelligence, during Foreign Office Consultations in Paris. These discussions took place right before Prime Minister Modi visited France to co-chair the AI Action Summit.  
  • On the 21st of January, China reportedly urged India to handle bilateral ties from a “strategic height and long-term perspective,” emphasizing the need to restore stable relations and engage in cooperation. The statement comes in response to External Affairs Minister Jaishankar’s recent remarks that India-China ties remain entangled in post-2020 border tensions and require deeper reflection on their future interactions. 

 

 

Civil society, human rights defenders, and journalists 

  • On the 18th of December, a Delhi Court granted Umar Khalid interim bail for 7 days from the 28th of December to the 3rd of January. Khalid has been in prison under the draconian Unlawful Activities Prevention Act (UAPA) since 2020, after he led the Citizenship Amendment Act protests. His bail was granted to allow him to attend a family wedding, however, his regular bail plea, like other Delhi Riots activists Gulfisha Fatima and Khalid Saifi, is still pending. Khalid marked 4 years in prison in September 2024 and remains one of many activists who is incarcerated under the UAPA.   
  • Journalist Mukesh Chandrakar’s body was discovered on the 3rd of January in the compound of a septic tank. The victim was allegedly murdered, which may be linked to Chandrakar’s recent exposure of corruption in Chhattisgarh. The authorities have arrested the contractor he had implicated in the corruption story, along with two others. Chandrakar, was known for fearless reporting on government abuses and tribal hardships, which he exposed on his Youtube channel. His work covered wrongful police detentions and the struggles of villagers caught in the crossfire between Maoists and security forces. The investigation continues, but his death is a grim reminder of the threats faced by those who dare to speak truth to power. 
  • On the 10th of January, special judge Vivekanand Sharan Tripathi controversially questioned the motives of longstanding NGOs and human rights organisations, People’s Union for Civil Liberties (PUCL), Alliance for Justice and Accountability and Citizens for Justice and Peace, in providing legal aid to accused persons and conducting fact finding investigations. Whilst imposing life sentences to 28 people, at the National Investigations Agency Court in Lucknow, Uttar Pradesh, the judge remarked that in cases under the UAPA, ‘NGOs- primarily advocating Muslim interests-promptly provide legal aid. This contradicts constitutional principles, as it boosts the morale of undesirable elements.’ He added that to ‘prevent their unwarranted interference in the judicial process’ a copy of his decision should be sent to the Bar Council of India and principal secretary of the Ministry of Home Affairs. In response to the remarks, the PUCL stated fact-finding or providing accused with legal aid ‘can by no stretch of imagination be considered as anti-national activity.’ All three groups were not present in the court when the remarks were made or given any notice that remarks would be made against them.   
  • On the 24th of January, after almost 7 years behind bars, two human rights defenders of the so-called BK-16 have been granted bail. Rona Wilson and Sudhir Dhawale were amongst the 16 activists arrested by the police in 2018 following violence at a Dalit community commemoration event. Despite the fact that police initially blamed pro-Hindutva leaders for the violence and many of the activists were not at the event, they were accused of ‘waging war against the nation’, arrested and detained. No charges have been brought against the BK-16, but after 6 years in prison, only 8 have been bailed. In 2021, one of the activists, a Jesuit priest Father Stan Swamy, died in prison. Wilson and Dhawale were granted bail by the Bombay High Court after the court concluded that ‘there is no possibility of the trial concluding in the near future.’ 
  •  The Allahabad High Court has extended the stay of Mohammed Zubair’s arrest until January 27. Police in Ghaziabad had filed a case last month, accusing Zubair of allegedly promoting enmity after he posted a video of Yati Narsinghanand’s hate speech. Zubair calls the case a malicious attempt to silence him for exposing communal rhetoric. Authorities have added charges under Section 152 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, accusing him of allegedly endangering India’s sovereignty. 
  • On the 28th of January, The Reporters’ Collective (TRC), a media outlet known for its investigative work, announced that the Income Tax Department had revoked its non-profit status. Allegedly the given reasoning was that TRC’s journalism doesn’t serve a “public purpose,” even though the outlet exposed key stories like the RSS and BJP links to Sainik Schools and the electoral bond scheme. TRC responded, saying that investigative journalism is crucial for democracy and protects the marginalized. Reportedly such notices have been given to at least two other media outlets which function due tax exemptions. 
  •  

Hate Crimes and Hate Speech against Minorities 

  • On the 30th  of December, the Indian Home Ministry announced that the prison manual rules have been revised to ensure ‘that there is no discrimination/classification/segregation of prisoners on the basis of their caste.’ The revision comes months after an October Supreme Court judgement, which found caste-based provisions in Indian prison manuals unconstitutional and for all states to amend their prison manuals. Despite the Indian constitution upholding equality for all, regardless of their caste, lower caste and Dalit peoples continue to face discrimination in the country.  
  •  On the 1st of January, a Hindutva mob allegedly killed Shahideen Qureshi, 37, in Moradabad, Uttar Pradesh, accusing him of cow slaughter. The vigilantes filmed a video of the lynching, which has gone viral, and Quereshi’s family filed a murder complaint. However, the police have yet to arrest any suspects. Instead, officers reportedly arrested Mohammad Adnan, Qureshi’s friend, charging him with cow slaughter. 

 

Religious Freedoms and Minority Rights 

  • On the 5th of December, the North-Eastern state of Assam banned the public consumption of beef, including in restaurants and at events. The BJP led state expanded upon a 2021 ban, which outlawed the consumption of beef in Hindu, Sikh and Jain areas and within the vicinity of Hindu temples. Cows are sacred in Hinduism, and the BJP has a long history of tacitly supporting of militia groups who attack religious minorities under the guise of cow protection. Conversely, in BJP ruled states in the south of India, such as Goa, cow slaughter and beef consumption have not been banned. In response to the ban in Assam, the Vice-President of the BJP in Kerala, Major Ravi, remarked that ‘beef is not cow’ and ‘there should be freedom to eat what you want.’   
  • On the 6th of December, a Muslim couple were forced to sell their home in Moradabad, Uttar Pradesh, after their Hindu neighbours demanded they leave the residential bloc because of their religion. One neighbour remarked ‘we cannot tolerate a Muslim family living right in front of our local temple. This is also a question of the safety of our women.’ After protesting, shouting slogans at the Muslim couple and demanding the cancellation of the sale, city representatives mediated between the different parties and the Muslim owners re-sold their home to a Hindu family. Muslims in many cities, including in the states of Gujarat, Maharashtra and the capitol New Delhi, have increasingly found it difficult to buy or rent property in Hindu neighbourhoods due to their religion. 
  • On the 20th of December, United Christian Forum (UCF), a civil society organisation based in Delhi, announced that 745 incidents had been reported to their helpline by the end of November 2024. This number does not include the human rights violations and attacks to churches which were perpetrated by militia groups in Manipur, where the ethno-religious conflict continues. UCF has called upon the Prime Minister to ‘consider setting up a national level inquiry’ into the rising number of persecuted Christians. 
  • On the 31st of December, 400 senior Christian leaders and 30 church groups urged the Indian government to take immediate action to address the increasing anti-Christian violence. At least 14 cases of violence, threats and disruptions against Christians and congregations were reported during the Christmas season in India. The Anti-Conversion Laws, ongoing attacks to freedom of religious belief, the rise of hate speech and the refusal of the government to give Dalit Christians the status of Scheduled Castes were all highlighted as key concerns by the leaders. The appeal also highlighted the ongoing ethno-religious conflict in the state of Manipur, where 360 churches were destroyed. The leaders called for Prime Minister Modi to actively work to foster peace in the state. 
  • On the 19th of January, the Indian government announced it would hold a meeting with protesting farmers on the 14th of February to discuss their demands, including minimum price support (msp). In response to the announcement, one of the leaders of the protest, Jagjit Singh Dallewal, agreed to medical aid on the 54th day of his fast-unto-death hunger strike. Earlier in January, 121 farmers had joined Dallewal’s fast in solidarity, but they ended it after his decision to take medical aid. Farmer leaders continue to press for a legal guarantee on msp, warning that the agitation will escalate if their demands are ignored. 

 

 

Internet and Technology 

  • On the 19th of December, X (formerly known as Twitter) submitted a written submission to the Delhi High Court, criticising the court’s global blocking orders for content. The platform wrote that global blocking orders will mean that internet content is governed by the country with the most restrictive laws, adding ‘such global takedowns also set a dangerous precedent that could legitimise practices of authoritarian governments.’ X’s submission was made in relation to a 2019 global blocking order for defamatory content on Baba Ramdev, an Indian guru and businessman, after a book containing ‘unfounded claims’ was stopped from publication and distribution by the court. Historically, the Indian government has used Indian blocking orders to force social media companies including X to take down accounts and content that are critical of the government or share information relating to protests, such as the Farmer’s Protests. However, the global blocking order is not geo-located to India, meaning even if Indian users access X via VPN, defamatory content on Baba Ramdev cannot be viewed.   
  • On the 15th of January, Meta issued an apology after Mark Zuckerberg claimed on a podcast that India’s ruling party lost the 2024 elections. Meta India’s vice president, clarified on X that the statement was incorrect and emphasized Meta’s commitment to India, calling it a key market for the company. Polititians Vaishnaw and Dubey had criticized the misinformation, calling it disappointing and urging Meta to uphold credibility. Trinamool Congress MP Saket Gokhale questioned Meta’s alleged political bias, urging the IT panel to examine claims that the company allows certain parties to spread propaganda while failing to enforce rules on hate speech and misinformation. Gokhale argued that Meta’s influence on elections and its perceived bias undermine India’s democracy.  
  • Meta has reportedly paused its plan to remove fact-checkers in India, following concerns that this move would increase misinformation. Fact-checking groups in India rely on Meta’s support to flag false news on Facebook and Instagram. They warn that cutting these partnerships would weaken efforts to fight misinformation and financially harm smaller organizations. Meta aims to replace fact-checkers with Community Notes, a system where users vote on corrections. However, critics argue that this approach fails to address political misinformation effectively, given the reports from 2024 Lok Sabha elections. Meta has not yet confirmed whether it will renew its contracts with fact-checkers, which are set to expire soon. 
  • On the 24th of January, the Indian Ministry of External Affairs announced that French President Emmanual Macron had invited Prime Minister Modi to co-chair the 2025 AI Action Summit. The Summit brings together heads of state, civil society organisations and tech companies to discuss the future of AI, including global governance.   

 

Political Parties    

  • On the 2nd of December, both the Rajya Sabha and Lok Sabha were adjourned after members of the opposition I.N.D.I.A bloc interrupted proceedings and raised slogans over the Adani corruption indictment, violence in Sambhal, Uttar Pradesh, and the ongoing violence in the Manipur conflict. The Parliament had to adjourn due to similar protests the week before. The Opposition has been vocal about Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s personal relationship with BJP backed oligarch Gautam Adani, as well as the failure of the government to end the ongoing violence in Manipur.   
  • On the 18th of December, the Congress Party demanded Home Minister Amit Shah’s resignation over comments he made about DR. B. R. Ambedkar. Ambedkar was a Dalit social reformer who drafted the Indian Constitution. In his remarks, Shah said ‘It has become a fashion to say Ambedkar, Ambedkar, Ambedkar, Ambedkar, Ambedkar, Ambedkar. If they had taken God’s name so many times, they would have got a place in heaven.’ Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge remarked on X that Ambedkar is a god-like figure to millions of people in India, including Dalits, tribal peoples and other minorities. Shah’s remarks have caused outrage across the country. Dalit groups protested across the country at the end of December and protests have continued into the New Year.   
  • On the 20th of December, investigations into the Andhra Pradesh state elections showed that candidates who belonged to vulnerable minorities, including the Dalit community, had their welfare benefits stopped before the election, as they were viewed by the former ruling party, the YSR Congress Party (YSRCP) as more likely to vote against them. Meda Ramana, who was elected head of the village council, and her husband Sagar, uncovered the scandal after looking through lists of wrongly excluded families. YSRCP developed voter profiles of citizens based on personal data collected by volunteers who were paid to deliver welfare benefits to vulnerable people. Volunteers conducted surveys of households which included information on their caste, religion and education. The profiles were used during the elections by the government to develop campaign strategies and crucially deny voters who were perceived as opposition supporters, access to their welfare benefits. The Indian government has failed to adopt a data protection law that prohibits the misuse of citizen’s personal data by both state and non-state actors.     
  • On the 26th of December, former Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh died at the age of 92. Singh was Prime Minister from 2004-2014 and led a coalition government in implementing economic reforms. He was the first Sikh to become Indian Prime Minister and publicly apologised in the Parliament for the Congress Party’s role in the 1984 anti-Sikh Pogrom, where 3,000 Sikhs were murdered in Delhi.  Prime Minister Modi and Congress leader Rahul Gandhi both commemorated Singh on social media. Modi wrote that ‘India mourns the loss of one of its most distinguished leaders’. Gandhi stated he had ‘lost a mentor and guide.’ 
  • On the 17th of January, the Election Commission of India (ECI) stated that it did not have records on the number of pre-numbered slips issued to voters during the 2024 Lok Sabha and Maharashtra elections. Activist Venkatesh Nayak, who submitted the Right to Information Request which revealed this huge oversight, has demanded transparency and questioned why the ECI lacks this crucial data despite election rules requiring presiding officers to maintain such records. The Congress Party has raised concerns over a sudden surge in votes after 5 PM on polling day and a sharp rise in registered voters between the two elections. While the ECI dismissed these concerns, critics argue that full disclosure of hourly voter turnout data and the number of slips issued would help ensure transparency and restore public trust in the electoral process.   
  • A week left before the Delhi elections, Congress leader Rahul Gandhi accused the incumbent Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) chief Arvind Kejriwal of being “against Dalits and minorities” for not supporting a caste census. He also slammed Kejriwal for allegedly failing to protect people during the 2020 Delhi riots and the COVID-19 crisis. Gandhi alleged that both the AAP and BJP are neglecting job creation and promised that Congress would address unemployment and financial aid if elected. AAP denied the claims, citing government data that reportedly shows Delhi has one of the lowest unemployment and inflation rates in India. In response, Kejriwal launched a sharp attack on Congress, urging Delhi voters not to “waste” their votes on the party. Speaking at a rally in Timarpur, he alleged Congress and the BJP of agreeing on a secret deal to defeat AAP.  
  • On the 29th of January, the Haryana government  filed a case against AAP chief Arvind Kejriwal for alleging that the BJP-led Haryana government was “poisoning” Delhi’s water supply by releasing toxic waste into the Yamuna. The case, registered in a Sonipat court under the Disaster Management Act, accuses Kejriwal of spreading false alarms and causing public panic. Haryana Minister Vipul Goel dismissed Kejriwal’s claim arguing that the same water is consumed by top government officials. He accused Kejriwal of using false allegations to cover up AAP’s failures before the Delhi elections on February 5. Haryana CM then drank Yamuna water at the Delhi border to prove his counter argument. AAP leaders challenged Saini to publicly test the water’s ammonia levels and accused him of pretending to drink the water and then spitting it out. 
  • AAP accused the BJP of using the Election Commission and Delhi Police to target them ahead of the Delhi elections. Officials allegedly attempted to raid Punjab Chhief Minister Bhagwant Mann’s Delhi residence after a complaint about cash distribution, but AAP claimed BJP leaders were openly handing out money and gifts without facing action. Earlier, Delhi Police seized a Punjab-registered car with cash, alcohol, and AAP pamphlets. AAP alleged the BJP planted the car to falsely accuse them, pointing out that its number plate belonged to an Army officer. Arvind Kejriwal and Sanjay Singh called it a political conspiracy. 

 

Police and authorities 

  • On the 30th of December, 26 people, including the former District Magistrate, several police officers and administrative officials, were charged for their involvement in an alleged criminal conspiracy surrounding the illegal demolition of journalist Manoj Tibrewal’s house. In November, the Supreme Court directed the Uttar Pradesh government to pay Tibrewal compensation for unlawfully demolishing his home, remarking that ‘Bulldozer justice is simply unacceptable under the rule of law.’ Tibrewal has alleged that his home was demolished as retribution for his father in law’s demand for an investigation into corruption surrounding the construction of the National Highway -730, which was reported in the local newspaper. 

 

 

Judiciary    

  • On the 8th of December, a Gujarat Court acquitted former police officer and whistle blower Sanjiv Bhatt in his custodial torture case. Bhatt is a key whistleblower on Prime Minister Modi’s role in the 2002 Gujarat Riots, when he was Chief Minister of Gujarat. Bhatt claimed that he attended a meeting with then Chief Minister Modi during which Modi told the Police to allow Hindus to commit atrocities against the Muslim population in the state. Since filing affidavits with these claims, Bhatt was charged and sentenced to prison time in three cases, including life imprisonment for a 1990 custodial death case, which he will continue to serve. The cases have been viewed as politically motivated.  
  • On the 9th of December, the Allahabad Hugh Court Justice spoke at a VHP event and remarked that ‘Hindustan would run as per the wished of the majority people.’ He also made implicitly anti-Muslim comments, calling halala, the triple talaq and having multiple wives ‘unacceptable’. He said ‘You can’t disrespect a woman who has been recognised as a goddess in our Shastras and Vedas’. He added that whilst non-Hindus are not expected to follow Hindu traditions, other communities are ‘definitely expected not to disrespect the culture of this country, the great personalities, and the god of this land.’ The Justice has previously made controversial comments, calling for cow protection to be declared a ‘Fundamental Right of Hindus’. As India’s rule of law declines, more attention has been paid to members of the judiciary who have personal relationships with BJP leaders or who attend events hosted by Hindu right-wing organisations such as the VHP. 
  • On the 20th of January, the Punjab and Haryana High Court has issued notices to both State governments to respond to a petition challenging the constitutionality of 50-year-old laws that criminalize begging. The petition argues that these laws violate Articles 14, 19, and 21 of the Constitution by treating poverty as a crime and failing to uphold citizens’ right to a dignified life. The laws, based on the Bombay Prevention of Begging Act, define begging broadly, including acts like singing, fortune-telling, and selling items without fixed prices. The petition calls this definition arbitrary and excessive. The petition cites past judgments by the Delhi and J&K High Courts that ruled against criminalizing begging. 
  • On the 30th of January, the Supreme Court of India directed that manual scavenging and sewer cleaning must be stopped in six major cities—Delhi, Mumbai, Chennai, Kolkata, Bengaluru, and Hyderabad. Manual scavenging is the removal of human excreta from dry latrines, railroads and sewers. 1.3 million Dalits are employed to take on this task, which the International Dalit Solidarity Network has termed a ‘hereditary occupation form of slavery.’ The ruling criticized the Union for lacking clarity on how to end these practices. The Court ordered each city’s chief officer to submit a detailed plan by February 13, warning that failure to comply would have consequences. While the Union reportedly stated that 456 out of 775 districts no longer have manual scavenging, authorities in Delhi allegedly have not complied with previous orders. 

 

Business & economy 

  • On the 9th of December, Adani Watch reported that the Adani Group is planning to build a coal-power plant in the state of Madhya Pradesh. The plant is expected to have a negative impact on the local tiger population as the project is located near several protected tiger reserves which were designed to protect endangered species. In their Plant proposal, Adani Power Limited stated that ‘there is no wildlife corridor within 15km radius of the project site.’ However, the environmental impact consultant reiterated that the ‘proposed project area falls under medium to high tiger connectivity area’, adding that by failing to mention the wildlife corridor in their proposal, ‘the project proponent is trying to misguide the ministry.’  In March 2024, the Adani Group announced they would be investing $8.9 billion into the BJP ruled state, just 6 months before applying for the power plant. Since the indictment of Gautam Adani and other Adani Group officials by the US Government, the well documented personal relationship between Gautam Adani and Prime Minister Modi has come under increasing scrutiny. 

 

India in the World 

  • On the 2nd of November, the Indian government filed a complaint with the Canadian High Commission in New Delhi about the alleged surveillance of Indian diplomats in Vancouver. Relations between the two countries have been strained by Canada’s investigation of the Indian authorities’ role in the assassination of a Sikh separatist on Canadian soil. India was also reacting to an October 30th report in which the Canadian Centre for Cyber Security placed India in the category of “cyber threat from state adversaries.” 
  • On the 6th of November, Prime Minister Modi congratulated U.S. President-elect Donald Trump on his victory and expressed eagerness for renewed collaboration. Modi emphasised India’s commitment to strengthening the India-U.S. partnership in technology, defence, and energy. The Indian Foreign Minister  added that while many states feared Trump’s re-election India was not one of them. 
  • Prime Minister Modi had a bilateral meeting with Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni at the G20. They reportedly discussed strengthening technology, trade, and defence ties. Modi also remarked that ‘India-Italy friendship can greatly contribute to a better planet.’ Modi’s discussion with Meloni comes just weeks after German Chancellor Olaf Scholz endorsed an ‘ambitious’ EU-India Free Trade Agreement. Though the European Parliament mandated that the European Commission put human rights at the centre of EU-India relations, the EU-India Human Rights Dialogue continues to be postponed.  
  • The Indian Prime Minister also met British Prime Minister Keir Starmer at the G20 summit. Starmer’s office announced after talks that the UK will seek a ’new strategic partnership’ with India and move ahead with trade talks. The UK will also deepen cooperation in security, education, technology and climate change. 
  • In late November, the Canadian government denied that they had direct evidence that Prime Minister Modi was linked to violence in Canada, after news outlets reported that the Prime Minister was aware of the assassination plot. The announcement comes just weeks after the Canadian Foreign Ministry alleged that Amit Shah, India’s Minister of Home Affairs and other top Indian officials were directly linked to the murder of Sikh separatist Hardeep Singh Nijjar in Canada last year.  
  • Afghanistan has expressed interest in developing greater partnerships with India. Mohammad Yaqub Mujahid, Afghanistan’s Defence Minister, has reportedly assured New Delhi that the Taliban will not allow Pakistan-backed anti-India terror groups to operate in the country. Mujahid met with Indian official JP Singh in Kabul, where they also discussed plans to expand India-Afghanistan humanitarian and development partnerships. Since coming to power in Afghanistan, the Taliban has stripped women of basic rights, including access to education and employment, forcing many parents to sell their daughters into marriage in order to be able to feed their family. Many states in the international community, have therefore, refused to engage with the group.  
  • In late November, the Canadian government moved to expedite the trial of four Indian citizens accused in the murder of Khalistan separatist Hardeep Singh Nijjar. The special measure, which is rarely implemented, would mean skipping a preliminary hearing in a lower court in favour of allowing the trial to proceed with the Canadian Supreme Court. The four men are accused of acting as shooters and drivers and doing reconnaissance during the alleged assassination. 

Civil society, human rights defenders, and journalists 

  • On the 8th of November, eight members of the Moolvasi Bachao Manch, an Adivasi (Indigenous) civil group that has faced repression at the hands of the local government were detained by joint forces working for local authorities in Chhattisgarh. Several prominent activists were also detained. On the same day, security forces encircled nine villages and rounded up villagers, killing one child and one young man in the process. These events are part of a larger pattern of violence across Chhattisgarh, including encounters with authorities which have ended in civilian deaths and increasing militarisation. While the government has explained such militarisation as consistent with anti-Naxalite measures, the militarisation of the region, which regularly leads to extrajudicial killings and attacks on civilians, seems to be more closely related to taking the land of Indigenous groups, as it is rich in minerals.  
  • On the 8th of November, investigative journalist Rana Ayyub’s phone number was released on X (formerly Twitter) by a right-wing content creator. She was subsequently sent over 200 rape and death threats. Ayyub commented on the Maharashtra police’s inaction over the threats, remarking ‘These heinous acts take place because authorities look the other way as women are publicly harassed.’ Women journalists and activist in India often face gendered threats because of their work.  
  • On the 11th of November, the Supreme Court of India once again denied bail to Gulfisha Fatima, a student activist. Fatima has been detained for four years without bail after her arrest stemming from an anti-Citizenship Amendment Act protest in Delhi. After initially being granted bail, she was charged under the draconian Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act, 1967 (UAPA), which UN experts and others say is often weaponised against activists to silence them. Such arbitrary detention may violate Article 9, ICCPR. 
  • The 22nd of November marked 3 years since Kashmiri human rights defender Khurram Parvez was incarcerated on terrorism charges. Parvez was arrested under the Unlawful Activities Prevention Act (UAPA), which is commonly weaponised by authorities to detain human rights defenders, journalists, students and activists. He has remained in pre-trial detention for three years. The misuse of the UAPA and subsequent imprisonment for multiple years without a trial violates ICCPR, Article 9. 
  • Meena Kotwal, an Indian journalist and founder of online news channel The Mooknayak won the SheThePeople’s Digital Women Awards 2024 in late November. The Mooknayak is focused on social justice, broaching issues of caste-violence and hate and gender inequality by reporting on stories that are often ignored by mainstream media. 

Hate Crimes and Hate Speech against Minorities – Tracking the Manipur Conflict 

  • On November 7th, in Manipur’s Jiribam district, armed extremists reportedly brutally shot, captured, and burned to death a woman from the Hmar tribe, which is related to the majority Christian Kuki-Zo ethnic minority group. They also torched several homes in her village, escalating the ongoing ethnic violence in the state.  
  • On the 11th of November, a market close to a makeshift relief camp in Manipur housing displaced Meitei persons was attacked by an armed group of men from the Hmar tribe. Hmars, part of the Kuki-Zomi tribes have also been involved in the ethnic and religious conflict in Manipur. The market was located a few hundred metres from a police station, but the police could not locate the kidnapped villagers, among whom were several women and children. This led to protests against the Manipur government for alleged inaction, however, the kidnapped villagers were found dead the next day. The attack of the Meitei villagers was allegedly retaliation against an earlier attack on the 7th of November. 
  • On the 18th of November, authorities recovered the bodies of 6 Meitei women and children, who had allegedly been kidnapped and murdered by Kuki militias. The attack has been regarded as revenge for the rape and murder of a Kuki woman on the 7th of November. The BJP state authorities have imposed another curfew and internet shutdown, choosing to continue to suffocate civil society and peace builders who are unable to operate in the region. The European Parliament Urgency Resolution on Manipur, passed in July 2023, explicitly called for the Indian government stop imposing curfews and internet shutdowns. At least 20 people have been killed due to the ongoing conflict in Manipur in November. 
  • On the 27th of November, a tribal council in the Karbi Anglong district of Assam decided to send 1,000 Kuki-Zo migrants, who had fled the religious and ethnic violence, back to Manipur. Karbis are the largest ethnic group in the district. Last month, a Karbi literary body argued there was an ‘exodus’ of Kuki refugees coming from the state and demanded they were not given land but were placed in state-supervised shelters. The Kuki-Zo are a minority ethnic group in Manipur, which is mostly Christian.  

Religious Freedoms and Minority Rights 

  • On November 8th , the Supreme Court ruled that Aligarh Muslim University (AMU) can claim minority status, despite being established by an Act of Parliament. Overturning the 1967 Azeez Basha judgment, the bench led by Chief Justice DY Chandrachud stated that a minority institution only needs to be founded by a minority, not necessarily administered by one. The court clarified that Article 30 protections apply even to minority institutions established before the Constitution came into force. A regular bench will now review AMU’s specific minority status based on this framework. 
  • On the 10th of November in Karnataka, a group of villagers moved a religious idol in a local temple, after Dalits were granted access to the temple. Dalits were given permission to enter Kalabhairaveshwara Swamy Temple after talks between the local government and police around the systemic exclusion of Dalits. Dalits have faced centuries of caste discrimination in India – including incidents like this one, where they are excluded from religious institutions.  
  • On the 19th of November, Hindutva groups disrupted a Muslim marriage ceremony in Uttar Pradesh. The groups argued that the Muslim ceremony could not take place at the venue, a community hall which is associated with Hindus, as it was offensive to Hindu cultural and religious identity. Protesters demanded for the ceremony to stop and the venue to be vacated by the wedding party and guests. The Police took the family to a new venue, despite confirming that the community hall could be rented by all members of the community, regardless of their religion.   
  • Three Muslim men were killed on the 24th of November in clashes between the police and protesters in Sambal, Uttar Pradesh. The protests started after a court ordered surveys of a Mosque as part of a process to determine if it was built on the site of a Hindu Temple. The local Muslim community opposes the surveys and there is significant concern and fear that as with the Babri Mosque in Ayodhya, this mosque will also be demolished and replaced with a Hindu temple. Opposition politicians argue that the subsequent violent clashes are ‘a result of the politics of hated done by this [BJP] government’ and are demanding a judicial inquiry.  
  • The Trinamool Congress chief warned in a speech on the 28th of November that the Waqf Amendment Bill would disproportionately affect Muslims. Waqf, properties dedicated to religious, educational, or charitable causes under Islamic law are governed under the waqf law- which has not been amended since 2013. If the proposed amendments are passed, the authority of waqf boards would be lessened, the government would have more control over waqf properties, and non-Muslims would be able to join waqf boards. The donation of properties would also be restricted. Members of the Opposition stressed that this amendment would violate the right to freedom of religion. 

 

Internet and Technology 

  • The Competition Commission of India imposed a $25.3 million fine on Meta after finding WhatsApp violated the Competition Act. Meta was fined as the CCI found that WhatsApp’s 2021 policy update, which made data sharing with Meta mandatory for users, was an unfair condition. The failure to provide users with an opt-out for their data to be shared to the wider Meta Group undermined user autonomy, especially given Meta’s leading position in the online advertising market in India. Meta is expected to appeal the decision.   
  • A new report by civil rights groups alleges that the BJP spent over $270,000 on Meta platforms to fuel a hate campaign targeting Adivasi Chief Minister Hemant Soren ahead of Jharkhand’s elections. The report claims a shadow network of 87 pages spread dehumanizing ads and communal propaganda against minorities, reportedly violating electoral laws. Critics accuse Meta of enabling this by accepting unverifiable advertiser details and amplifying divisive content. Activists urge stricter regulation to prevent the misuse of digital platforms for spreading hate and targeting marginalized communities. 
  • On the 10th of November, the Ranchi Police in Jharkhand state filed an FIR and requested that unnamed social media platforms remove several videos posted by the BJP’s Jharkhand unit. This was reportedly in response to a complaint filed by the Congress party in which it was alleged that the local BJP posted ‘false and misleading’ videos which made ‘baseless’ allegations on their social media accounts just ahead of the Jharkhand Assembly elections. 
  • A report by several civil society organisations found that Pro-Mahayuti ‘shadow accounts’ spent significant funds on communal Facebook adverts ahead of the 20 November Maharashtra elections. Mahayuti is the BJP led political coalition that won the state elections. These accounts overspent the opposition more than sevenfold and regularly featured hate speech and Islamophobic conspiracy theories. As has been reported by other NGOs tracking hate and extreme content on Meta’s platforms (such as Instagram and Facebook), these accounts were not removed despite violating the platform’s community standards. The advertisements also failed to meet Meta’s standards for declaring advertisements. 
  • On the 19th of November, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) allegedly shared an AI-generated clips targeting Opposition leaders in Maharashtra on it’s X (formerly Twitter) account. The clips, published hours before the polls opened in Maharashtra for state Assembly elections, was allegedly part of ‘leaked recordings’ showing evidence of opposition party wrong-doings. Fact-checkers at BOOM analysed the clips and determined that three of the four clips shared were generated by AI, while the last clip was too short to analyse. 
  • In late November, the case that news agency Asian News International brought against OpenAI was heard in the Delhi High Court. The case concerns a claim of copyright infringement against the artificial intelligence platform, raising new concerns about whether or not such platforms can be charged for copyright infringement as they operate based on the accumulation of materials that have already been produced by others. Due to the lack of existing precedent, the case will have a significant impact on how copyright claims against AI platforms are handled in India. 

Political Parties    

  • On the 7th of November, a scuffle between the ruling INDIA bloc MLAs and the opposition BJP broke out in the Jammu and Kashmir legislative assembly. The two sides were arguing over the restoration of Article 370 in the state, which gives J&K special status and was revoked by the BJP in 2019. The assembly passed a resolution to restore the special status, however local BJP politicians tore up copies of the document.  
  • On the 8th of November, Prime Minister Modi stated that Article 370, which gave the State of Jammu and Kashmir a special status before being revoked in 2019, would never be restored. Modi also accused Congress and members of the opposition INDIA bloc of encouraging the ‘Pakistan agenda’ in the state, arguing that they wanted to remove the constitution from Jammu and Kashmir. Modi’s remarks come 3 weeks after elections were held in the state, for the first time since 2019. 
  • On the 16thof November, during campaigns for elections in the state of Jharkhand, BJP Home Minister Amit Shah referred to Muslims as ‘infiltrators’, who ‘grab the jobs of the youth in Jharkhand.’ His xenophobic remarks were made in an attempt to gain support from the indigenous community in the state, who have historically voted with the Muslim population for the ruling Jharkhand Mukti Morcha party.  
  • Similarly, throughout the election campaign for the Maharashtra elections, the BJP once again pushed the ‘Vote Jihad’ conspiracy theory which was used in the national elections. The conspiracy theory is premised on the idea that when Indian Muslims do not vote for the BJP, it is part of a wider, anti-national conspiracy. BJP Home Minister Devender Fadnavis called for voters to counter ‘Vote Jihad’, and BJP MLA Nitesh Rane remarked that ‘we will ensure this vote jihad does not happen during the State elections.’ MLA Rane has a long history of Islamophobic hate speech and has multiple cases against him due to this. 
  • On the 17th of November, the National People’s Party in Manipur withdrew support for the BJP-led government, citing the resurgence of the ethnic, religious violence in the region. Party leader Conrad Sangma accused the Manipur government of completely failing to resolve the crisis. Over just the ten days leading up the announcement, violent flareups left 17 people dead, including infants, children, and women. 
  • On the 23rd of November, the BJP-led National Democratic Alliance (NDA) won the Maharashtra state elections, winning 235 of the 288 assembly seats. Their campaign was marred by hate speech from key figures such as Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath and Prime Minister Narendra Modi. 
  • On the 28th of November, the former Chief Minister of Mizoram state, which neighbours Manipur, called for the current Chief Minister of Manipur to step down, stating that his ‘inaction and misuse of power have only worsened the situation [in Manipur].’ He continued that Manipur Chief Minister’s ‘leadership has not only failed to resolve the crisis but has also perpetuated the suffering of innocent people.’ The former Chief Minister made the statement on behalf of his party, the Mizo National Front, which is crucially part of the NDA coalition government with the BJP.  
  • On the same day, in response to the Mizo National Front’s comments, the Manipur government released a statement, calling the MNF an ‘anti national party’ and accusing the parting of ‘constant meddling’ in internal Manipur affairs. The BJP Manipur state government also argued that the MNF used ‘a shrill wave of anti-national pro-Myanmar refugee propaganda and anti-Manipur stance’ when contesting the Mizoram Assembly elections last year. The Manipur government continues to scapegoat Myanmar refugees in an attempt to explain the ongoing ethnic conflict.  

 

Police and authorities 

  • On the 20th of November, villagers in the remote village of Kwath village (located in Jammu) were allegedly subjected to torture at the hands of the army. The alleged torture was said to have occurred after repeated interactions between the army and local villagers in which they were asked to perform odd jobs for the army. This assault was verified by a local army unit on their X (formerly Twitter) account after several videos and posts appeared on social media. Whilst they have reported that an investigation is being launched, villagers stated that they were dissuaded from reporting events to the police. Such acts of torture would be in violation of the Article 7, ICCPR. 
  • Just one day after clashes broke out around the Sambhal mosque survey, the chairperson of the mosque’s managing committee reportedly said he witnessed police firing into the crowd of protestors in the incident which left four Muslim civilians dead. These claims stand in contradiction of the police’s reports, in which they indicate no lethal weapons were used to control the crowd, only tear gas, batons, and rubber pellets. The chairperson further alleged that police damaged their own vehicles in the incident though the police have denied his claims, calling them politically motivated. 
  • Conflicts broke out between police, other authorities, and protesters after protests formed in reaction to a new ethanol factory in Telangana’s Nirmal district on the 27th of November. Villagers who were allegedly protesting out of fear that the new factory would be harmful to their crops and way of life, allegedly vandalised the vehicle of a Nirmal Revenue Divisional Officer (RDO) the evening before.  The RDO’s vehicle was surrounded after leaving the protest site to speak with protestors. Police intervened and arrested several villagers for vandalism. 
  • In late November, the Uttar Pradesh police accused fact-checker Mohammed Zubair of endangering India’s ‘sovereignty, unity and integrity’ related to a social media post he made. Zubair’s post was reportedly about hate speech from Hindu leader, Yati Narsinghanand in which Narsinghanand allegedly made hateful remarks against the Prophet Muhammad. Civil society groups inside and outside of India regard the police accusations as legal intimidation against Zubair to stifle free speech. If these claims are accurate, this could be a violation of Article 19, ICCPR. 
  • On the 30th of November, the Delhi Police registered a case against Nadeem Khan, the National Secretary of the Association for the Protection of Civil Rights. The police argue that Khan is ‘trying to raise a war inside the country’, after he allegedly spoke in a YouTube video which covers the Modi government’s crackdown on activists, journalists and human rights defenders, particularly during and after the 2020 Delhi Riots. The police also argue that Khan is ‘trying to disrupt communal harmony’ by ‘portraying a particular community as victims’ which they view as incitement.  Khan was not in Delhi when the case was registered, however, 4 police officials flew to Bengaluru, found Khan at a private residence and attempted to detain him despite failing to produce a warrant or having jurisdiction in the state. They stayed with Khan for 4 hours until he agreed, under duress, to ‘voluntarily’ return to Delhi with them. The decision to file a case against Khan is viewed by civil society as a wider move against journalists and demonstrative of the wider crackdown on freedom of expression by the Indian government.  

Judiciary    

  • The Supreme Court has condemned the reported demolition of homes in Muslim localities in Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh, and Delhi’s Jahangirpuri. The court stated that these actions were unconstitutional and violated fundamental rights. It criticised the use of bulldozers allegedly targeting individuals accused of crimes, emphasising that such actions undermine the rule of law and the principle of innocence until proven guilty. The Court further stated that no demolitions should occur without prior notice, adequate time for appeal, and adherence to legal procedures, and called for accountability among officials engaging in such actions, stressing that these practices amount to collective punishment. 
  • The Supreme Court sentenced Uttar Pradesh authorities for demolishing a house in 2019 without proper notice. The case started in 2020 with a petition by a Maharajganj resident, who reported that officials used a loudspeaker to announce the demolition. The Court criticised the lack of due process and ordered compensation for the resident while directing an inquiry into the officers and contractors involved. 
  • The Bombay High Court held in mid-November that sex between a married couple in which the wife is a minor would be considered rape, regardless of whether or not it was consensual. The court thus upheld the 10-year sentence of a man who appealed the sentence delivered to him in 2021. The complaint against the man was originally filed by his minor partner, who alleged that during their four-year relationship, she has been pressed into sex with him. 
  • In late November, a local Ajmer court issued notices to the Union Ministry of Minority Affairs, the Archaeological Survey of India (ASI), and the Ajmer Dargah Committee regarding a petition filed about a local mausoleum. The petitioner, a right-wing Hindu organisation, claimed that that a Shiva temple was built under the Ajmer Sharif Dargah mausoleum and requests a survey of the building. The survey request was condemned by the building’s custodian who felt it was motivated by Islamophobia. Historically, such requests for surveys of buildings belonging to religious minorities have led to the demolitions of these buildings which hold significance as cites of cultural and religious heritage.  

 

Business & economy 

  • On the 1st of November, the BJP government granted approval to Adani Power Limited for the expansion of its Raipur coal-power plant in Chhattisgarh. The approval proceeded despite concerns from the local population. The plant is still burning coal with a higher ash content than its target level, causing more harmful emissions than what was originally outlined. Among their other complaints, villagers claim that fly ash from the plant is affecting their farms and water quality and that they were not kept abreast of plant operations years earlier. 
  • Four ambassadors to India, from the EU, Denmark, Belgium and Germany, visited the Adani Group renewable energy park and India’s largest port, both located in Gujarat. The ambassadors were met by Gautam Adani, Chairman of the Adani Group, who led the tour and posed with the diplomats, holding hands. The tour took place just a few days before the G20 in Brazil, where Prime Minister Modi expressed how India will play an important role in global sustainability. 
  • Just 10 days after the tour, Adani and other members of the Adani Group were indicted by the US government on fraud and bribery charges. Adani Green Group, which operates the renewable energy park the Ambassadors visited, is central to the indictment, with the US Securities and Exchange Commission alleging that the scheme was initiated so that Adani Green and Azure Power would capitalise on an Indian government solar energy project, worth billions of dollars. Adani’s close relationship with Prime Minister Narendra Modi has come under increasing scrutiny since the indictment, with the Opposition demanding a Joint Parliamentary Committee into their relationship. Modi, who also hails from Gujarat is viewed by many as patronising Adani and other business monopolies to sustain his political hegemony. 

India in the World 

  • On 14 October, the Canadian government named the Indian High Commissioner and other Indian Diplomats ‘persons of interest’ in their ongoing investigation into the 2023 murder of pro-Khalistan activist Hardeep Singh Nijjar.  
  • Also, on 14 October, the Canadian government expelled 6 Indian diplomats, including the High Commissioner. The Indian government responded by expelling 6 Canadian diplomats and advising that it had withdrawn the Indian envoy to Canada.  
  • The British government called for the government of India to cooperate with the Canadian investigation as did the US State Department, remarking that the Indian government is currently failing to do so. 
  • The US State Department met with the Indian government on the 16 October to discuss an Indian government employee’s alleged involvement in an assassination attempt against a Sikh separatist in New York in November 2023. 
  • On 18 October, the office of the US Attorney for the Southern District of New York announced they had brought charges against a former Indian intelligence officer, Vikash Yadav for allegedly directing the assassination plot. Yadaz currently resides in India and no longer works for the government. The US is expected to seek his extradition.  
  • India did not sign a letter supported by 104 other countries and the African Union in which Israel was criticised for declaring UN Secretary-General Antonio Guterres persona non grata. In early October, Israel declared Guterres persona non grata after accusing him of failing to condemn attacks initiated by Iran and Hamas – a claim Guterres disputes, citing that he always denounced these actions.   
  • On 12 October, India called on Bangladesh’s interim government to ensure the safety of minorities following a series of attacks during Durga Puja celebrations. Minority groups raised concerns about violent attacks, which reportedly target mostly Hindus in the country since the interim government was put in place with the Bangladesh Hindu, Buddhist, Christian Unity Council recording 2,010 violent attacks, mostly against Hindus in the month of August alone. 
  • Chinese President Xi and Prime Minister Modi held their first formal talks in 5 years at the 2024 BRICS summit on 28 October. They already agreed to increase communication and cooperation to help resolve conflicts at the Himalayan border. Tensions have risen between the two countries due to these clashes.  
  • At the BRICS Summit, hosted by Russian President Putin 36 world leaders met to discuss further collaboration, including possibilities to limit the effectiveness of US sanctions by reducing dollar transactions. However, the Indian envoy said India remains reluctant to do so due to fears of retaliatory sanctions.  
  • Olaf Scholz, Chancellor of Germany, met with Prime Minister Modi in New Delhi to publicly endorse an ‘ambitious’ free trade agreement between India and the EU. Whilst in India, Scholz signed increased cooperation agreements on defense, trade, clean energy and information technology. These bilateral agreements continued despite the Indian government missing the EU-India Human Rights Dialogue, which was postponed in August of this year.   
  • In late October, the Canadian Deputy Foreign Affairs Minister allegedly confirmed that the Canadian government suspects Indian Minister of Home Affairs Amit Shah of orchestrating a campaign of ‘violence and intimidation’ which targets Sikh activists. 

 

Civil society, human rights defenders and journalists 

  • Mahesh Langa, a senior journalist with The Hindu was arrested on 8 October allegedly in connection with a Goods and Services Tax scam. His arrest has been called into question by rights groups as he is one of few independent voices in Gujarat amid an oppressive climate for independent journalists in India. A case was filed against Langa on October 22. The Press Council of India, which is mandated to protect press freedom, has not intervened.  
  • On 9 October, Hindutva Watch was named as the recipient of the Take Action Against Hate award. The Take Action Against Hate awards are granted to groups and individual persons who ‘work to counter hatred in any of its forms.’ 
  • The release of two men accused in the 2017 murder of journalist and activist Gauri Lankesh this month stirred controversy after both were given a warm welcome by some Hindutva groups. Both men, along with others accused, were released on bail on 11 October, after being imprisoned for over six years. Lankesh, known for her critical stance on Hindutva politics, was shot dead outside her home.  
  • The 37-day strike of the Samsung India Workers Union (SIWU) ended on 16 October after management agreed to all the demands of the striking union. The striking workers demanded, among other things, the recognition of SIWU. Since 2023, they have been working to get their union recognised by the state government, a process stalled by Samsung, which refused several requests from SIWU for dialogue and tried to end the strikes. 
  • Junior doctors protesting the rape and murder of a trainee doctor at RG Kar Hospital ended their hunger strike on 21 October after 10 days. The group was protesting for a 10-point charter, which included changes like the dismantling of the ‘threat culture’ in the state’s medical sector.  Although they reportedly exited talks with the Chief Minister, Chief Secretary, Home Secretary, and others empty-handed, they are said to be planning new protest actions and charting their next steps. 
  • On 21 October, the Supreme Court granted human rights activist Teesta Setalvad permission to travel to Amsterdam for the world premiere of her documentary CycleMahesh. Setalvad was originally detained in 2022, in connection with her human rights work for religious minorities. Various groups, like the U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF) consider her arrest and continued travel restrictions part of the Indian government’s systemic suppression of activists and NGOs working on issues involving religious minorities. Her arrest and the continued suppression of activists and NGOs raise concerns about the right from arbitrary arrest and detention (Article 9 ICCPR) and the freedom of assembly and the freedom of expression (Articles 19, 21 ICCPR). 
  • A recent report from the World Association of News Publishers exposed Indian authorities’ alleged misuse of laws like the Unlawful Activities Prevention Act and the Prevention of Money Laundering Act to suppress independent media. It focuses on the progressive news service NewsClick as a case study. If Indian authorities are misusing the law to silence dissent by independent media, this would be a violation of Article 19, ICCPR.   

 

Hate Crimes and Hate Speech against Minorities 

  • On 7 October, six men were arrested in Ghaziabad after protests erupted around Hindutva leader Yati Narsinghanand for allegedly making derogatory remarks about the Prophet Muhammad. The arrests followed clashes where stones were thrown at police. Narsinghanand has been booked in Uttar Pradesh, Maharashtra, and Telangana for hate speech after an alleged video of his inflammatory sermon from last month went viral.  
  • A traders’ body in Uttarakhand allegedly passed a resolution calling for approximately 15 Muslim families to leave the town by the end of the year. Families failing to leave face both legal and punitive consequences, and those who rent to Muslim tenants face a fine of Rs 10,000. The motivation behind the order is said to be the protection of Hindu women against members of the minority community, however, no evidence has been presented to justify these concerns. 
  • On 24 October, a right-wing group in Uttarakhand held a protest rally for the demolition of a mosque they claimed was built illegally. Senior police officials and other authorities stated that records confirm the mosque’s legal registration. The march reportedly led to injuries among both civilians and police, some participants are accused of attacking officials with stones. Reportedly, 200 people face charges like attempted murder and use of criminal force towards women. 

 

Religious Freedoms and Minority Rights 

  • In Gujarat, a Dalit family was allegedly assaulted for attending a religious dance event in early October. Other attendees, who were reportedly upper-caste Hindus, were said to have used casteist slurs and abused the family. The case is representative of growing violence against marginalised groups, including Dalits, across the country.   
  • On 3 October, the Navratri Festival, a 9-day Hindu festival, began. In two BJP-ruled states, Uttar Pradesh and Madhya Pradesh, young Muslims were attacked for joining the festival. A female Muslim artist who was invited to perform at the event was banned from performing and the electricity was cut until she left.  
  • At the same festival, a right-wing Hindu missionary group allegedly told non-Hindus to leave a dance event, threatening physical violence against those who refused to do so. At another event in Guna, Madhya Pradesh, the same group physically assaulted young Muslim people attending an event. One man was handed to the police who proceeded to assault him.  
  • On 12 October, Indian human and indigenous rights activist Dr. G.N. Saibaba, who was unlawfully incarcerated for 10 years, died. Saibaba, an ardent defender of the Adivasi community, was arrested in 2014 on charges of belonging to the illegal Communist Party of India (Maoist) and allegedly being a danger to the Indian state. He was denied access to medical care despite being over 90% disabled and even subjected to solitary confinement. His arbitrary detention is representative of a systemic rule of law breakdown in India and could be in violation of ICCPR Article 9. 
  • On 22 October, the Chief Justice of India spoke out against a recent ruling of the Allahabad High Court, striking down an act that regulated madrasa education. He shared his concerns that madrasa schools, which are religious Islamic schools, were unfairly being targeted and ‘ghettoised.’  In his remarks, the Chief Justice stressed that religious education exists for various religious groups, not just Muslims and that the Court could ensure the quality of such education without banning or restricting it.   
  • The state of Himachal Pradesh reportedly introduced a discriminatory policy forcing restaurants to publicly display the names of employees. This policy, which already exists in Uttar Pradesh and Uttarakhand, is regarded as a way to facilitate economic boycotts of Muslim businesses since names are often an indication of which religious community one belongs to. Multiple businesses in both states have already fired Muslim staff. The state administrations allege that the policy is part of a food hygiene measure, a claim that seems to support the  ‘Spit Jihad’ conspiracy theory that Muslims were contaminating Hindu food with their saliva or other impurities.  
  • On 14 October tensions flared between Hindu and Muslim communities in Bahraich. Tensions allegedly stemmed from the death of a Hindu man who was reportedly shot while replacing an Islamic flag with a Hindu symbol on top of a house in a Muslim district. In response, the Hindu community allegedly targeted multiple Muslims and their homes and businesses. In the same area, officials ordered the demolition of multiple properties, most of them belonging to Muslims and a few to disadvantaged castes. 

 

Internet and Technology 

  • Deepak Sharma, a Hindutva figure best known for spreading hate speech and islamophobia on X (formerly Twitter), had his X account suspended again. Sharma has had his account suspended multiple times over a period of several years, for consistently violating community guidelines as he continues to target minorities and post open calls to violence against the Indian Muslim community. Despite his failure to follow community guidelines, Sharma’s account has always been unsuspended, enabling him to continue to polarise Indian society and instigate violence, unchecked.  
  • Samsung India Electronics Private Ltd. (SIEPL) informed the Madras High Court that it suffered an estimated $100 million loss due to a 38-day strike by employees seeking recognition of their trade union, Samsung India Thozhilalar Sangam, affiliated with CITU. The company allegedly opposed the union’s use of “Samsung” in its name, arguing it could harm its reputation. In response, the union’s legal representative countered that this was not a trademark issue and that the Trade Unions Act of 1926 does not prohibit using a company’s name in union titles.  

 

Political Parties   

  • On 8 October, the results of the Haryana Assembly elections became known. Some candidates, like Brijendra Singh from the Indian National Congress, lost by just a few votes. The elections were a mix of success and setbacks for Haryana’s political heirs. 
  • On 12 October, Mumbai politician Baba Siddique was assassinated. Siddique, who was a member of the Nationalist Congress Party, one of the ruling parties in Maharashtra, was shot dead outside of his son’s office. The Bishnoi gang is alleged to be behind the assassination, however, police are still investigating.    
  • Prime Minister Narendra Modi renewed his membership as the first active member of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) on 16 October, marking the launch of the party’s 2024 membership drive. Modi explained that to qualify as an active member, a BJP worker must register 50 new members in a booth or Vidhan Sabha seat, which also makes them eligible to contest elections for positions in the party’s Mandal Committee and beyond. 
  • Omar Abdullah was sworn in as Chief Minister of Jammu and Kashmir on 16 October. He is the first Chief Minister since the removal of Jammu and Kashmir’s special status in 2019. Abdullah is the Vice-President of Jammy and Kashmir’s oldest regional party, the National Conference (NC), which promised to restore the autonomy and statehood to the territory.  
  • On 17 October, Nayab Singh Saini took his oath as the new Chief Minister of Haryana. This is his second term as the Chief Minister of the state.  
  • The INDIA block released the names of 21 candidates for the Jharkhand Assembly elections in late October. The Assembly elections will take place in two phases next month on 13 November and 20 November. 
  • On 18 October, the far-right Hindutva party, Shiv Sena announced that Shrikant Pangarkar, who is currently on bail for his involvement in the 2017 murder of journalist Gauri Lankesh, had been given charge of the party’s electoral campaign in one Maharashtra constituency. The next day, the party removed him from the position, following public outrage. Nearly half of the Members of Local Assemblies (MLAs) have registered cases against them; 28% have serious criminal cases against them, including attempted murder, murder, kidnapping and crimes against women. At the Union level, criminal cases have been filed against 46% of sitting MPs. The state of Maharashtra goes to the polls at the end of November.  

 

Police and authorities 

  • On 3 October, the Union Home Ministry told the Supreme Court that criminalising marital rape is ‘excessively harsh’. In an affidavit to the court, the state advised that the criminalisation of marital rape could ‘lead to serious disturbances in the institution of marriage.’ Marital rape has been criminalised in over 100 countries, however India, where 4% of women report facing sexual violence within their marriage, it is yet to be outlawed.  
  • The Supreme Court of India declined to take further police action against Jaggi Vasudev’s Isha Foundation on 3 October. This comes after the foundation’s centre was raided by police following a Madras High Court order related to criminal cases allegedly linked to the foundation. The Supreme Court has taken over the case.  
  • Academics and teachers’ groups expressed concerns after the Union government allegedly asked that all centrally funded higher educational institutions (CFHEIs) undergo regular staff reviews to ensure teachers’ “doubtful integrity.” These groups stressed that transparency around the idea of “doubtful integrity” was needed to avoid authorities’ abuse of such an opaque term to retaliate against educators with critical views of the government. 

Judiciary   

  • On 10 October, the remaining 8 accused persons in the infamous case of India’s last sati were acquitted. The almost 40-year-old case concerned 18-year-old widow Roop Kanwar, who was reportedly burnt alive against her will with the body of her husband who passed away days earlier. The practice has been banned since 1829 under the British and following her death in 1987, the glorification of sati was also banned. Despite this, several individuals stood accused of glorifying her death; most had been acquitted decades ago. 
  • On 15 October, the Madhya Pradesh High Court granted bail to a man who allegedly shouted the phrase ‘Pakistan Zindabad Hindustan Murdabad’ [Long live Pakistan, Death to India.] The conditions of his bail are that he must salute the flag of India 21 times whilst shouting the phrase ‘Bharat Mata Ki Jai [Long Live Mother India]’ twice a month.   
  • On 17 October, the Supreme Court of India stated it would hear a plea for the restoration of Jammu and Kashmir’s statehood. In 2019, the court upheld the Abrogation of Article 370, which removed special status from the then state. The court has more recently stated that statehood needs to be restored to the territory ‘at the earliest.’ 
  • On the same day, the Supreme Court found Article 6A of the Citizenship Act to be constitutional. The verdict means that Bangladeshi migrants who entered  Assam after 25 March 1971 are not entitled to Indian citizenship. This date was the beginning of the Bangladeshi Liberation War from the state of Pakistan.  
  • On 21 October, Supreme Court Chief Justice D.Y.Chandrachud allegedly said that when making his decision on the high-profile Ram Janmabhoomi-Babri Masjid case he ‘sat before the [Hindu] deity and told him he needed to find a solution.’ The Babri Mosque was demolished in 1992 by Hindutva activists who claimed the mosque had been built on land which was the birthplace of the Hindu God Lord Rama. The 2019 ruling found that the land was given to the Hindu community for a Hindu temple to be built and the Muslim community was given another piece of land to build a mosque.   
  • The Supreme Court aired its concerns that the Punjab and Haryana governments were failing to implement important environmental rulings related to stubble burning on 23 October. Stubble burning is the burning the crop residue from various grains after harvest and has been linked to air pollution. The Court raised concerns that while an Act delivering penalties for stubble burning was enacted, little was put in place to ensure its implementation. 
  • The supreme court deferred hearing various petitions for the criminalisation of marital rape on 23 October. The hearing is delayed until a Chief Justice retires and a new bench takes over in about a month’s time. Petitioners are seeking to challenge sections of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) and Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) which provide exemptions for forced-sexual intercourse (rape) against one’s wife. 

 

Business & economy 

  • Ratan Tata, leader of the Indian conglomerate Tata Group, passed away on 9 October. Despite its massive business success, Tata Steel is also known for its blatant violation of indigenous rights, displacement of Adivasi communities, and exploitation of natural resources through the state machinery. In 2006, 13 Adivasis were shot dead during protests against the building of a Tata Steel plant in Odisha. The massacre is remembered within the indigenous community as a Black Day.  
  • October 9, The Delhi High Court expressed concern over Wikipedia’s refusal to identify the editors responsible for allegedly defamatory content on the Asian News International’s (ANI) Wikipedia page. ANI filed a defamation complaint, in reaction to the platform’s claims that it acts as a “propaganda tool” for the Indian government. The court warned Wikipedia that withholding the names of editors could jeopardize its “safe harbour” protection under the Information Technology Act. Wikipedia, which allows anonymous editing by volunteers, argued for protecting user anonymity. Experts believe that the case could have a chilling effect on free speech in India (a possible violation of Article 19, ICCPR). 

India in the World 

  • On 4 September, it was reported that Russia built covert trade channels with India. In 2022, the Russian Industry and Trade Ministry allegedly planned to secure electronics, some of which would be used in the ongoing war with Ukraine, from India. Payments would have been sourced from Russian banks, which had built up significant reserves of Indian rupees from lucrative oil sales to India, via a ‘closed payment system’ out of sight for Western countries. It is not currently clear if the plan was acted upon, however, the leaked plan may demonstrate a deepening relationship between the two states.   
  • On 19 September, India abstained from voting on a UN resolution demanding Israel end its ‘unlawful presence in the Occupied Palestinian Territory.’ The resolution, adopted with a 124 votes majority comes just months after the International Court of Justice ruled that Israel’s occupation of Palestine violated international law. India’s abstention paints a murky picture of its stance, as it also condemned the occupation in the past but has so far failed to express a consistent stance. 
  • Prime Minister Narendra Modi attended the Quad Leaders’ Summit on September 21 in the United States during which members spoke about topics like improving maritime security and collaborating on clean energy. The Summit, bringing together Australia, India, Japan, and the United States was first organised by US President Joseph Biden, although the Quad alliance itself is much older. India has frequently been described as a weak and reluctant participant in this alliance, although souring relations and competition with China have made such strategic alliances, especially related to security, more beneficial for India.

Civil society, human rights defenders and journalists 

  • On 21 September junior doctors resumed some services since the start of their protest around the rape and murder of their colleague Moumita Debnath in Kolkata. The junior doctors demand changes like the suspension of some officials, the resignation of the state health secretary, and the adoption of measures to improve hospital security. 
  • On 22 September Kolkata Police arrested five organisers of the ‘Reclaim the Night’ protests, which began after the rape and murder of trainee doctor Moumita Debnath. Police claimed that organisers did not have permission to gather, booking them under the Indian Penal Code and the National Highway Act. Protestors, on the other hand, believed such efforts to be attempted intimidation by police as they claimed to have reported the peaceful protests in advance to the police. 
  • Anti-mining activist Kartik Naik of the anti-mining group Ma Maati Maali Surakhya Manch was arrested on 19 September in Kashipur. Sources state that his arrest was due to his alleged involvement in attacks on staff of a mining company in the area- a claim disputed by activists in the region. Various civil society groups and activists publicly condemned his arrest, expressing their concerns that the government is acting on behalf of the interests of mining companies while ignoring the rights of Adivasi and Dalits. If Naik’s arrest was indeed arbitrary, it could be a violation of Article 9 ICCPR against arbitrary arrest or detention. 

Hate Crimes and Hate Speech against Minorities 

  • In Bihar, the homes of more than 20 Dalits were reportedly set ablaze as part of a violent attack in early September. Residents were said to have been beaten before their houses were torched in an act of what appears to be caste-based hatred triggered by a land dispute. Minorities and rights groups continue to express concerns that cast-based oppression continues to grow under the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), as this and similar incidents took place in BJP-ruled states. 
  • During a campaign speech in Jharkhand on 15 September, Prime Minister Narendra Modi allegedly accused ‘infiltrators’ of occupying local politics. In his speech he allegedly called out Muslims from Bangladesh and Rohingya refugees in particular for their role allegedly seeking to manipulate local tribes to gain land and power. These and similar discourses, painting Muslims and refugees as infiltrators may be in violation of Article 20, ICCPR. 
  • On 10 September, a BJP politician Nitesh Rane asked real estate agents to take an oath not to work with or sell property to non-Hindus in the Mumbai suburb of Ulwe. At the gathering of brokers, Rane also remarked ‘we should only care for Hindus’. Police confirmed a police report had been registered against Mr. Rane six days later.   
  • Violence broke out in Himachal Pradesh on September 11 after a protest about a Sanjauli-area mosque, which was allegedly illegally constructed got out of control. Protestors reportedly gathered in a large crowd, breaking through police barricades and throwing stones. Reportedly 50 people were booked on charges such as promoting enmity on basis of religion.  
  • On 16 September, pro-Hindu activists in Karnataka were arrested for allegedly attacking a mosque ahead of the Eid-e-Milad festival. Tensions remained high in the region, with a special rapid action taskforce being established for the period of the Eid-e-Milad celebrations due to the area’s propensity for communal and religious violence.

Religious Freedoms and Minority Rights 

  • On 5 September, 28 Bengali Muslims were reportedly detained as ‘declared foreigners’ in Assam and deported to the infamous Matia transit camp. As of 22 August, 54,411 people had already been labelled as ‘declared foreigners’ since 2005. Under Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma (BJP), detentions have only increased. NGOs have intervened to aid those deported and their families, providing legal assistance and even managing to overturn some Tribunal decisions. 

Internet and Technology 

  • On 25 September the Central government informed the Karnataka High Court that X (formerly Twitter) did not need to know the reasons behind account blocks ordered in 2021 and 2022. X requested access to government orders detailing the reason for the blocks and approached the court more than a year after a single judge dismissed the platform’s case, stating that the ordered blocks were a matter of state policy which would not be shared with a ‘foreign entity engaged in speculative litigation.’ This incident raises grave concerns about the lack of transparency in the way the government polices online speech. 
  • X reportedly told the Delhi High Court that the blocking of Hindutva Watch’s X account was ‘unjustified and disproportionate’ on 28 September. The account of Hindutva Watch, an independent research project monitoring attacks on Muslims and other minorities in India by Hindutva groups, was restricted since January on the legal order of the government. The restriction of this and other websites and social media accounts of NGOs and activists potentially represents a violation of Article 19 ICCPR.

Political Parties  

  • Sitaram Yechury, a massive figure in India’s leftist movement passed away on 12 September at the age of 72 after battling an illness. General secretary of India’s Communist Party (Marxist), Yechury is dedicated his political life to taking on majoritarian ideologies and advocating for religious freedom. He was also a major and well-known figure on the Indian left. 
  • Following the passing of Sitaram Yechury on 12 September, former CPI(M) general secretary Prakash Karat was reportedly announced as an interim coordinator of the polit bureau and the central committee of the party. Karat will stay in the position left vacant by Yechury until the 24th party congress in April 2025. 
  • Arvind Kejriwal, one of the most prominent opposition leaders and Chief Minister of Delhi, resigned from his position during the weekend of 14-15 September. Kejriwal’s resignation came shortly after he was released from prison on bail; the former Aam Aadmi Party leader remarked that he would only return as leader of the party if the people of Delhi gave him a ‘certificate of honesty.’ Kejriwal’s imprisonment was controversial as he was the third AAP leader to be imprisoned on corruption charges after the BJP government was accused of using investigative agencies to target the opposition.    
  • On 23 September, The Opposition demanded that Tamil Nadu Governor RN Ravi be removed after he allegedly made comments that ‘secularism is a European concept’ and that ‘…in India, there is no need for secularism.’ Various opposition politicians stressed that the Indian constitution outlines a secular India, thus respect for the constitution includes respect for secularism too. 
  • On 25 September, the first stage of voting took place in Jammu and Kashmir’s assembly elections, the first such elections in a decade. The elections will feature many well-known faces like former Chief Minister Omar Abdullah, Tariq Hameed Karra, Altaf Bukhari, and Sarjan Barkati, who remains behind bars. Over 9 million people voted for 90 legislative seats.  

Police and authorities 

  • On 10 September, David Bradbury, Australian filmmaker known for his film on the 2012 Kudankulam Nuclear Plant Protests , was detained by authorities at the Chennai airport when trying to enter India with his two children. While his children were allowed to pass immigration, Bradbury was detained for reportedly over 24 hours, during which time it is said he was denied access to the Australian embassy, his medications, and a toilet before being expelled from the country. He believes his detention and deportation to be related to his coverage of protests at the Kudankulam nuclear power plant. Activists and others are regularly denied entry into India due to the nature of their work.  
  • On 12 September two Bengali Muslim teens were allegedly shot dead by Assam police officers during a forced eviction drive. Violence reportedly broke out as police attempted to evict people living in makeshift housing in a Kachutali village, after the recently evicted protested against police. Former residents stress that they bought the land on which they built their homes following the erosion of their former living quarters.  
  • A 32-year-old woman was arrested and allegedly physically and sexually assaulted by police officers inside the station on 15 September. A video of her account has since gone viral amid increasing anger at police brutality across the country. Retired Justice Chitta Ranjan Dash has been tasked with holding an inquiry into the assault, which has also brought women’s rights and safety to the fore.  
  • A Chhattisgarh IPS officer has been suspended after a prisoner died in his custody on 18 September. The deceased was just one of 69 individuals arrested on 15 September after a mob allegedly torched the home of a village deputy. Just one day after being taken to jail, the man was sent to hospital with injuries, where he died before being admitted. Others detained reported that they were beaten severely by police and denied water. 
  • On 27 September students were arrested by the police in Delhi after voting closed in the Delhi University Students Union elections. The police allegedly only attacked students who were part of the opposition to the right-wing government. Police are said to have used slurs such as ‘terrorist’ against multiple Muslim students and one student was reportedly beaten before being taken into custody. Upon release, the student tried to file a police report against the officer who attacked him but the police allegedly refused to file a First Incident Report against the officer.  

Judiciary  

  • In early September, Karkardooma Courts in Delhi acquitted 10 Muslims in the 2020 Delhi pogrom case after concluding that the prosecution did not present sufficient evidence. The group faced charges related to rioting, arson, theft, and vandalism, however, many witnesses appeared to change or recant their statements, with several unable to identify the accused.  
  • On 11th September, Prime Minister Modi visited the home of India’s Chief Justice to celebrate a 10-day Hindu festival, called Ganesh Chaturthi. The visit sparked outrage, calling into question the independence of the country’s judiciary. The Congress General Secretary remarked that the move was in ‘contravention of all principles of judicial separation’. Modi addressed the criticism at a rally in Odisha, alleging that Congress is using the British colonial strategy of divide and rule to divide Indian society.  
  • India’s Supreme Court granted bail to opposition leader Arvind Kejriwal on 13 September, months after his arrest. The court held that while his arrest, after a long corruption probe, was lawful, that ‘prolonged incarceration amounts to unjust deprivation of liberty.’ India is notorious for long incarcerations awaiting trial, which are often without bail, a potential violation of Article 9 ICCPR. 
  • On 17 September, the Supreme Court issued a directive staying demolitions in India without permission until the first of October. The directive, which does not apply to unauthorised constructions in some public places, is an attempt to curb the bulldozing of properties as a punitive measure, which is not allowed in Indian law and likely violates the right to shelter (Article 11, ICESCR). 
  • On 18 September, Scottish Sikh activist, Jagtar Singh Johal was denied bail seven years after being arrested. The arrest, which has been called arbitrary by a UN human rights panel, was based on alleged terror offences. Johal, who frequently campaigned for the rights of Sikhs in Punjab was reportedly tortured then forced to sign blank pieces of paper and record statements to end the torture. Arbitrary arrest and detentions, as well as excessively long detentions without trial violate Article 9 ICCPR. 
  • The Bombay High Court struck down an IT rule provision that allowed the Centre Government to establish a fact-checking unit on 20 September. The Court’s decision breaks the tie of a January 2024 split verdict allowing the Centre to form a fact-checking unit to act against content it identified as ‘fake news’. Digital rights groups raised the alarm that the amendment would be unconstitutional and undemocratic, allowing the ruling party the right to exercise arbitrary power to potentially limit press freedom. Such restrictions could be a violation of ICCPR, Article 19. 
  • The United Nations Special Rapporteur on Adequate Housing, Balakrishnan Rajagopal, told the Supreme Court of India that arbitrary and punitive demolitions of property are an ‘aggravated form of human rights violations.’ In the 27 September report, Rajagopal remarked that the country has seen a ‘worrying rise of evictions of mostly marginalised and poor communities in recent years.’  He added that demolitions to commercial or domestic properties which are alleged to have slightly violated regulations is a ‘disproportionate measure.’    

Business & economy 

  • Samsung Electronics’ Indian branch sued members of an Indian labour union which led to an 11-day strike in Tamil Nadu. The lawsuit, filed on 12 September seeks to restrain the union and its members from striking or stoking future strikes at the Chennai-area plant. Hundreds of Samsung workers have allegedly been striking for higher wages and recognition of their union since 9 September. Samsung is facing a myriad of issues in India due to planned job cuts and the pressure from an Indian anti-trust body. 
  • The government removed minimum export price on onions ahead of Maharashtra assembly elections in mid-September. Previously, the government placed a minimum price threshold of $550 per tonne on all onions exported, which prevented farmers from selling their onions abroad for cheaper rates. This move may benefit the government since Maharashtra is a key onion-growing state. 
  • Modi attended a roundtable with several American tech CEOs on 23 September. During the roundtable, he reiterated his plans to propel India to the world’s third largest economy by 2029, drawing attention to India’s rapid growth in electronics and information technology manufacturing and semiconductors industries. 
  • Congress MP Jairam Ramesh once again wrote to Environment Minister Bhupender Yadav on 28 September regarding his concerns that the ANIIDCO (Andaman and Nicobar Islands Integrated Development Corporation) was inviting expressions of interest for the development of land, while there were still disputes as to whether the land could be developed. A counter-affidavit was filed by the Ministry in the National Green Tribunal (NGT) regarding the potential development of biodiversity-rich forests. There are multiple legal and environmental concerns surrounding the massive development of the area.  
  • The Minister of Commerce and Industry, Piyush Goyal travelled to the US on 30 September for discussions on expanding and diversifying the critical mineral supply chain between the two countries. These minerals are commonly used in the manufacturing of clean energy technologies. Goyal is also visiting the US to co-chair the India-USA CEO Forum and India-USA Commercial Dialogue, both taking place in early October. The proposed expansion of the mineral supply chain is deeply concerning, as the Indian government continues to violate the rights of Adivasi peoples to ensure complete access to their mineral-rich land.  

Manipur 

Since the start of the ethnic conflict in May 2023, more than 200 people have been killed, with hundreds injured and more than 60,000 displaced. Places of worship, especially those of the Christian-majority Kuki community have been destroyed as the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) state government has either failed to react or stoked hatred.   

  • On the first day of September, drones and drop explosives were reportedly used to attack two Meitei-dominated villages. When commenting on the attacks, which seemed to have originated from Kuki-Zo inhabited areas, a state government official noted that the drones could have been assembled locally, while the ammunition could have been stolen from police armouries.  
  • In an interview with The Wire published on 3 September, Bimol Akoijam, a Congress MP from Manipur placed blame on Minister Narendra Modi, Home Minister Amit Shah and the BJP over the violence in his state. Akoijam shared his suspicion that the violence was a political plot to ‘neutralise’ both tribal groups and use ethnic tensions between them for political gain, citing the unique geopolitical role of Manipur as well. 
  • On 6 September, a violent flare-up in Manipur allegedly left six people dead and multiple villages destroyed. 
  • On 7 September, at least five people were reportedly killed – one was said to be a sleeping civilian and the other four were described as ‘armed persons.’ Officers reporting to the scene were also fired upon. The state government ordered the closure of all schools the same day to protect students and teachers.  
  • In early September, a large crowd reportedly demanded the withdrawal of the Union government’s forces from the state during protests in Imphal. Protesters, including students, argued that the forces are failing to effectively control the violence from the hill areas.  
  • On10 September, retired army personnel Limkholoi Mate from the Kuki-Zo community, was allegedly attacked and killed in a Meitei-dominated area, highlighting deepening communal tensions. Governor Lakshman Prasad Acharya called for calm amidst the ongoing violence. 
  • In early September, 11 people were allegedly killed over the span of 10 days as fresh violence erupted in the nearly year-and-a half-long ethnic conflict. Police imposed a curfew in several Manipur districts and the internet is suspended. 
  • On 10 September, a 5-day internet blackout was imposed by the state government in parts of the capital, Imphal. Despite a European Union Urgency Resolution, the state government has continued to introduce internet blackouts and curfews, alleging they are imposed to curb the spread of disinformation and rumours online. In reality, these measures suffocate civil society, stop people from being able to fact-check disinformation, and disrupt contact with loved ones during the ongoing conflict.   

India in the world 

  • India was scheduled to participate in a human rights dialogue with the EU on 20 August. Civil society groups urged the EU to press Indian authorities on issues like restrictions on religious rights and freedoms and the country’s crackdown on dissent in the civic and political space– both violations of Articles 18 and 19 ICCPR. Unfortunately, the dialogue did not proceed and was suspended indefinitely. While an official cause has not been given, the cancellation mirrors a trend of India evading or postponing various human rights-centred dialogues.   

Hate Crimes and Hate Speech against Minorities 

  • On August 1, attackers set the Anjuman Jama mosque in Gurugram ablaze, killing a deputy imam. This unfolded after clashes erupted in the neighbouring Nuh district between a Hindu religious procession and Muslims. Authorities imposed a curfew and suspended the internet, but the unrest spread, damaging Muslim-owned properties and businesses in Gurugram and nearby towns. Haryana Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar announced that 116 people were arrested in connection with the violence. 
  • On August 9, the administration of RG Kar Medical College discovered the body of a second-year postgraduate trainee doctor, Moumita Debnath in a seminar hall. The police launched an investigation and conducted an autopsy, which revealed that she had been raped and murdered, sparking widespread outrage and protests across the city. The incident sheds light on the dangers faced by millions of Indian women in the workplace who face barriers related to harassment and assault.  
  • Shortly after the rape and murder of RG Kar Medical College trainee, Moumita Debnath, a protest movement called ‘Reclaim the Night’ erupted on the streets of India. In this movement, women take to the streets demanding security, dignity, and proper access to justice for women country-wide. Although Debnath’s murder inspired these protests, women in India (and globally) regularly face extreme sexual violence, a trend that even cuts through social and economic lines. 
  • On August 20-21, a food delivery agent was allegedly assaulted by four men who also subjected him to communal slurs and held him hostage for over an hour. The victim claimed they targeted him because he is Muslim. The police have arrested one suspect and are searching for the others. 
  • On August 24, amid rising tensions and calls for Miya Muslims to leave Assamese-dominant areas, attackers targeted two Muslim men in the region. Both were attacked for being Muslim. Baksa police arrested three suspects involved in the assaults. 
  • A migrant worker was allegedly beaten to death by members of a cow vigilante group in Charkhi Dadri district, Haryana on August 27 in an attack that stemmed from suspicions of beef consumption. Seven individuals, including two minors, have been arrested in connection with the incident. Cow vigilantism, when religious minorities are assaulted or killed by vigilante groups who allegedly do so to protect cows, is a rampant issue in India. Rights organisations raise concerns that the Indian government and other officials often turn a blind eye or actively enable to such vigilante groups. 
  • On August 30, three youths assaulted an elderly Muslim man on a train near Igatpuri, Maharashtra, after accusing him of carrying beef. Despite video evidence showing them punching the man and using anti-Muslim slurs, police charged the attackers under bailable sections of the official criminal code and released them on bail within a day.  
  • The Joint Committee on the Waqf (Amendment) Bill 2024 clashed over a clause allowing district collectors to arbitrarily oversee Waqf properties during an August 31 debate. Opponents stressed that the clause may disproportionately affect religious minorities, especially Muslims. Waqf properties, central to Muslim religious and charitable practices, have traditionally been governed by specialized boards to safeguard their religious significance.  
  • On August 31, Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma defended the decision to eliminate the two-hour adjournment for Jumma prayers in the Assam Legislative Assembly.    

Elections and Political Parties 

  • On August 7, Rahul Gandhi criticized the government’s plan to recruit public servants through lateral entry, calling it an “anti-national step.” The Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha claimed that Prime Minister Modi is bypassing the Union Public Service Commission in favour of using the RSS to source recruits. Gandhi’s remarks followed the announcement that 45 specialists would soon be appointed to key posts such as joint secretaries, directors, and deputy secretaries in various Central ministries. 
  • On August 22, the Congress Party began a nationwide protest, demanding the resignation of SEBI Chief Madhabi Puri Buch amid allegations of conflict of interest and corruption. The party is also pushing for a joint parliamentary committee to investigate the matter. 
  • Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah and Deputy Chief Minister D. K. Shivakumar arrived in Delhi on August 23 for key meetings with top Congress leaders. The discussions centred on strategizing for the upcoming High Court hearing on the Mysuru Urban Development Authority (MUDA) ‘scam,’ which allegedly involved illegal land dealings linked to Siddaramaiah and his wife.   
  • On August 24, Congress leader Rahul Gandhi demanded a comprehensive caste census during the Samvidhan Samman Sammelan [Constitution Honor Meeting]. He stressed that the caste census is crucial for fair policy-making and must account for all communities. 
  • Prime Minister Narendra Modi was announced as the lead campaigner for the BJP in the upcoming assembly elections in Jammu and Kashmir. Union Home Minister Amit Shah, Defence Minister Rajnath Singh, BJP national president J.P. Nadda, and Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath were also named among the 40-star campaigners submitted to the Election Commission. 
  • On August 28, the Secularwadi Muslim Front announced plans to march from Kolhapur on August 30 to address the lack of Muslim representation in Maharashtra’s recent parliamentary elections. The Front aims to ensure proportional representation of Muslims in upcoming state assembly elections. 
  • On August 30, former Jharkhand Chief Minister Champai Soren joined the BJP, just two days after resigning from the Jharkhand Mukti Morcha (JMM). He cited dissatisfaction with the state government’s current style of functioning and policies as reasons for leaving the JMM. 
  • On August 31, the Election Commission of India postponed the polling date of the Haryana Assembly elections from October 1 to October 5 to accommodate the Bishnoi community’s observance citing the Asoj Amavasya festival. The Bishnoi community, a religious group in Northern India celebrates this spiritual festival, which marks the new moon. The postponement ensures that members of this community can participate in the elections without forgoing their religious observances.  
  • The Assembly elections in Jammu and Kashmir, a region with a complex political and security situation, will take place in three phases on September 18, September 25, and October 1. This phased approach is designed to manage logistical challenges and ensure voter security in the politically sensitive region. 
  • Indian wrestler, Vinesh Phogat, who missed out on a gold medal at the Paris Olympics this summer, is set to run in the Haryana assembly elections held in early October. Phogat comes from rural Haryana, a conservative area known for its wrestling culture where several women wrestlers have challenged traditional gender norms and taken up the popular sport. The three-time Olympian has previously engaged in activist work around the sexual harassment of female wrestlers and the farmers’ protests of 2024. 

Judiciary 

  • The Supreme Court granted bail to Aam Aadmi Party leader Manish Sisodia in Enforcement Directorate (ED) and Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) cases brought against him under the Prevention of Corruption Act and Prevention of Money Laundering Act. The Court set conditions for Sisodia’s bail and emphasized that prolonged custody without trial undermines justice, reinforcing that bail should be the norm and jail the exception.  
  • On August 18, the Supreme Court took up the aforementioned case of Moumita Debnath on its own motion. The case was prioritized over others on the same day. 
  • The Supreme Court stated that hate speech against all religions must be treated equally and handled according to the law on August 18. It emphasized that state police must address hate speech impartially and in line with legal standards. It is actively monitoring hate speech cases and seeks to establish formal local law enforcement mechanisms. 
  • On August 23, the Bombay High Court issued a restraining order against Opposition Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) from organizing a planned statewide strike in Maharashtra. The MVA called the strike in response to a sexual assault case in Badlapur. Following the court’s order, the MVA withdrew the strike. 
  • The Kerala Film Producers’ Association (KFPA), which works to resolve women’s complaints and support police complaints about criminal actions at film locations supported a Kerala High Court order to submit a full report detailing the difficulties women in the Malayalam film industry face. The group expressed concern that the redacted report, made public previously supported the misconception that everyone in the industry was similarly abusive. 
  • The Supreme Court asked the Gujarat government to respond to former IPS officer Sanjiv Bhatt’s plea challenging his life imprisonment conviction in a 1990 custodial death case on August 27. Bhatt is contesting the Gujarat High Court’s January 9 decision, which upheld his conviction and that of co-accused Pravinsinh Zala. Human rights groups stress that Bhatt’s conviction is the result of trumped up charges and a poorly investigated case. 

Executive  

  • The Assam Assembly passed the Assam Compulsory Registration of Muslim Marriages and Divorces Bill, 2024 on August 10. This new legislation, replacing the Muslim Marriages and Divorces Act of 1935, aims to register Muslim marriages and divorces with specific conditions– proponents of the bill emphasized that it will help address issues such as child marriage and polygamy. 
  • A  Delhi court requested the National Investigation Agency (NIA) respond to jailed Kashmiri parliamentarian Sheikh Abdul Rashid’s application for regular bail on August 20. Rashid was arrested in 2017 for allegedly funding terrorist groups but won the 2024 Lok Sabha elections.  
  • On August 23, India addressed an incident in which copies of the Guru Granth Sahib, an important Sikh religious scripture, were seized by Qatari authorities. The India External Affairs Ministry confirmed that the government is prioritizing the matter and has engaged Qatar. The seizure involved two copies of the Guru Granth Sahib from groups accused of operating religious establishments without Qatari approval. 
  • On August 27, a Bangladeshi student at the National Institute of Technology was sent back to Bangladesh after reacting with a ‘love’ emoji to an anti-India post on social media. Local police clarified that it was not a deportation but a return arranged in consultation with Bangladeshi authorities. 

Tech and Internet 

  • Journalist bodies demanded that Uttar Pradesh withdraw Clause 7(2) from its Digital Media Policy-2024. They criticized the clause for granting the State government broad powers to label content as “anti-social” or “anti-national,” potentially targeting legitimate journalism. They also warned that the clause creates a conflict of interest by enabling the government to penalize critics and undermine independent journalism. The clause may violate freedom of expression and journalists’ safety (Article 19, ICCPR).  
  • The Ministry of Information and Broadcasting proposed a new Broadcasting Services (Regulation) Bill on August 7. The draft bill, shared confidentially with select stakeholders, would impose stringent regulations on independent news creators on platforms like YouTube, Instagram, and X. This may infringe on freedom of speech and grant excessive powers to the government, which would be a violation of freedom of expression (Article 19, ICCPR). 
  • On August 26, the Indian government launched an investigation into Telegram over concerns about its involvement in activities like extortion and gambling. The probe could potentially lead to a ban on the app and follows the arrest of Telegram’s Russian-born founder, Pavel Durov, in Paris two days earlier. 

India in the World

  • On July 2, the UN Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination (CERD) called on India to end the arbitrary detention of Rohingya who fled Myanmar to India and refrain from forcible deportation and returns to Myanmar, where they would risk being subjected to serious human rights violations and abuses. While India is not a signatory of the Refugee Convention, it signed (but has not ratified) the Convention against Torture, which prohibits state parties to return refugees to countries with consistent patterns of gross human rights violations (Article 3). In addition, the right to liberty and the right to life are protected under the ICCPR.
  • On July 3, news reported on the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) outcomes of their plenary session from June 26 to 28, in which over 200 jurisdictions and observers from international organisations participated in discussions on key money laundering (ML), terrorism financing (TF) and proliferation financing (PF) The Plenary concluded that India has reached a “high level of technical compliance” with the FATF requirements and its regime to counter ML, TF and PF is achieving good results. However, it expressed concern that India needs to ensure that counter-TF measures are not abused when targeting the non-profit sector.
  • On July 10, Protect Democracy, a non-profit and US democracy watchdog, updated its Authoritarian Threat Index which counts India as among countries facing a “severe” authoritarian threat. India has the worst rating amongst countries surveyed, with a score of 3.5/5.
  • On July 8-9, Prime Minister Narendra Modi visited Russia to meet with his “friend Russian President Vladimir Putin”. Discussions reportedly covered the areas of “energy, security, trade, investment, health, education, culture, tourism and people-to-people exchanges”. Modi also indicated that the war in Ukraine is on the agenda for talks: On July 9, Modi told Putin that a “peace dialogue does not succeed amidst bombs, guns and bullets” and no solution to any conflict is possible on the battlefield. Putin reportedly agreed to release all Indian military recruits serving Russia’s Armed Forces on Russia-Ukraine warfront. On July 4, the US Ambassador to India Eric Garcetti and Australian Deputy Prime Minister and Defense Minister Richard Marles had mentioned having had regular conversations with India on Ukraine and Gaza. On July 10, after Modi’s trip to Russia, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said he held a “fruitful discussion” with Austrian Chancellor Karl Nehammer during which they discussed in detail the ongoing disputes in the world, including the war in Ukraine and situation in the Middle East. Modi also said India and Austria identified new possibilities to further strengthen mutual cooperation and prepared a blueprint for cooperation for the coming decade. On July 29, news reported that New Delhi and Kyiv are discussing a possible “high-level visit” in August, potentially involving Prime Minister Modi visiting Ukraine.
  • On July 15 and 16, India underwent the first review of its respect for the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR) since 1997. Ahead of the review, the Human Rights Committee received 35 reports from civil society groups, which critically engaged with India’s submission and its claim of having undergone “considerable progress in developing a strong and elaborate legal and institutional framework for the promotion and protection of human rights”. The reports were used by the committee of 18 independent experts during the review to question India. India evaded or loosely answered questions regarding its weaponization on anti-terror laws to punish dissent, the lack of investigation into extrajudicial killings, and the lack of indigenous and lower castes rights Generally, India defended its position by referring to the different laws and institutions put in place to safeguard human rights; however, India’s delegation rarely elaborated on how the laws were being applied by institutions in practice. India also frequently used denial strategies to counter civil society accusations. In its concluding report, the Human Rights Committee maintained concerns regarding the use of counter terror laws, the targeting of civil society through excessive searches and seizures, arbitrary arrests and detentions, and the systemic discrimination and violence against tribes and lower castes.
  • On July 25, India’s External Affairs Minister Jaishankar met his Chinese counterpart, Wang Yi, to discuss the military standoff in eastern Ladakh to stabilise and rebuild bilateral relations. Border tensions between India and China increased since June 2020 when a confrontation between Indian and Chinese soldiers took place in Ladakh’s Galwan Valley. To date, the standoff has killed 20 Indian soldiers and 4 Chinese soldiers. Both Foreign Ministers agreed to disengagement, reiterating previous statements from both parties favoring “peace and tranquility” in the region.

 

Civil society, human rights defenders and journalists

  • The new Article19 Global Expression Report 2024 ranked India at 123/161 countries, concluding that freedom of expression is in “crisis” in India. India therefore falls within the lowest category in the ranking, compared to last year when India was in the category “highly restricted”.
  • On July 6, the Uttar Pradesh police filed a case against two journalists and three others for stating on social media that a Muslim man had been lynched by a mob. On July 7, the Uttar Pradesh police filed a case against a YouTube channel for reporting on the same incident. The cases against them allege they promoted enmity between different groups through their reporting on the reported hate crime. These cases are likely in violation of the freedom of expression (Article 19, ICCPR) and raise concerns about the state’s ability to tackle hate crime (prohibited under article 20, ICCPR).
  • On July 8, police detained two anti-dam activists in Arunachal Pradesh state, and reportedly held them in preventive custody for ten hours as they were allegedly likely to cause a “public order issue”. The two activists were reportedly planning to organize a peaceful protest against a contentious hydroelectric project. The incident is likely to violate the right to peaceful assembly and freedom of expression (Articles 21, 19, ICCPR). In addition, preventative custody raises concerns about arbitrary detention (Article 9, ICCPR).
  • On July 8, the Supreme Court agreed to examine the pleas filed by the Delhi Police challenging the high court’s order granting bail to four convicts, who were sentenced to life imprisonment in the 2008 murder case of TV journalist Soumya Vishwanathan. The incident had raised serious concerns about the state’s ability to protect freedom of expression and journalists’ safety (Article 19, ICCPR).
  • On July 11, news reported that police had arrested a prominent lawyer, who is the former president of the Jammu and Kashmir High Court Bar Association, under the draconian Public Safety Act. According to his family, police arrested him at 1am without an arrest warrant, for allegedly having “potential for mobilizing public participation” and “creating disorder through protests” against the unilateral abrogation of Article 370. The incident raises grave concerns about the use of arbitrary detention (Article 9, ICCPR).
  • On July 16, the Karnataka High Court granted bail to three men accused in the 2017 murder of journalist Gauri Lankesh. The bail raises concerns about the state’s ability to address and remedy violations of the right to life (Article 6, ICCPR).
  • On July 18, thirteen Indian diaspora organizations issued a joint statement urging the Indian government to stop the persecution of writer Arundhati Roy and former professor Sheikh Showkat Hussain. On July 19, the International Bar Association’s Human Rights Institute also issued a statement condemning the decision by the Lieutenant Governor of Delhi to advance the case under the anti-terror Unlawful Activities Prevention Act (UAPA) against Roy. The use of the anti-terror law to stifle dissent is likely a violation of the freedom of expression (Article 19, ICCPR).
  • On July 22, the Delhi High Court heard a bail hearing of human rights defender and student activist Umar Khalid, who has been in pre-trial detention for over 1400 days. Khalid is accused under the anti-terror law Unlawful Activities Prevention Act (UAPA) for his participation in peaceful protests against the discriminatory Citizenship Amendment Act. Khalid has repeatedly seen his bail petitions delayed and rejected: His bail applications have been delayed 14 times in the Supreme Court over the last four years. Khalid’s detention likely violates the freedom of expression, the right to a timely trial and freedom from arbitrary detention, and the freedom of peaceful assembly (Articles 19, 9, 21, ICCPR).
  • In July, news first reported that South Asian University in Delhi issued a notice to a scholar for citing Noam Chomsky’s criticism of Prime Minister Narendra Modi in his doctoral research proposal. The scholar received the notice for quoting a 2021 interview of Chomsky where he said that Modi came from a “radical Hindutva tradition” and was trying to “dismantle Indian secular democracy” and “impose Hindu technocracy”. The scholar’s supervisor also resigned. The incident is likely a violation of the freedom of expression (Article 19, ICCPR).
  • On July 29, journalists staged a protest outside Parliament after being removed from Parliament’s Makar Dwar where they usually talk to MPs. On the same day, the speaker of the Parliament met the protesting reporters and promised to resolve all matters relating to restrictions on movement and the media’s coverage of Parliament. The removal of press could be a violation of the freedom to receive and impart information (Article 19, ICCPR).

 

Hate Crimes and Hate Speech against Minorities

News reported of 13 lynchings taking place between June 4 and July 7, with four in Chhattisgarh, five in West Bengal, two in Uttar Pradesh, one in Gujarat, and one in Jharkhand. It is the ninth lynching of a Muslim man since June 4; one Christian woman and three lower-caste Hindus were the other victims. More similar incidents took place throughout July. Many of these incidents are likely violations of the right to life, and the prohibition of enticement to discrimination and violence (Articles 6, 20, ICCPR). Here are some examples of hate crimes:

  • On July 4, a mob beat to death a man from the Muslim community in Uttar Pradesh state, for alleged theft. Police reportedly filed a case for “culpable homicide”, rather than the newly enacted crime of “lynching”.
  • On July 7, another mob reportedly killed a man from the Muslim community on suspicion of theft in West Bengal state.
  • On July 14, a Hindu supremacist mob reportedly entered a village in Maharashtra state and vandalized properties belonging to Muslim families, including homes and places of worship. This comes after a local former MP reportedly launched a campaign demanding an “encroachment-free” village, despite a high court order protecting local places of worship from demolition.
  • On July 17, at least four people reportedly attacked a 24-year-old man from the Dalit community (formerly “untouchable”, a historically dehumanized group of people outside of the caste system). They attacked him at a bus stop, as retaliation for uploading a picture of him wearing sunglasses on his social media.
  • On July 21, a group of Hindu pilgrims reportedly vandalized a car and thrashed its owner in the presence of policemen. Surveillance camera footage shows the incident, which came after the pilgrims alleged that the car had “damaged” their ritual object, of which there is no evidence. Police later filed a case against them.
  • On July 14, a family attacked and killed a man from the Dalit (formerly “untouchable”) community. The man had married their daughter, from a different caste, just two months prior, of which the parents disapproved. According to the daughter, she had approached the police station seeking protection after threats to her husband’s life, which the police reportedly ignored.

Religious Freedoms and Minority Rights

  • On July 2, at least 121 people (mostly women) died in a stampede in Uttar Pradesh state at a religious gathering for the Hindu guru, Bhole Baba. Bhole is from the Dalit (“untouchable”) community, a historically dehumanized group of people outside of India’s caste system, and many of his followers are also from “lower castes”, female and/or poor. A special investigation team investigating the stampede submitted its report to the Uttar Pradesh Government saying that “the administration allowed religious gathering in Hathras without the inspection of the spot or venue”, and that ‘the local administration and police took the event lightly and never informed the seniors about the same”. The stampede raises questions about the authorities’ safeguarding of the right to life (Article 6, ICCPR).
  • On July 5, the Assam government sent a letter to the state’s border police requesting it to send Muslims who entered India illegally before 2014 to Foreigners Tribunals. These tribunals are quasi-judicial bodies that decide their own procedure, and have been used to designate residents as “foreigners” if they do not have what they consider sufficient paperwork to prove their citizenship. On July 11, the Supreme Court of India held that authorities cannot accuse people of being foreigners on mere suspicion, thus criticizing the Foreigners Tribunal. The government letter indicates that cases of Hindu, Sikh, Buddhist, Parsi, Jain, and Christian people who entered India illegally before 2014 should not be forwarded to the Foreigners Tribunals – only Muslims. This comes after India enacted the Citizenship Amendment Act, which held that only non-Muslims can apply for expedited citizenship, sparking fears of Muslims being rendered stateless. The request raises concerns about religious discrimination in front of the law, prohibited by Article 26, ICCPR.
  • On July 9, the Mumbai Police reportedly told the Mumbai High Court that it did not consider the word “jihadi” to be discriminatory towards Muslims in India. This comes in the context of the police’s refusal to file a first information report against several Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leaders for “hurting religious sentiments”. Words such as “jihadi”, “Bangladeshi” and “Rohingya” are routinely used to antagonize Indian Muslims, presenting them as “outsiders” to the imagined Hindu nation. This likely violates the prohibition of advocating discrimination on religious bases (Article 20, ICCPR).
  • On July 10, a collective of university professors wrote to the Vice Chancellor of Delhi University objecting to the plan to introduce the “Manusmriti” in its undergraduate programme subject on “Jurisprudence”. The Manusmriti is an ancient Hindu legal text, which, among other things, sets forward the discriminatory caste system as social order. Caste discrimination is officially prohibited under Indian constitutional law and violates the prohibition of discrimination (Article 26, ICCPR).
  • On July 10, locals alleged that Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) workers beat approximately fifteen people from the Muslim community with sticks to prevent them from voting in local polls. One resident alleged that one of them fired a firearm in the air, and a BJP associate was seen roaming around with a pistol afterwards. The incidents are likely gross violations of the right to vote (Article 25, ICCPR).
  • On July 13, authorities in one district in Uttar Pradesh state directed all food stalls and hotels along the route of a Hindu pilgrimage to display the names of their owners. On July 19, authorities in another district in Uttarakhand state issued a similar directive, allegedly to ensure “customer safety.” The Minority Rights Committee Gujarat and human rights experts expressed concern that this is “discriminatory” and a tool for “anti-Muslim violence”. The concerns stem from repeated incidents of religiously motivated and caste-based violence against food vendors, including calls for a social boycott of Muslims. Religion and/or caste can be identified through names. Several petitions were filed in the Supreme Court, which on July 21 stayed the directives. On the same day, however, another district in Madhya Pradesh state also issued such a directive. On July 26, the Supreme Court extended its interim order, saying one “can’t force anyone to disclose names”.
  • On July 14, a group of Hindu supremacists reportedly disrupted a Christian prayer meeting in Dehradun, accusing the participants of conducting mass conversions. The attackers reportedly vandalized the prayer room. Eleven Indian states have enacted so-called “anti-conversion” laws, which are often used to accuse Christians of illegal conversion activities. These incidents are likely violations of the freedom of religion (Article 18, ICCPR).
  • On July 16, a Hindu priest submitted a false police complaint alleging that two men from the Muslim community had broken an idol of Ganesha (a Hindu god). Police later discovered that the priest had broken it himself and falsely implicated the two men and initiated legal action.
  • On July 29, the Uttar Pradesh government tabled a bill in the Assembly to make the state Prohibition of Unlawful Conversion of Religion Act, 2021, stricter. The government has proposed increasing the maximum punishment from 10 years to life imprisonment, allowing any person to file a complaint and making bail more difficult. The Prohibition of Unlawful Conversion of Religion Act was passed by the Uttar Pradesh Assembly in 2021 to criminalize religious conversion through marriage, deceit, coercion or enticement. The legislation has been widely used to crack down on religious leaders from discriminated faiths: a US government report on religious freedom in India from 2021 cites at least 71 Christian leaders being arrested in Uttar Pradesh after Hindu nationalists accused them of carrying out illegal conversions, and numerous Muslim clerics have also been detained for enticing people to convert to Islam. The bill is likely in violation of the freedom of religion (Article 18, ICCPR).
  • On July 29, the People’s Union for Democratic Rights reported that 81 out of the 89 communal violence incidents in the city of Nuh, Haryana, from July 2023 and August 2023 lacked any independent or corroborating evidence for arrests. The findings of the report raise grave concerns regarding the right to a fair trial and the prohibition of arbitrary arrests (Articles 9, ICCPR) and the prohibition of torture (Article 7, ICCPR; Article 2, Convention against Torture).

Internet and Technology

  • On July 14, news reported that the Central Bureau of Investigation filed a first information reportalleging that thousands of Indians have been trafficked to Southeast Asian countries where they are forced to work as cyber criminals at “Chinese control scam centers”.
  • On July 16, a Congress party leader filed a police complaint alleging that his iPhone had been targeted by spyware. He had received threat notifications from Apple on July 9 and 11. At least three other people associated with political parties said in the preceding week that they received similar threat warnings from Apple. It is not clear who the source of the threat is, and Apple specified that “today’s notification is being sent to targeted users in 98 countries”. The use of spyware is likely a violation of the prohibition against arbitrary or unlawful interference with one’s privacy (Article 17, ICCPR).
  • On July 19, a Delhi court summoned YouTuber Dhruv Rathee in connection with a defamation case filed by a Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader. Rathee had called him a “violent and abusive” troll in one of his videos. This incident may violate the right to free expression (Article 19, ICCPR).
  • On July 21, the Haryana state government suspended mobile internet services in Nuh district for 24 hours ahead of a Hindu religious procession, Brij Mandal Yatra. The procession had been marred by violence last year, with at least six people being killed. India routinely imposes blanket shutdowns on the internet, and leads the world shutdown count for the sixth consecutive year. Such shutdowns may constitute a violation of the right to receive or impart information (Article 19, ICCPR).

 

 

Political Parties

  • On July 10, Maharashtra Chief Minister Eknath Shinde, fired the party’s deputy leader Rajesh Shah from the Shiv Sena (a Hindu Supremacist political party) after Shah’s son, Mihir Shah was allegedly involved in a BMW hit-and-run. On July 7, a speeding luxury car killed a fisherwoman when she, along with her husband, was on a scooter headed out to sell fish.
  • On July 10, sporadic incidents of violence took place in Uttarakhand, West Bengal and Bihar as bypolls (elections held in a single political constituency to fill a vacancy arising during a government’s term of office) were underway. In Bihar, an unidentified mob attacked a police party leaving two officials injured. In Uttarakhand, four people were injured in a clash between rival parties supporters at a polling booth. In Bengal, the one party accused other party workers of assaulting its booth agents and stopping its candidates from visiting some polling stations. Such violence could hinder the right to vote (Article 25, ICCPR).
  • On July 25, Governor Anandiben Patel of Uttar Pradesh pardoned and released former Uttar Pradesh Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) legislator Udaybhan Karwariya, who was serving a life sentence for the 1996 murder of a Samajwadi Party legislator Jawahar Yadav. The Governor pardoned Karwariya after accepting a recommendation on the matter from the BJP government in the state. Notably, the High Court had put a restriction on his release after the state government pardoned Udaybhan earlier in 2018, raising concerns about the release. The government’s actions raise concerns about the state’s ability to remedy violations of the right to life (Article 6, ICCPR).

 

Police and authorities

  • On July 5, the Delhi Development Authority reportedly demolished hundreds of makeshift huts in East Delhi. A High Court order from earlier this month had given permission to the demolitions. However, social activists sent a letter to the Supreme Court Chief Justice, arguing that this “violates the Supreme Court ruling which mandates that no temporary shelters can be demolished without approaching the Hon’ble Supreme Court.” The incident likely violates the right to shelter (Article 11, ICESCR).
  • On July 13, news reported that on June 24, authorities in Assam state had demolished the homes of approximately 8000 people, who are now homeless. Several residents alleged that Muslim families had been singled out, as almost all of the houses razed belonged to Muslim families. The Gauhati High Court issued a stay order on the demolition drive on the same morning, but the demolitions continued until the afternoon when the authorities received a hard copy of the court order. Such demolitions likely violate the right to shelter (Article 11, ICESCR).
  • On July 14, a man from the Adivasi (indigenous) community died in police custody in Madhya Pradesh state, in a likely violation of the right to life and the right to be treated with humanity and respect while in detention (Articles 6, 10, ICCPR). He was planning to get married on the same day, was arrested for alleged theft, and died on the same day. The next day, his fiancée tried to set herself on fire, but was stopped by locals and the police, and the deceased’s aunt also attempted to do the same and suffered injuries. On July 16, his family members organized a protest outside the district collector’s office to demand answers.
  • On July 17, police in Assam state reportedly killed three people, whom they accuse of being militants. However, a video appears to show them apprehended a day prior to their deaths, leading their families to raise concerns of a “fake encounter” in violation of the right to life under Article 6 ICCPR. The Gauhati High Court therefore directed that the bodies of the deceased should be preserved until the next court hearing.
  • This was reportedly one of the biggest anti-Naxal operations in the state in recent years and came on a day when both Deputy Chief Ministers of the state were in the area for the foundation laying ceremony of a steel project.

 

Judiciary

  • On July 8, the Supreme Court held that requiring an accused to share his or her Google location with the investigating officer as a condition of bail is a violation of the right to privacy.
  • On July 10, the Supreme Court ruled that a Muslim woman can seek maintenance from her husband under Section 125 of the Code of Criminal Procedure, which is applicable to all married women irrespective of religion.
  • On July 10, the Supreme Court discussed a public interest litigation that seeks to address caste-based discrimination, which is prohibited in India’s constitution. The court said it would ask the Ministry of Home Affairs to intervene with States to update their prison manuals and eliminate existing practices of caste-based discrimination against prisoners. Though States like Uttar Pradesh have denied caste-based discrimination within prisons, the judges read out portions from its prison documents, which said convicts serving simple imprisonment would not be called on to perform menial or degrading duties unless they belonged to a class or community “accustomed” to such work. These manuals likely violate the prohibitions against forced labor and discrimination (Article 8, 26, ICCPR).
  • On July 10, the Supreme Court confirmed that a lawsuit brought by West Bengal against the Union Government was permissible. The state accused the Centre of exceeding constitutional limits and undermining federalism by using the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) without prior consent. The judges rejected the Union’s initial arguments against the lawsuit, including the claim that the Centre does not control the CBI.
  • On July 15, the Delhi High Court issued an order directing Hindu supremacist media outlets to remove YouTube videos and articles defaming the editor-in-chief of The News Minute. The Hindu supremacist outlets had accused her of being “agents” of George Soros and having an agenda to disrupt Indian democracy, which the court held to be defamation.
  • On July 23, the Delhi High Court ordered a Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) investigation into the death of a 23-year-old Muslim man, who Delhi Police beat and forced to sing the national anthem during the 2020 Delhi pogrom. The delay of almost 4 years raises concerns about the state’s capacity to prosecute religion-based violence and violations of the right to life (Articles 20, 6, ICCPR).
  • On July 29, a Delhi court suspended a five-month prison sentence given to activist Medha Patkar in a defamation The case was filed two decades ago in 2001 by VK Saxena, who is now the lieutenant governor of Delhi. Saxena alleged that Patkar had defamed him in a press note from November 25, 2000. The case raises concerns about state efforts to safeguard the freedom of expression and the right to timely trial (Articles 19, 9 ICCPR).

 

Business & economy

  • A new report by the Indian government reported that 557 farmers died by suicide between January and June 2024 in the Amravati administrative division of Maharashtra alone. The principal reasons cited for these suicides include crop failures, inadequate rainfall, overwhelming debt, and the lack of timely farm loans. According to the 2023 National Crime Records Bureau report, nearly 30 farmers commit suicide on average per day in India. The large number of suicides raises concerns about the state’s ability to safeguard the right to an adequate standard of living, the right to work, and the right to life (Articles 11, 6, ICESCR; Article 6, ICCPR).
  • On July 13, three workers reportedly died of asphyxiation while working inside an illegal coal minein Gujarat state, after a toxic gas leak. News report that this is the fourth such case this year. These deaths raise concerns about the state’s ability to protect the right to life and the right to safe and healthy working conditions (Article 6, ICCPR; Article 7 ICESCR).

 

Conflict in Manipur

Since May 3, 2023, there has been an ongoing armed conflict in Manipur, North-Eastern India. At least 219 people have been killed and 60,000 people displaced. The conflict is ethno-religiously motivated, with especially Kuki and Meitei communities affected, and armed militias are engaging in violence against government and non-state actors.

  • On July 4, residents across Imphal, Manipur, reacted sharply to Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s remarks on the ethnic violence in Manipur. Modi had claimed that Manipur was returning to a state of normalcy, which residents claimed were lies.
  • On July 8, opposition leader Rahul Gandhi visited relief camps in Manipur’s Jiribam and Churachandpur districts and interacted with people displaced by the ethnic violence. Gandhi asked Prime Minister Narendra Modi to visit Manipur to understand the ground situation, who had not yet visited the conflict-torn state.
  • On July 9, the group Kuki Inpi Manipur (KIM) called for a 12-hour shutdown in all the areas inhabited by the Kuki communities to protest the arrest of three members from their community, who were reportedly armed. At least five women also sustained injuries when the security forces fired tear gas shells to disperse a group who tried to prevent the arrest.
  • On July 14, unknown militants reportedly ambushed and fired at security forces in Manipur, killing one and injuring two police personnel.
  • On July 28, Prime Minister Modi met with Manipur Chief Minister Biren Singh, marking their first meeting since ethnic violence broke out in the state in 2023.

India in the World 

  • On June 6, a cross-party group of MPs and senators with top security clearances in Canada concluded that India is the second biggest foreign threat to Canada’s democracy after China. India is mentioned 44 times in 84 pages. This comes after bilateral tensions, after Prime Minister Justin Trudeau raised “credible allegations” that people tied to the Indian state were responsible for the killing of a Canadian citizen on Canadian soil. 
  • On June 6, Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau congratulated Prime Minister Modi on his win in the Lok Sabha elections via a tweet on X. In his tweet, Trudeau emphasized that the Indo-Canadian relationship is “anchored to human rights, diversity, and the rule of law.” 
  • On June 11, the World Economic Forum released its annual Global Gender Gap Index, in which India ranked 129th, two ranks worse than the year before. The decline from last year is attributed to slight decreases in the ‘educational attainment’ and ‘political empowerment’ parameters. 
  • On June 13, Prime Minister Modi travelled to Italy for the G7 leaders’ summit, which was dedicated to artificial intelligence, energy, Africa and the Mediterranean. 
  • On June 14, the Czech Republic extradited India national Nikhil Gupta to the United States. Gupta is accused by US federal prosecutors of plotting with intelligence and security officials to kill Gurpatwant Singh Pannun, a US and Canadian citizen who reportedly advocated for a sovereign Sikh state in northern India. On June 26, United States Deputy Secretary of State Kurt M Campbell said that India is looking at potential institutional reforms that might be necessary in the wake of the alleged assassination plot. 
  • On June 16, India refrained from signing a joint communique recognizing Ukraine’s territorial integrity amid Russia’s war on the European country, saying that “only those options acceptable to both the parties can lead to abiding peace”. The “Summit on Peace in Ukraine” that was held at the Canton of Nidwalden in Switzerland and saw 92 countries, excluding Russia, participate. Over 80 countries signed the joint communique that said that the “territorial integrity” of Ukraine must be the basis for “comprehensive, just and lasting peace” in the region. 
  • On June 21, the Ministry of External Affairs said that a recent documentary by Australia’s ABC News about the Narendra Modi government contains “blatant untruths” and “reflects unprofessional reporting”. On June 17, ABC News had released a documentary titled “Spies, secrets and threats: How the Modi regime targets people overseas”, which features an investigation into an alleged “nest of [Indian] spies” and Australian residents who claim to have been threatened by Indian authorities. 
  • On June 26, United States Secretary of State Antony Blinken said that there has been a “concerning increase” in hate speech, anti-conversion laws, and demolitions of homes and places of worship of members of religious minorities in India. Blinken made the comments as he unveiled the US state department’s 2023 International Religious Freedom Report, covering the year of 2023.  

 

Elections 

  • On June 2, the Election Commission of India announced that an estimated 61.6% of voters had voted in the last phase of polling of the elections. The voter average turnout for the other phases was recorded at 66.14% (first phase), 66.71% (second phase), 65.68% (third phase), 69.16% (fourth phase), 62.2% (fifth phase) and 63.37% (sixth phase). 
  • On June 3, Chief Election Commissioner Rajiv Kumar said that the Election Commission had deliberated over poll code violations during the 2024 general elections at length and had decided to not admonish specific top leaders, each from the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and the Indian National Congress – Narendra Modi and Amit Shah of the Bharatiya Janata Party and Rahul Gandhi and Priyanka Gandhi Vadra of the Indian National Congress. The Election Commission has been widely criticized for inaction and bias during the elections. 
  • On June 4, India’s election results were pronounced. 
  • The coalition of the Hindu supremacist Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) barely won India’s general elections. The BJP’s coalition – the National Democratic Alliance – barely passed the 50% mark needed to form a government, while the BJP itself won only 44.2% of seats. In comparison, in 2019, the BJP alone won over 55% of seats. This is the first time since 1962 that a government is elected to serve a third term.   
  • The BJP lost to the opposition in many of its key constituencies. In Uttar Pradesh state, known as a BJP-stronghold, the opposition alliance (INDIA) received 43.5% of votes, while the BJP’s coalition (NDA) received 43.7%. 
  • Only 24 out of 543 (4.42%) of MPs elected are Muslim, down from 26 last term. 
  • Only 74 out of 543 (13.62%) MPs elected are women, down from 78 last term. 
  • Among the 293 MPs from the BJP’s coalition, the National Democratic Alliance, none are Muslim, Christian or Sikh, despite these being large minority groups in India. 
  • Among the Union Ministers appointed, none are Muslim, for the first time in the history of independent India.  
  • Previous ministers Smriti Irani and Anurag Thakur, who were both known for their Hindu supremacist stances, were not reappointed as ministers.  
  • The Election Commission discarded over 550,000 votes across India, and registered over 35,000 surplus votes in Electronic Voting Machines. Overall, the Election Commission found discrepancies in almost all – 538 out of 542 – constituencies, with the number of votes registered on the voting machines not matching those counted on the results day. 
  • On June 5, the National Democratic Alliance (the BJP’s coalition) unanimously elected incumbent Prime Minister Narendra Modi as the leader of the coalition. On June 7, India’s President Droupadi Murmu invited Modi to form the government. On June 9, incumbent Prime Minister Narendra Modi was sworn in as India’s Prime Minister for the third consecutive term. 
  • On June 8, the Congress Party passed a unanimous resolution to appoint Rahul Gandhi as the Leader of the opposition in the Lok Sabha (Lower House of Parliament). 
  • On June 12, the first Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)-led government in Odisha state was sworn in. The state has previously been ruled for over 24 years by the Biju Janata Dal, but the BJP gained a majority in recent assembly elections.
     

 

Election violence 

  • On June 1, political party workers and security personnel reportedly clashed during polling in the Basirhat constituency, West Bengal state. The West Bengal government then reportedly imposed a ban on public assembly in 17 areas. 
  • On June 1, after polls closed, unidentified assailants reportedly shot and hacked to death a Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) worker in West Bengal state. 

 

Civil society, human rights defenders and journalists 

  • On June 3, Chhattisgarh state police arrested 25-year-old woman human rights defender Sunita Pottam, known for leading protests against police and paramilitary abuses on Adivasis (indigenous peoples) in the Bastar region. The police claimed that Pottam was a Maoist (left wing extremist), against whom the government of India is engaged in an armed conflict. The arrest likely violates the right from arbitrary arrest and detention (Article 9 ICCPR). 
  • June 6 marked the six years of incarceration of the BK 16, which include 16 poets, journalists, lawyers, professors, artists, and a Jesuit priest, who have been charged under various provisions of the Indian Penal Code and the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA), 10 of which are still detained without trial. The name comes from the fact that the 16 people were accused of instigating caste violence in Bhima Koregaon in 2018. Their prolonged arbitrary detention has been called out by the UN as violating the right from arbitrary arrest and detention (Article 9 ICCPR). 
  • On June 8, Delhi Police informed three journalists – Prabhjit Singh, Shahid Tantray and their female colleague – at The Caravan of an investigation against them in a case that had been lodged four years ago. The three journalists had been reportedly attacked by a mob in North East Delhi while they were reporting a story. After that, the police reportedly filed a case against the mob, as well as the journalists for allegedly “promoting communal enmity”. In a statement, The Caravan claims that the allegations are “absolutely false and fabricated”, and that they had not been informed of the case for four years, while the case regarding the attack against them has been pending. The Press Club of India issued a statement in which it “strongly condemn(ed)” the case. The incident is likely a violation of the freedom to impart information (Article 19 ICCPR). 
  • On June 13, Amnesty International released a six-point Human Rights Charter, urging the new Indian government to protect and promote human rights in all its policies and decisions. 
  • On June 14, the Delhi Lieutenant Governor reportedly sanctioned the prosecution of award-winning author Arundhati Roy, for allegedly provocative statements made at a 2010 event allegedly propagating Kashmiri separatism, under India’s counterterrorism law, the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA). The sanction is likely a violation of the freedom of expression (Article 19 ICCPR).  
  • On June 20, French reporter Sébastien Farcis claimed that he had been forced to leave India by the Indian government after working in the country for 13 years as his journalism permit was reportedly not renewed in March. Farcis is a South Asia correspondent for Radio France Internationale, Radio France, Libération and the Swiss and Belgian public radios. The Ministry of Home Affairs allegedly provided no reason for denying the renewal of his journalist permit. 
  • On June 27, the Congress party claimed the Delhi Police beat with batons and detained members of its youth wing during a protest against recent allegations of paper leaks and other irregularities in university entrance exams. This raises concerns about the freedom of assembly and the freedom of expression (Articles 19, 21 ICCPR). 

 

Hate Crimes and Hate Speech against Minorities 

  • On June 5, an Indian-origin man in Texas, the United States, was charged with federal hate crime by United States authorities after he allegedly threatened to injure and kill the employees of a Sikh non-profit organisation in 2022. The US therefore appears to have acted upon its obligation to address incitement to discrimination and violence under Article 20 of the ICCPR. 
  • On June 7, the spokesperson of the Janata Dal party, a key coalition partner of the BJP in the newly formed government, said they would not allow the new government to propagate campaigns against Muslims and other minority communities. He said: “While we are there [in power with the BJP], no anti-Muslim, anti-minority campaign will be run.” Such campaigns are likely violations of Article 20 of the ICCPR. 
  • On June 7, a mob reportedly attacked three cattle transporters in Chhattisgarh state, killing two and injuring one. This follows a trend of vigilante groups lynching people who slaughter cows – which are holy for many Hindus – with tacit state approval. Such lynchings are a violation of the right to life (Article 6 ICCPR). On June 25, Chattisgarh police arrested two men in connection with the lynching. 
  • On June 7, police arrested a young man from the Hindu community for inciting communal tension, after he reportedly pretended to be Muslim and threatened voters in a video on social media. He is reportedly from Uttar Pradesh state, where the BJP lost many constituencies in the recent elections. The incident is likely advocacy of religious hatred, which is prohibited under Article 20 of the ICCPR.  
  • On June 12, a Hindu supremacist mob allegedly attacked Christian families in Chhattisgarh’s Jagdalpur and gave the families an ultimatum to denounce their religion within 10 days. At least two victims were left unconscious while three were hospitalised after the attack. The village has been a flashpoint for these religious clashes since 2023, with the Christian minorities being the target of these sporadic attacks and intimidation. This incident raises serious concern about religious hatred, prohibited under article 20 of the ICCPR. 
  • On June 15, thousands from the Hindu supremacist paramilitary organisations RSS and Hindu Vahini members reportedly attacked a madrasa (Islamic school) over alleged animal sacrifice in Telangana, injuring several. The police have arrested the local Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) district president, town president and youth wing president, and seven others in connection with the violence. The violence is likely a violation of the prohibition of the incitement to hatred (Article 20 ICCPR). 
  • On June 17, clashes erupted in Jharkhand state over the alleged slaughter of a prohibited animal in public, injuring six including a constable. Subsequently, a large group of people from a village across the canal in Bengal state engaged in counter-protest, with stones being thrown by both groups. The violence continued the next day, with houses reportedly being torched. 
  • On June 18, an Odisha district administration imposed prohibitory orders in an area of Odisha’s Balasore town after violence broke out between a Hindu group and a Muslim group a day earlier on the festival of Eid. Internet services were also suspended in a few sensitive areas. The violence broke out a day earlier when a few persons had alleged that cows were being slaughtered as part of the Bakra Eid customs. 
  • On June 18, a man who had been allegedly attacked by unidentified persons while transporting cattle in Chattisgarh’s Raipur district died in a hospital after being hospitalised for ten days. Two other men who were accompanying him in the transport were found dead on June 7. The police confirmed that no arrest has yet been made in the case. This event, likely an incident or religious hatred prohibited under Article 20 of the ICCPR, raises concerns about the state’s ability to safeguard the right to life (Article 6 ICCPR). 
  • On June 19, Hindu Supremacist groups allegedly vandalised a textiles and cosmetics shop run by a Muslim man. The man had previously reportedly uploaded photos of animal sacrifice as his WhatsApp status on the occasion of the Muslim holiday Eid al-Adha. The Uttar Pradesh police arrested the man under the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals Act 1960. Although the animal sacrificed was not protected under the Act, the police stated as a reason for the arrest that the content of the video was “disgusting”. This arrest possibly violates the Article 9 of the ICCPR, which safeguards the right from arbitrary arrests and detention. 
  • On June 19, a Muslim man was allegedly lynched by a mob on the suspicion of theft in Uttar Pradesh state. The police have so far arrested four persons in the case and the search for three others is ongoing. The Hindu supremacist group Bajrang Dal, meanwhile, alleged that the victim had entered a home with intent to steal and that the crowd’s response was “a normal reaction”. The incident is likely to be a case of religious hatred, prohibited under article 20 of the ICCPR. The lynching additionally questions the state’s ability to safeguard the right to life (Article 6 ICCPR). 

 

 

Religious Freedoms and Minority Rights 

  • On June 8, members of the Hindu supremacist Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad (ABVP) reportedly disrupted a university lecture in Udaipur state, over the professor’s previous Facebook post criticising the Ram Temple, which was constructed at the site of a demolished mosque. The university reportedly did not call the police. This is likely a violation of the freedom of expression (Article 19 ICCPR). 
  • On June 10, residents of a housing complex in Gujarat’s Vadodara protested the allotment of a house to a Muslim woman. The residents had already staged protests against a Muslim moving into the society in 2020. This is likely an incident of religious hatred constituting incitement to discrimination, prohibited under article 20 of the ICCPR. 
  • On June 13, the Supreme Court stayed the theatrical release of the film Hamare Baarah, which has been accused of containing anti-Muslim tropes. The court observed that the film’s teaser was offensive enough to warrant concern over the contents of the full movie. The following day, the Bombay High Court allowed the film to be released in theatres on June 21 after the makers agreed to remove a dialogue and a verse from the Quran from the film and put in disclaimers. 
  • On June 16, a group dressed up as Muslims to in New Delhi to “save” 124 goats from being slaughtered during Eid al-Adha. The plan raised Rs 15 lakh (almost 18,000 USD) from Jain community members across Gujarat, Hyderabad, Kerala, Punjab, and Maharashtra. 
  • On June 17, National Council of Educational Research and Training (NCERT) director Dinesh Prasad Saklani informed that references to Gujarat riots and extrajudicial Babri mosque demolition were modified in school textbooks because teaching about riots “can create violent and depressed citizens”. This may violate Article 19 of the ICCPR, which guarantees the right to seek, receive and impart information, and which may only be restricted on limited grounds.  
  • On June 18, the state government of Rajasthan began the process of introducing a law against illegal religious conversions. Such laws have been passed in 12 states, and are widely criticised for infringing upon freedom of religion in violation of Article 18 of the ICCPR. 
  • On June 20, the Uttar Pradesh police arrested 11 persons – nine Muslims and two Hindus – after a video emerged showing them allegedly holding prayers on government land. The incident raises concerns about arbitrary arrests, prohibited under article 9 of the ICCPR. 
  • On June 22, the Madhya Pradesh government invoked the National Security Act (NSA) against two Muslim men accused of cow slaughter, and transferred both men in custody. The incident raises concerns about arbitrary arrests, prohibited under article 9 of the ICCPR. 
  • On June 25, the Uttar Pradesh police arrested an Afghan café owner in Moradabad for allegedly selling beef burgers. The action was based on the complaint of a Bajrang Dal (Hindu Supremacist militant group) leader. The incident raises concerns of arbitrary detention (Article 9 ICCPR) and of the state safeguarding the right to work (Article 6 ICESCR).  
  • On June 25, the Karnataka High Court stayed the investigation of a case filed against YouTuber Ajeet Bharti by the Bengaluru Police for allegedly making false claims about Congress leader Rahul Gandhi. The Bengaluru Police had filed a case against the YouTuber for allegedly claiming in a video posted on X on June 13 that Congress leader Rahul Gandhi plans to replace the newly inaugurated Ram temple in Uttar Pradesh’s Ayodhya with a new Babri mosque. The police booked the YouTuber under sections of the Indian Penal Code pertaining to the promotion of enmity between groups on religious grounds and acting in a manner that is prejudicial to maintaining social harmony. 

 

Internet and Technology 

  • On June 11, the fact-checking outlet BOOMLive released a report which found that YouTube failed to act on hate speech and misinformation violations by Hindu supremacist channel Sudarshan News. The report – a joint effort by Dalit Solidarity Forum, Indian American Muslim Council, India Civil Watch International, Hindus for Human Rights, and Tech Justice Law Project – highlights 26 videos published by Sudarshan News (of which 17 were published during the polling phases) that were reported for violating YouTube’s policies on hate speech, misinformation and monetisation, leading up to and during the recently concluded Lok Sabha elections. None of the videos faced any actions and continued to thrive on YouTube, accumulating a total of 3.5 million views by the time the report was published. 
  • On June 12, the Delhi Police flagged the X (formerly Twitter) account of co-founder of the fact-checking platform Alt News, Mohammed Zubair, and asked the platform to either take down particular content or his whole account. Zubair has been the target of numerous instances of government repression, including arrest in 2022. This raises concerns about the right to free expression in the country (Article 19 ICCPR). 

 

Political Parties 

  • On June 2, Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal surrendered at the Tihar jail in New Delhi after his interim bail granted by the Supreme Court in the excise policy-linked money laundering case had ended. He was granted the relief for campaigning in the Lok Sabha elections, and was released from prison on May 11 after spending 50 days in jail.  
  • On June 10, Congress sought action against the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party’s IT Cell chief Amit Malviya after a member of the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) Hindu Supremacist paramilitary group alleged that Malviya ‘indulged’ in sexual exploitation of women. In response, Amit Malviya filed for defamation, claiming the allegations to be false. 
  • On June 16, the Bharatiya Janata Party expelled Aditya Raj Saini, a party leader in Uttarakhand, a day after he was booked for the alleged gang-rape and murder of a 14-year-old girl in Haridwar district. The investigation is still ongoing. 

Executive 

  • On June 4, a man died in police custody in Jammu and Kashmir. Police had arrested him a day before for alleged drug possession. Police claimed he developed “severe health complications”, according to local news, while the family of the deceased allege foul play. This incident raises concerns about the right to life and prohibition of torture under the ICCPR (Articles 6 and 7). 
  • On June 7, the Delhi police filed a chargesheet against six persons who were jailed six months prior under terror charges for allegedly breaching the security at the new Parliament building. They are charged under India’s anti-terror law, the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA). The accused were arrested after they jumped onto the Parliament’s floor, activating spray canisters to reportedly protest unemployment and other criticisms of the ruling party. The incident raises concerns regarding the right to a timely trial (Article 9 ICCPR).  
  • On June 15, security forces allegedly conducting an anti-Maoist operation initiated a gunfight, killing eight alleged Maoists. On June 23, a blast carried out by suspected Maoists killed two personnel from a specialised unit of the Central Reserve Police Force. Both incidents underscore an escalation in violence in the state, jeopardising the right to life under Article 6 of the ICCPR. 

 

Demolitions 

In recent years, there has been a growing trend of civic authorities in BJP (Bharatiya Janata Party)-ruled states demolishing ostensibly illegal properties belonging to those accused of a crime. There are no provisions in law that provide for demolishing property as a punitive measure. The demolitions likely violate the right to work and to an adequate standard of living (Articles 6, 7, 11 ICESCR) and to a fair trial (Article 14 ICCPR). 

  • On June 7, authorities in Maharashtra state reportedly demolished parts of a resort owned by the family of a 17-year-old who had killed two people while drunk-driving a month prior.  
  • On June 10, the Lucknow Development Authority demolished shops and houses in a predominantly Muslim locality amid heavy security deployment. The demolition was legally given sanction by the Supreme Court.  
  • On June 15, authorities in Madhya Pradesh demolished 11 homes after police claimed to have found beef, animal hides and the skeletal remains of cattle there.  
  • On June 25, protests erupted as the Municipal Corporation of Delhi accompanied by local police and paramilitary personnel demolished portions of a mosque. The police reported that 20 meters of the mosque were on unauthorized land, but the demolition were allegedly carried out after a Hindu-supremacist leader made a complaint. This also raises concerns about religious repression and religion-based hatred (Article 18, 20, 27 ICCPR).  
  • On June 26, authorities in Madhya Pradesh’s Morena district bulldozed the homes of two men accused of cow slaughter. The police claimed that the homes were illegal and built without permission; however, the demolitions followed allegations of cow slaughter. The same week saw authorities demolish dozens of Muslim-owned homes over allegations of cow slaughter. In addition, the Madhya Pradesh police invoked the National Security Act against two Muslim men for allegedly keeping beef in their houses and bulldozed their homes. 

 

Judiciary 

  • On June 3, the Supreme Court directed the central government to hold an emergency meeting of its Upper Yamuna River Board with the States of Delhi, Haryana and Himachal Pradesh to address water scarcity in the national capital amidst soaring temperatures crossing the 50-degree Celsius mark. New Delhi continued to face a severe water crisis with people waiting in long queues to collect water from the water tankers in different parts of the city on the day. The water crisis raises concerns about the government being able to protect the right to an adequate standard of living (Article 11 ICESCR). 
  • On June 7, a court granted bail to Congress leader Rahul Gandhi in a defamation case against him filed by the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP). The allegations concerned advertisings by the Congress party, alleging that the BJP government of one state had taken bribes. On June 26, an Uttar Pradesh court ordered Congress leader Rahul Gandhi to appear before it in connection with another defamation case from 2018, which alleged that Gandhi had made objectionable remarks against Home Minister Amit Shah. 
  • On June 10, a Bengaluru court sent former Karnataka MP Prajwal Revanna to judicial custody until June 24 on charges of rape of multiple women. The former MP from the Hassan Lok Sabha constituency was arrested on May 31 after he returned to Bengaluru from Germany, where he had fled on April 26. This came shortly after videos of alleged sexual assault against several women, allegedly recorded by Prajwal Revanna himself, surfaced ahead of the elections. So far, three women have filed complaints of sexual assault. 
  • On June 28, the Jharkhand High Court granted bail to Hemant Soren, the state’s former chief minister who had to step down before he was arrested by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) on January 31. The ED’s case was that Soren misused his official position and illegally acquired 8.86 acres land in Ranchi which the agency has termed as “proceeds of crime”. The high court found that no evidence was found to link Soren to the direct involvement of the land’s acquisition. 

 

Conflict in Manipur 

There has been an armed conflict in Manipur since May 2023, involving militants from the Meitei and Kuki communities. 

  • On June 6, violence erupted in Manipur’s Jiribam district, after the body of a man from the Meitei community was found. Authorities then imposed a ban on public assembly and called in additional police forces. On June 8, militants reportedly set on fire a police outpost and several houses. The police replaced the superintendent of police in the district. 
  • On June 10, militants reportedly ambushed the convoy of Manipur’s Chief Minister Singh, injuring one security officer.  
  • On June 11, the Manipur Government reportedly deported 38 immigrants from Myanmar who were allegedly illegally staying in India. They had been lodged in designated camps in a local jail for illegally entering the country. This follows deportations in previous months, which have drawn criticism. India has no national refugee law, and is not a signatory to the United Nations 1951 Refugee Convention. Refugees from Myanmar are often labelled as illegal immigrants, legitimising broad human rights violations, such as arbitrary arrests, unlawful killings and rape, points which have all been severely criticised by civil society actors like Amnesty International. 

On 4th June, the coalition of the Hindu supremacist Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) won India’s general elections – but only barely, with the BJP losing to the opposition in many of its key constituencies, including Ayodhya. The BJP’s coalition – the NDA – barely passed the 50% mark needed to form a government, while the BJP itself won only 44.2% of seats. In comparison, in 2019, the BJP alone won over 55% of seats. Yet, this is the first time since 1962 that a government is elected to serve a third term. 

As the world discusses India’s election results, we compile news updates from India from May 2024. The list is not exhaustive, but a selection of pertinent incidents – both hopeful and worrisome, that put the election results into context of larger developments over the past month. Did you miss previous updates? You can see the archives here. 

 

 

The Indian General Elections

 

On 25th May, the Election Commission of India (ECI) voluntarily released the absolute number of voters for the first five phases of the Lok Sabha election: An estimated 500 million. Between 62.2% and 69.16% of registered voters voted in each phase. There were two more phases afterwards, with total votes estimated at 640 million.

During voting, a heatwave with temperatures exceeding 44 degrees Celsius in Uttar Pradesh and Bihar caused over 30 deaths, including 21 election officials.

 

 

Election Violence

  • On 7th May, police allegedly “lathi-charged” (beat with sticks) voters in four Muslim-dominated villages in Uttar Pradesh’s Sambhal, injuring hundreds at polling booths.
  • On 13th May, violence erupted during Lok Sabha and Assembly elections in Andhra Pradesh, with involvement of the YSR Congress Party (YSRCP) and opposition parties, mainly the TDP. YSRCP’s Tenali Assembly candidate was caught on video slapping a voter, leading to clashes. Polling was briefly stopped in Kuppam constituency due to YSRCP-TDP altercations. Electronic Voting Machines were reportedly destroyed in Dalwai and Macherla, causing disruptions.
  • On 16th May, tensions escalated in Ganjam district, Odisha state, as a BJP worker was allegedly hacked to death in Khalikote. The clash began when BJD workers attacked co-BJP workers when they were pasting posters at Krushna Saranpur village. Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik condemned the violence, urging swift action against perpetrators. Chief Election Officer Nikunja Behari Dhal directed authorities to restore peace, affirming zero tolerance towards election violence.
  • On 21st May, there was a violent altercation between the Yadav and Rajput communities (castes within the Indian social hierarchy) in Badi Telpa village, resulting in the death of Chandan Yadav, a local resident and leaving another individual critically injured amid reports of gunfire. Locals allege attempts to disenfranchise marginalized voters. Despite initial pacification efforts, tensions flared anew the following day, culminating in renewed violence. Authorities have since apprehended two suspects in connection with the incident.
  • On 21st May, there was a violent clash between BJP and Rashtriya Janata Dal workers in Bihar’s Chapra, where one person was killed and two others injured. The clash erupted near a polling station, post which District Magistrate Aman Samir deployed sufficient police to control the situation. In response to the unrest, the district administration ordered a two-day internet shutdown. Blanket shutdowns violate the freedom of expression under Article 19 ICCPR.
  • On 25th May, violence and unrest marked the sixth phase of polling in West Bengal’s eight Lok Sabha constituencies. The Election Commission received 954 complaints, mainly about malfunctions of Electronic Voting Machines and polling agents being obstructed. Clashes erupted in Ghatal between Trinamool Congress (TMC) and Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) supporters. Further, unidentified assailants reportedly killed Trinamool Congress worker Sheikh Moibul in Mahishadal, Purba Medinipur district.

 

Social Media and Elections

 

  • On 3rd May, the Election Commission of India (ECI) directed social media platform X to remove an animated video posted by the BJP Karnataka handle. The video depicted the Congress favoring Muslims over Scheduled Castes, Scheduled Tribes, and Other Backward Classes. Criticism erupted over the video’s Islamophobic content, prompting outrage on social media. Additionally, an anti-Muslim video posted by Prime Minister Modi on Instagram was deleted following reports from users; it was likely a violation of Article 20 of ICCPR (Prohibition of advocacy of religious hatred).
  • On 7th May, the Election Commission of India directed all national and state political parties to remove any deepfake content within three hours of notification. The ECI also instructed parties to avoid using their social media handles to publish deepfake videos, audios, or misinformation. Parties must identify and warn the individuals responsible for posting deepfakes to ensure the integrity of information during elections.
  • On 27th May, the Supreme Court dismissed BJP’s petition challenging a Calcutta High Court order that restrained it from publishing derogatory advertisements against Bengal’s ruling Trinamool Congress (TMC). The Supreme Court noted that the advertisements were offensive and refused to interfere with the high court’s decision. It further criticized the Election Commission for failing to address TMC’s complaints promptly.
  • On 30th May, Foundation The London Story found that India’s ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and its allied organizations have persistently, in violation of Indian electoral law, used disinformation narratives to ‘otherize’ and demonize Indian Muslims, during the elections. The report identified at least 21 posts in March and 33 in April that contained content seeking to promote enmity between Hindus and Muslims.

 

 

Free and Fair Elections

 

  • On 13th May, in Uttar Pradesh’s Farrukhabad constituency, police arrested the son of a Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) worker after a video surfaced showing the teenager voting for the BJP eight times. The arrest came after opposition parties criticized the Election Commission of India when the video went viral. Uttar Pradesh Chief Electoral Officer Navdeep Rinwa confirmed the arrest and announced strict action against all members of the polling party involved.
  • On 14th May, NCP (SP) Working President Supriya Sule raised concerns over alleged foul play in the Baramati Lok Sabha constituency after CCTV cameras in an Electronic Voting Machines (EVM) strongroom reportedly went blank for 45 minutes. The elections for the Baramati seat took place on May 7, with EVMs stored in secure strongrooms until the vote count on June 4. Sule urged the Election Commission of India to investigate the matter promptly and take action against those responsible for the lapse.
  • On 20th May, journalist Rana Ayyub discovered her name, along with seven other family members’, missing from the voters’ list. Many eligible Muslim voters, and voters from other religious communities, found their names deleted, sparking concerns of disenfranchisement. Similar incidents were reported across India, with allegations of deliberate removals and complaints about incompetence by the Election Commission.
  • On 25th May, a group of former civil servants criticized the Election Commission of India for its perceived failures in ensuring a fair and transparent election process during the 2024 general elections. In a letter, they highlighted issues such as tampering concerns with EVM (Electronic Voting Machines) and VVPAT (Voter verifiable paper audit trail) machines, missing voter names, and the lack of action against hate speech. They urged the Commission to address these concerns transparently and emphasized the importance of safeguarding EVMs and promptly announcing vote counts.
  • On 28th May, the Election Commission of India suspended D.S. Kutey, Special Secretary to Odisha Chief Minister. This action follows allegations that the senior officer unduly influenced the electoral process during simultaneous elections in Odisha.

 

 

Journalists, Civil Society, Human Rights Defenders

 

  • A Global Expression Report by Article19 has ranked India’s freedom of expression in ‘crisis’ at 123, below Palestine and the Democratic Republic of Congo. The report categorizes countries as crisis, highly restricted, restricted, less restricted, and open. India fell from ‘highly restricted’ to ‘crisis’.
  • On 5th May, 15 diaspora organizations gathered in solidarity during a ‘Vigil for Democracy in India’ event held at Parliament Square in London. They condemned PM Modi’s attempt to turn India into a “Hindu-supremacist fascist state” and highlighted concerns over hate speeches against Muslims.
  • On 9th May, student leader Masud Ahmed was granted bail after spending 3.5 years in custody. He had been leading a delegation of the Campus Front of India to support the family of a Hathras gang-rape victim when arrested. The police charged him with sedition under the draconian Unlawful Activities Prevention Act (UAPA), were piled up by the UP government, alleging conspiracy to incite violence. This arrest, being arbitrary, likely violates Article 9 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR).
  • On 12th May, BJP workers allegedly assaulted and “locked up” Raghav Trivedi, a reporter with digital outlet Molitics, during Amit Shah’s rally in Rae Bareli, Uttar Pradesh. Trivedi told Newslaundry that BJP workers called him “mullah”(derogatory for Muslim) and “attanki” (terrorist). The journalist said he was held by the collar, assaulted, and dragged to the media lobby after mentioning he had clips of women saying they were paid to attend. He said he was later locked in a waiting room, where he felt suffocated and eventually fainted before being taken to the hospital. This likely violates Article 19 (Right to Free Speech) and Article 17 of the ICCPR (Right to Protection from Unlawful Interference and Attacks).
  • On 15th May, the Supreme Court declared the arrest and remand of 74-year-old journalist and NewsClick founder Prabir Purkayastha under the Unlawful Activities Prevention Act (UAPA) by the Delhi Police invalid, ordering his release. Justices B.R. Gavai and Sandeep Mehta noted that neither Mr. Purkayastha nor his counsel were provided with the written grounds for his arrest. He was arrested on October 3 on allegations of inciting riots and terror financing. The bench noted that since proper legal procedure was not followed, the arrest was rendered the arbitrary and invalid, which likely violates Article 9 of the ICCPR (Right to Liberty).
  • On 20th May, police in Maharashtra state filed a case against lawyer Adesh Bansode for sharing a video criticizing PM Narendra Modi, during polling in Mumbai. He was charged with disobeying police orders and ‘influencing voters during election time’. He has shared the video, titled ‘Mind of a Dictator’ by YouTuber Dhruv Rathee, in a Vasai Bar Association WhatsApp group. Bansode contested the charges, citing legal procedures and questioning potential action against millions of other viewers who watched and shared the video. The police action is likely a violation of Article 19 of ICCPR (Freedom of Speech).
  • On 24th May, Punjab Police launched a crackdown on farmer leaders ahead of Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s rallies in Jalandhar and Gurdaspur. Authorities detained around 100 workers of farmer unions at Nawanshahr’s Aurh police station, following calls to hold black flag protests. This likely violates the right to peaceful assembly (Article 21 ICCPR).
  • On 28th May, a Delhi court denied bail to JNU scholar and activist Umar Khalid in the Delhi riots conspiracy case. Khalid, accused of involvement in the 2020 northeast Delhi communal riots, faces charges under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA). The Sessions Judge rejected his bail plea, with the detailed order pending. Umar Khalid has been jailed for over 3 years now without trial, which likely violates Article 9 of the ICCPR (Right to Liberty).
  • On 30th May, the Punjab and Haryana High Court stayed a decree directing journalist Rahul Pandita to pay Rs 50 lakh (approx. 55.000 Euros) in compensation to a former armed forces officer for an allegedly defamatory article. The article in question related to an encounter between CPI (Maoist) and armed forces personnel in Chhattisgarh, about which Pandita had reported. The initial order is likely a violation of Article 19 of ICCPR (Freedom of Speech).

 

 

Hate Speech and Hate Crimes against Minorities

 

  • On 9th May, Asianet Suvarna News sparked controversy by using the Pakistani flag to represent the Muslim population in India and the Indian flag for the Hindu population during a show titled ‘Hindu Population Has Decreased, Muslim Population Has Increased Enormously.’ The channel later apologized, attributing the incident to an “oversight.”
  • On 16th May, the Somaiya School in Mumbai requested its principal Parveen Shaikh to resign following accusations made by the Hindu supremacist website OpIndia. OpIndia’s article, published on April 24, claimed Shaikh’s social media activities included “liking” posts that were deemed “pro-Hamas” and “anti-Hindu.” The management cited pressure and the OpIndia article as reasons for their decision.
  • On 22nd May, in Gujarat state, cow vigilantes reportedly lynched Mishri Khan Baloch, a Muslim man, while he was delivering buffaloes to his sister. The assailants attacked Baloch with weapons under the guise of cow protection, causing severe injuries that led to his death. This is likely a violation of Article 6 of the ICCPR (Right to Life), as the state has created an enabling environment for vigilante violence.

 

Religious freedoms and minority rights

 

  • On 13th May, Bharatiya Janata Party’s Hyderabad candidate Madhavi Latha faced backlash and legal action after she asked burqa-clad women to lift their veils for identity verification at a polling booth. A viral video showed Latha inspecting identity cards of veiled voters, prompting criticism and questions on her conduct. She defended her actions, citing discrepancies in the voter list. This is likely a violation of Article 18 of ICCPR (right to freedom of thought, conscience and religion).
  • On 16th May, the Supreme Court stayed criminal proceedings in Uttar Pradesh against the vice-chancellor of The Sam Higginbottom University of Agriculture Technology and Sciences and others for alleged illegal conversion of Hindus to Christianity. Rejecting the state government’s plea to proceed, the court mandated fresh charge sheets, granting the accused protection from arrest and bail. The hearing is scheduled to resume on August 2nd, involving serious charges under IPC and the Uttar Pradesh Anti-Conversion Act, 2021. Human rights lawyers argue that these laws are being abused to punish religious minorities in cases of voluntary conversions, violating the freedom to profess any religion (Article 18 ICCPR).
  • On 17th May, Prime Minister Narendra Modi accused the Samajwadi Party and the Congress of planning to demolish the Ram Temple (Place of Worship for Hindus) in Ayodhya if they were to come into power, asserting that they would employ bulldozers for the task. Modi has been known for delivering incendiary speeches targeting Muslims during election campaigns. These remarks were made during a rally in Barabanki, Uttar Pradesh. This is likely a violation of the Model Code of Conduct for elections, which prohibits reference to any religious symbols which can potentially cause tension between different communities.
  • On 20th May, the Assam government reportedly evicted approximately 400 Bengali-origin Muslim families and bulldozed makeshift homes near Sipajhar, Darrang district. These families had previously faced eviction in a violent drive in September 2021, during which numerous houses, shops, and mosques were destroyed, leaving around 7,000 people homeless. The government stated that the evictions were part of a periodic campaign to clear encroachments on government land designated for an Agricultural Project. A resident who lost his home for the second time, reported that their makeshift shelters were demolished with little notice, with district officials threatening and bulldozing those who did not comply swiftly. This is likely a violation of Article 11 of the ICESCR (Right to housing and adequate standard of living).
  • On 26th May, Union Home Minister Amit Shah announced plans for a Uniform Civil Code (a code which calls for the formulation of one law for India, which would be applicable to all religious communities in matters such as marriage, divorce, inheritance, adoption) nationwide within five years, if the BJP regains power. He stated that extensive consultations with all stakeholders would precede its implementation. UCC has been criticised by civil society groups for imposing a uniform set of laws upon all religious groups that potentially infringes upon the rights to practice their personal laws. This could violate cultural and religious freedoms (Article 26 ICCPR).

 

 

Digital Rights

 

  • On 3rd May, Jammu and Kashmir Police’s District Police Ramban activated an AI-based facial Recognition System in one location to locate and monitor individuals involved in criminal activities, enhancing public safety efforts. Civil society groups express concerns regarding the utilization of Facial Recognition systems, contending that such technology exacerbates discrimination against the most marginalized segments of society and violate right to privacy, likely violating Article 2 of ICESCR (Right against Discrimination) and Article 17 of ICCPR (Right to Privacy).
  • On 14th May, India’s anti-cyber fraud agency, the Indian Cyber Coordination Centre (I4C), in collaboration with Microsoft, took action to block over 1,000 Skype accounts associated with cyber criminals engaged in intimidation, blackmail, and extortion scams. These fraudsters, impersonating law enforcement officials, coerce victims into “digital arrests” by demanding payment to resolve fabricated legal issues.
  • On 20th May, evidence surfaced that the Telugu Desam Party (TDP) used a new mobile application called “We App” to profile voters and bribe them for votes. YSRCP lodged a complaint with the Election Commission of India regarding this issue. The “We App” contains detailed voter information at the booth level, including family details, phone numbers, occupation, caste, residency status, and political leanings, even including data of deceased voters. Despite not being available on Android Play Stores, the app was selectively distributed to TDP volunteers.
  • On 25th May, Suresh Khadakbhavi, CEO of DigiYatra Foundation, announced the expansion of DigiYatra to 14 more airports, including Chennai Airport, in June. This system, utilizing facial recognition technology, aims to decrease waiting times for passengers at airport entry points and security screenings. Currently, there are over 20 million people who interact with the technology. Civil society groups express concerns regarding the utilization of Facial Recognition systems, especially in absence of sufficient data protection laws in India, in violation of Article 17 of ICCPR (Right to Privacy).

 

Judiciary

  • On 6th May, the Delhi High Court granted bail to an accused, who was arrested by the NIA in August 2021 under the UAPA (Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act. The court ruled that merely possessing photos of Osama bin Laden or ISIS flags on a mobile phone is insufficient to label someone a terrorist organization member. It emphasized that accessing such material online does not constitute a crime, thereby suggesting that the arrest had been arbitrary and in violation of the right to liberty (Article 9 ICCPR).
  • On 10th May, Delhi High Court declined to supervise the Election Commission of India (ECI) in response to a petition seeking to file a first information report (FIR) against Prime Minister Narendra Modi for alleged hate speeches during the Lok Sabha election campaign. The Bench stated that the ECI, as a constitutional body, should determine violations of the model code of conduct and not the court.
  • On 10th May, the Calcutta High Court cancelled all Other Backward Classes (OBC) certificates issued by the West Bengal government after 2010. OBC certificates are documents verifying an individual’s status as belonging to Other Backward Classes in India, facilitating access to reserved educational seats, jobs, and government schemes. The court invalidated sections of the West Bengal Backward Classes Act, citing procedural and legal deficiencies. Around five lakh OBC certificates have been impacted, rendering them unusable for government job applications.
  • On 13th May, the Supreme Court refused interim bail for former Jharkhand Chief Minister Hemant Soren to campaign for the Lok Sabha election. However, the court agreed to list his plea to quash his arrest by the Directorate of Enforcement (ED) in connection with a money laundering investigation linked to a land scam.
  • On 14th May, the Supreme Court quashed a case filed against staff and faculty members of a government-run college in Indore, which pertained to a book in the college library that Hindu supremacist organizations claimed was “Hinduphobic” and “anti-national.” This came in response to a challenge to an April 30 order of the Madhya Pradesh High Court that had refused to stay the first information report (FIR) against him (FIR is a document prepared by the police when they receive information about the commission of a cognizable offence). This incident raises questions regarding the right to freedom of expression (Article 19 ICCPR).
  • On 16th May, the Supreme Court directed the Centre to promptly deport 17 people held in detention camps in Assam. They had reportedly been declared as “foreigners” by a Foreigners Tribunal, which have been criticised for not following an arbitrary procedure that violates the Rule of Law principle, especially by derogating from the due process of law. Declared foreigners shave been detained in detention camps under inhumane conditions, and the Supreme Court therefore considered a case about the detention conditions. 9 million peoplehave been de facto left stateless during the National Registry of Citizens process.
  • On 27th May, a special court in Ranchi granted a three-day extension of Jharkhand Minister Alamgir Alam’s remand with the Enforcement Directorate (ED) in an alleged money laundering case, according to his legal representatives. Mr. Alam was detained by the ED on May 15 after two days of questioning. Initially held for six days from May 17, his remand was prolonged for five days on May 22.
  • On 27th May, Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal filed a petition in the Supreme Court seeking a seven-day extension of the interim bail granted to him in a money laundering case related to the liquor policy scam. Initially granted interim bail on May 10 to campaign for the ongoing Lok Sabha elections, Mr. Kejriwal sought an extension to continue his election-related activities. Arvind Kejriwal was in Delhi’s Tihar Jail for 50 days after being jailed on corruption charges linked to the alleged liquor policy scam. The US and Germany each released statements regarding Arvind Kejriwal’s arrest, urging India to ensure a fair trial and uphold democratic principles.
  • On 28th May, an MP-MLA court set a June 7 hearing for the 2018 defamation case against Rahul Gandhi, following his alleged remarks about Home Minister Amit Shah. BJP leader Vijay Mishra filed the complaint, and referred to Mr. Gandhi’s comment that “the BJP claims to believe in honest and clean politics but has a party president who is an “accused” in a murder case.” Gandhi previously paused his Bharat Jodo Nyay Yatra in February to attend court and secure bail.

 

 

Executive

  • On 11th May, a study showed that at least 9681 children were wrongly incarcerated in adult prisons across India from January 1, 2016, to December 31, 2021. The report, based on government data accessed via a Right to Information (RTI) request, noted that the actual number could be much higher since only 50% of RTI requests received responses. Notably, Madhya Pradesh, West Bengal, Nagaland, and Ladakh did not respond to the RTIs.
  • On 16th May, the Manipur government announced the withdrawal of Central troops from conflict areas for ongoing Lok Sabha elections. The Security Advisor briefed the Governor on the situation, citing the need for redeployment after elections. Protesters demanded troop retention for ongoing security. There has been an armed conflict involving militias in Manipur since May 2023.
  • On 27th May, Union Home Minister Amit Shah announced that family members of terrorists or stone pelters in Jammu and Kashmir would not receive government jobs, referencing the government’s commitment to eliminating the terror ecosystem. He also stated that if a family member reports a relative joining a terror outfit, exceptions can be considered. Under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act, even legitimate human rights work has been reportedly framed as “terrorism”, and people can be designated “terrorists” without a trial. Thus, this policy may violate Article 14(1) – presumption of innocence), and Article 21 of the Universal Declaration on Human Rights (right to participate in government and equal access to public service).

 

India in the World

  • On 1st May, the US Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF) released a report recommending, for the fifth consecutive year, that India be classified as a ‘Country of Particular Concern.’ On May 2, the Ministry of External Affairs accused the USCIRF of interfering in India’s electoral process.
  • On 1st May, the Global Alliance of National Human Rights Institutions (GANHRI) deferred the accreditation of the National Human Rights Commission of India (NHRC) for the second consecutive year. GANHRI’s Sub Committee on Accreditation cited reasons such as lack of transparency in appointing NHRC members, appointment of police officers to oversee human rights investigations, and lack of gender and minority representation.
  • On 6th May, Indian Naval Ships arrived in Singapore for a three-day visit, as part of the Navy’s Eastern Fleet deployment to the South China Sea. The ships will then proceed to Malaysia and the Philippines. The visit aims to strengthen maritime cooperation between India and Singapore amidst escalating regional tensions.
  • On 7th May, International Organisation of Migration (IOM) in its World Migration Report, reported that India set a world record for receiving over USD 111 billion in remittances in 2022, becoming the first country to surpass the USD 100 billion mark. India, Mexico, China, the Philippines, and France were the top five remittance recipient countries.
  • On 10th May, India voted in favor of a UN General Assembly resolution calling for Palestine’s admission as a full member of the United Nations. The resolution, approved by a vote of 143 to 9 with 25 abstentions, urges the Security Council to “reconsider” the matter “favorably” and grants new “rights and privileges” to Palestine, recognizing its right to become the 194th member of the UN. The Palestinian membership bid will now be forwarded to the UN Security Council for reconsideration. On 31st May, the spokesperson for India’s Ministry for External Affairs, expressed deep concern about the loss of civilian lives in the displacement camp in Rafah. He also reaffirmed India’s consistent support for a two-state solution, advocating for the establishment of a sovereign, viable, and independent state of Palestine within recognized and mutually agreed borders, coexisting peacefully with Israel.
  • On 13th May, India signed a 10-year contract with Iran to operate the strategic Iranian port of Chabahar that will help it expand trade with Central Asia. Chabahar Port, outside the Strait of Hormuz, serves as a crucial link for India to access landlocked nations and offers an efficient transit route for goods to Europe. On May 14th, in response, the US State Department Deputy Spokesperson reiterated that US sanctions on Iran remain in effect, and cautioned any entity contemplating business deals with Iran to be mindful of the associated risks, including the potential for sanctions.
  • On 13th May, India extended a $50 million Treasury Bill to the Maldives for another year at the request of the Maldivian government, despite recent bilateral tensions. The State Bank of India provides these Treasury Bills through a government-to-government arrangement at no cost and without interest.
  • On 17th May, Nikita Kondratyev, director of the Russian Economic Development Ministry’s Department of Multilateral Economic Cooperation and Special Projects, announced Moscow and New Delhi’s plan to enhance their tourism ties by launching visa-free group tourist exchanges. He highlighted that consultations on a bilateral agreement will commence in June, with India finalizing internal coordination. Kondratyev stated that the first discussion on the draft agreement is scheduled for June, and both parties aim to sign it by the end of the year.
  • On 22nd May, the European Commission conducted a virtual consultation with civil society representatives to discuss the current status of the India-EU Free Trade Agreement (FTA) negotiations. This meeting aimed to gather input from civil society on the EU’s trade policy with India, particularly regarding trade and sustainability chapters, which include labor and environment issues. Participants reported that civil society amply raised human rights concerns.
  • On 24th May, Telangana state concluded a four-day recruitment drive for laborers to work in Israel. A total of 2,209 laborers registered, and 905 were selected for skilled construction work. This drive, facilitated by the National Skill Development Corporation International, follows similar ones in Uttar Pradesh and Haryana earlier this year.
  • On May 27th, officials from India and Japan convened during the 77th World Health Assembly (WHA) in Geneva, marking a significant step towards advancing bilateral health cooperation. Both parties reaffirmed their commitment to bolstering the Memorandum of Cooperation signed in 2018.
  • On 29th May, the European Union announced €250,000 in support in response to the recent hailstorm and heavy rain that struck India’s northeastern state of Manipur in early May. The aid, facilitated by EU humanitarian partner ADRA, will directly benefit over 1,500 vulnerable families. In response, the State Government of Manipur denied getting any relief from Civil Society Organisations or NGOs, and called reports about the aid ‘misleading’ and ‘untrue’.

Election violence 

  • On April 18 in Arunachal Pradesh, supporters and workers of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and the National People’s Party (NPP) entered into a fierce gun battle. At least 20 people were injured in the poll-related violence. The Election Commission ordered repolling in the state scheduled for April 24.
  • On April 19, numerous clashes between workers from the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and Bengal’s ruling party All India Trinamool Congress (TMC) occurred in Bengal as the first phase of the elections began. Both the TMC and the BJP lodged 80 and 39 complaints, respectively, related to poll violence, voter intimidation, and assaults on poll agents in the first few hours of polling. A voter sustained injuries in his eye in when he was coming out after casting his vote. A BJP supporter said he was attacked by a sickle on the way to a polling booth. There were reports of crude bombs being placed outside the house of a BJP booth president in an attempt to scare him away.
  • In Manipur, there were scattered incidents of armed violence on April 19, including clashes among armed groups and attempts to take over polling stations under heavy security. Presiding officers reporting mob violence, gunfire and destroyed Electronic Voting Machines in some booths. At a polling station in Thamanpokpi, Arambai Tenggop, a pro-BJP Meitei militant organisation allegedly threatened that could be no Congress agent on polling booth. People on social media, claimed that the Police are standing quietly watching the booth capturing. Shooting by armed persons broke out at a polling station at Thamanpokpi under Moirang Assembly segment where three people were reportedly injured. In Khurai Thangjam Leikai, angry civilians destroyed EVM and election related articles protesting the manipulative and corrupted duty officials. 

 

India in the World 

  • The Guardian reported on April 4 that the Indian government allegedly assassinated 20 individuals in Pakistan as part of a wider strategy to eliminate terrorists living on foreign soil since 2019. On April 12, External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar answered that since terrorists do not play by rules, there cannot be any rules in India’s response to them, and defended the government’s actions stating that India was committed to responding to any act of terrorism perpetrated from across the borders. These assassinations likely violate the right to life and right to a fair trial (Articles 6 and 14 ICCPR). 
  • On April 10, the Israeli government announced that over 6,000 construction workers from India will arrive in Israel in April and May. The workers from India were being sent to Israel under a government-to-government agreement between the two countries. In November 2023, reports stated that the construction industry in Israel had asked the Indian government to allow companies to recruit 100 000 Indian workers to replace the 90,000 Palestinians whose work permits had been cancelled since Israel’s war on Gaza started in October. 
  • The Indian Express reported on April 10 that the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) sent invitations to more than 25 parties of foreign countries to send their representatives to observe India’s Lok Sabha polls and understand the ruling party’s campaign strategies. The BJP invited the Conservative and Labour parties of the UK, and the Christian Democrats and Social Democrats of Germany. BJP sources said that 13 parties have so far confirmed their visits to India, although no further information has been revealed. 
  • On April 11, the Hindustan Times reported that India will send military attaches to Mozambique, the Ivory Coast, Ethiopia, Armenia, Philippines, and Poland. Africa is a focus area in a move by India to bolster and rationalise its military diplomacy in key regions across the world. India will also post defence attachés for the first time to Poland, whose importance as a security partner in Europe has increased in recent years, and to Armenia, with which the Indian side recently concluded a big-ticket arms deal. 
  • On April 14, the External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar said that he had contacted his Iranian counterpart, Hossein Amir-Abdollahian, seeking the release of 17 Indian crew on board a cargo ship seized by Iran. Iran said that it would soon allow representatives of the Indian government to meet the crew of Indians. The Iranian authorities had earlier claimed that the cargo vessel had “violated international maritime law”, but the incident is also an escalation to the ongoing Red Sea crisis, where Houthi rebels in Yemen have been targeting Israeli-linked commercial shipping on the high seas with ballistic missiles and drones.  
  • On April 17, a Hindutva (Hindu supremacist) mob chanted anti-Muslim slogans in the UK city of Leicester. The mob chanted “Ayodhya is just a glimpse, Kashi and Mathura mosques remain to be conquered.” Multiple Muslim organisations lodged complaints with Leicestershire police seeking action against the Hindutva mob. The incident raises concerns about the obligation to refrain from religious hatred (Article 20 ICCPR). 
  • On April 18, the Ministry of External Affairs announced that Iranian authorities released one of the 17 Indian sailors aboard seized cargo ship, who safely returned home. While no charges have been pressed against the crew members, the ship itself has been impounded, and the ship cannot be unmanned, meaning that some crew will need to stay as long as the seizure continues. 
  • On April 18, the US Congressional Research Service (CRS) reported that “the CAA’s [Citizenship Amendment Act] key provisions — allowing immigrants of six religions from three countries a path to citizenship while excluding Muslims — may violate certain Articles of the Indian Constitution”. CRS is an independent research wing of the US Congress that prepares reports on issues of interest to the members of Congress so that they can make informed decisions. The CAA also likely violates Articles 19 and 26 of the ICCPR.  
  • On April 22, the United States State Department released its 2023 Human Rights Report, which expressed concern about the “significant” abuses in Manipur, particularly in the wake of ethnic conflict that erupted in May 2023. The report also highlighted other concerning human rights practices, such as the raids conducted by tax authorities on media outlets like the BBC and instances of transnational repression, such as the killing of Sikh activist Hardeep Singh Nijjar in Canada.   
  • On April 30, the External Affairs Ministry of India said that a report by the Washington Post, which named an Indian official for allegedly plotting to eliminate Sikh separatist leader Gurpatwant Singh Pannun, made “unwarranted and unsubstantiated” imputations on a serious matter. The newspaper, citing unnamed sources, had named a RAW officer in connection with the alleged plot to assassinate Pannun. 

Civil society, human rights defenders and journalists 

  • On April 14, Jean Dreze, renowned economist, said that suppression of the opposition in India makes the Lok Sabha elections as good as rigged. Dreze was referring to the release of Bank of India data, showing that the Bharatiya Janata Party had received a vast majority of party donations. Dreze added that opposition leaders have been facing relentless scrutiny and harassment by central agencies for years under the BJP government. 
  • On 17 April, CIVICUS published a monitoring report showing that the Indian government used an array of restrictive laws and policies to silence dissent by targeting critics including civil society groups, human rights defenders and independent media, during Modi’s second term in power. The report highlights how the government has increasingly cracked down on civil society organisations by cancelling their registrations, raiding them and investigating them. It also mentions the government’s jailing of human rights defenders critical of the government in politically motivated cases under the Unlawful Activities Prevention Act (UAPA), a draconian anti-terror law. CIVICUS’ findings pose serious concerns about the freedom from arbitrary detention, and freedom of speech (Articles 9 and 19 ICCPR). 
  • On April 18, Ramadas Prini Sivanadan, a PhD scholar at Tata Institute of Social Sciences (TISS) Mumbai and a prominent left student leader in the campus was arbitrarily suspended for two years by the administration for participating in protests and questioning the ruling Hindu nationalist regime. This suspension raises questions about the freedom of speech (Article 19 ICCPR). 
  • On April 23, Australian ABC’s lead India correspondent Avani Dias revealed in a tweet “Last week, I had to leave India abruptly. The Modi government told me my visa extension would be denied, saying my reporting ‘crossed a line’.” She is referring to an episode she featured in in March on Sikh separatism. India’s visa revocation likely violates the right to free speech (Article 19 ICCPR).  

 

Arvind Kejriwal and AAP case 

  • On April 10, Delhi social welfare minister Raaj Kumar Anand resigned from his post and from the Aam Aadmi Party citing the charges of corruption against the party. He said “I resigned from the post of minister and from the party as I can’t connect my name with this corruption.” 
  • On April 10, the Delhi Directorate of Vigilance terminated the services of Bibhav Kumar, private secretary to jailed Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal. The termination order against Bibhav Kumar, declaring his appointment illegal and invalid, came two days after he was questioned by the Enforcement Directorate. 
  • On April 10, the Enforcement Directorate moved a Delhi court seeking an arrest warrant against Aam Aadmi Party MLA Amanatullah Khan in connection with alleged irregularities in appointments to the Delhi Waqf Board. 
  • On April 11, the Central Bureau of Investigation arrested Bharat Rashtra Samithi leader K Kavitha in the Delhi liquor policy case. The Enforcement Directorate has alleged that Kavitha, among others, conspired with senior Aam Aadmi Party leaders, including Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal and his former deputy Manish Sisodia, to secure favours in the formulation and implementation of the now-scrapped liquor excise policy of the national capital. 
  • On April 16, Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal and senior AAP leaders Manish Sisodia and Satyendar Jain, all of whom are behind bars, have been named by the party as star campaigners for the Lok Sabha polls in Gujarat. Arvind Kejriwal’s wife Sunita Kejriwal and Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann are also among the list of 40-star campaigners, whose names have been submitted by the party to the Election Commission. 
  • On April 18, the Enforcement Directorate (ED) arrested Aam Admi Party MLA Amanatullah Khan in connection with a money laundering case linked to the Delhi Waqf Board. The arrest comes hours after Khan appeared before the ED for questioning in connection with the case. Following the arrest, a video message by Khan, published on his social media, alleged that the agency wanted him to testify against jailed Delhi CM Arvind Kejriwal and refusing it will lead to his arrest. 
  • On April 19, AAP leader Atishi brought attention to the fact that Chief Minister Arvind was being stopped from taking medicine in judicial custody. This happened a day after the Enforcement Directorate claimed in court that the leader is eating foods high in sugar, including mangoes and sweets, every day, despite having type 2 diabetes, in order to raise his blood sugar level. “This is not a gangster or a terrorist, but a person who has been elected thrice by the people of Delhi as the Chief Minister,” Ms. Atishi replied. This raises concerns about the right to health (Article 12 ICESCR).  
  • Raj Niwas on April 20 released a medical status report submitted by the Director General of Prisons to Lieutenant-Governor V.K Saxena, which states that according to the doctors who examined him, Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal’s blood sugar levels were “not alarming” and “administration of insulin is not required as of now”. 
  • The Delhi High Court on April 22 dismissed a plea seeking the release of Aam Admi Party leader Arvind Kejriwal on “extraordinary interim bail” till the completion of his term as Delhi Chief Minister. 
  • On April 30, a Delhi court dismissed the bail pleas of former Deputy Chief Minister and AAP leader Manish Sisodia in the corruption and money laundering cases lodged by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) and the Enforcement Directorate (ED). Special judge for CBI and ED, Kaveri Baweja, denied the pleas, saying the stage was not right to grant the bail. This is the second time that the trial court has rejected Mr. Sisodia’s bail plea. Sisodia has been in jail since February 2023.  
  • The Supreme Court on April 30 underscored that life and liberty are exceedingly important while hearing Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal’s plea challenging his arrest by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) in a money laundering case stemming from the alleged Delhi excise policy scam. The court also asked the central agency to address arguments on the “timing” of the APP leader’s arrest right before the ongoing Lok Sabha elections. The Bench will hear the matter next on May 3. 
  • On April 30, the police arrested two political functionaries from the AAP and the Congress party in Gujarat for allegedly posting a doctored video of Union Home Minister Amit Shah’s April 23 speech in Telangana regarding reservation. Shah has urged people to report fake videos as to take strict action against culprits. Since April 28, the police in Delhi, Assam, Maharashtra and Gujarat have filed four separate cases in connection with the video. Most persons named in the First Information Reports (FIRs) are opposition party workers who shared the post on social media platforms X and Facebook, raising concern about biased and politically motivated arrests.  

 

 

Hate Crimes and Hate Speech against Minorities 

  • On April 16, Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) lawmaker Bijoy Malakar allegedly threatened voters in Assam’s Karimganj district to support the Hindutva party or face demolition by bulldozers. The opposition Congress party filed a complaint with the Badarpur police station against the Ratabari MLA for the speech. The speech likely violates the right to free speech, freedom from incitement to hostility (Articles 19 and 20 ICCPR) and the right to housing (Article 11 ICESCR) 
  • On April 21, in an Islamophobic speech in Rajasthan, Prime Minister Narendra Modi described Muslim minorities in India as “infiltrators” and “those who have more children.” Modi said that the opposition Congress party, if voted to power, could distribute the nation’s wealth among “infiltrators” and “those who have more children,” misquoting a statement by former Prime Minister Manmohan Singh that he would prioritise thethe minorities’ access to the country’s resources. This marks Modi’s first public hate speech, and raises serious concerns regarding the obligation to refrain from advocating for religious hatred (Article 20 ICCPR). The Congress Party responded by asking Prime Minister Narendra Modi to show one paragraph in its manifesto where it talked about redistributing wealth to the Muslim community. On April 22, the Election Commission (EC) declined to comment on remarks made by Prime Minister Narendra Modi at a poll rally in Rajasthan. 
  • On April 22, over 17,400 citizens wrote to the Election Commission (EC) seeking action against PM Narendra Modi for his hate speech on the previous day. Congress, the Communist Party of India, and the Communist Party of India (Marxist-Leninist), filed complaints to the EC regarding Modi’s hate speech being a violation the EC Model Code of Conduct. On April 25, the EC issued notices to political parties, seeking responses to alleged violations of the Model Code of Conduct (MCC) by their candidates instead of contacting the concerned candidates themselves.  
  • On April 29, the Delhi High Court dismissed a plea seeking to disqualify Prime Minister Narendra Modi from participating in any elections for six years. The petitioner had sought PM Modi’s disqualification, accusing him of violating the Model Code of Conduct (MCC). Jondhale, the lawyer who instigated the petition, alleged that PM Modi not only sought votes in the name of Hindu and Sikh deities and their places of worship but also made comments against “opposite political parties as favouring Muslims”. The Court ruled that the Election Commission of India is responsible for determining violations of the MCC.  

 

Religious Freedoms and Minority Rights 

  • 79 percent of the respondents to the Pre-Poll Study 2024 by the Centre for the Study of Developing Societies and Lokniti said that they believed that “India belongs to all religions equally, not just Hindus”. The survey was conducted between March 28 and April 8 across 19 states and found that the majority of its 10,019 respondents supported religious pluralism. Only 11% of the respondents said that they believed that “India belongs only to Hindus”. 
  • On April 8, the Allahabad High Court observed that credible proof is required to show that an individual changing their religion has taken the decision voluntarily and a verbal or written declaration that a religious conversion has taken place is not enough to legitimise it. Kumar made the observations while hearing a petition by a man to dismiss the case filed against him after he married a woman who belonged to a different religion. The petitioner had converted to his wife’s religion. Hindutva groups and police often make allegations of religious conversions to arrest people of Christian and Muslim faith on grounds of “forced conversions”. 
  • On April 19, Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah dismissed allegations of “love jihad” in connection with the murder of a Congress councillor’s daughter, Neha Hiremath, who was stabbed to death by her former classmate, 23-year-old Fayaz, on the campus of KLE Technological University on April 18. “Love jihad” is a Hindu supremacist conspiracy theory describing an alleged phenomenon where Muslim men lure Hindu women into marrying them and converting to Islam. The victim’s father, Niranjan Hiremath alleged that the murder may have been a case of “love jihad.” Niranjan Hiremath is councillor from the Hubballi Dharwad Municipal Corporation representing the Congress. 
  • On April 22, Muslim organisations held a strike to condemn the murder of 23-year-old college student Neha Hiremath, daughter of Congress Councillor of Hubballi-Dharwad Municipal Corporation Niranjan Hiremath. An old classmate of Neha, named Fayaz allegedly stabbed her to death on the campus of BVB College on April 18. 

 

 

Internet and Technology 

  • On April 2, a new investigation by the rights groups Global Witness and Access Now showed that Google-owned YouTube approved dozens of ads promoting voter suppression and incitement to violence ahead of the upcoming election in India. YouTube approved 100% of the adds submitted for research purposes by the two rights groups, which all included election-related content prohibited by YouTube rules. This experiment shows that YouTube may be failing to prevent the spread of paid-for disinformation in one of the most significant global elections of the year. 
  • On April 3, Meta released its monthly report, revealing that it removed more than 28 million posts across Facebook and Instagram that go against the platform’s policies in February. 
  • On April 10, 38 Indian diaspora groups and allies raised the alarm bells about a lack of action by social media corporations in protecting India’s elections. In a joint letter, the diaspora groups called on social media corporations with user markets in India to urgently enforce an election silence period and ban any political advertisements in the 48 hours before the elections, in accordance with Indian law, and listed 9 other demands. 
  • On April 11, technology company Apple warned some users in India and 91 other countries that their iPhones may have been targeted by “mercenary spyware”, including the controversial Pegasus software. In October, Apple had already warned several Indian opposition leaders and at least four journalists that their iPhones may have been targeted by “state-sponsored attackers”. 
  • On April 13, the All-India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam wrote to the Election Commission of India alleging that the Intelligence Wing of the Tamil Nadu Police has hacked the phones of its leaders. The All-India party claimed that “highly placed sources in the police” informed them that its leaders’ phones were being monitored in the run up to the Lok Sabha polls. 
  • On April 13, YouTube placed monetisation curbs on videos by at least two creators – Mehgnad and independent journalist Sohit Mishra – about the efficacy of Electronic Voting Machines and Voter Verified Paper Audit Trail. YouTube said the decision was based on its guidelines that say videos containing demonstrably false information are not eligible for ad revenue.  
  • On April 18, fact checkers from BOOMLive identified at least 8 chatbots in the Chat GPT Plus Store focused on elections in India that go against OpenAI’s policy. Election Pundit is one of the several AI chatbots available on the GPT store, which is themed on Indian elections and could be used by both the ruling party and the opposition to create campaigning content. Another chatbot named ElectionGPT, generates campaigns directed at ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) by the opposition. The GPT store also had a chatbot exclusively targeting Delhi Chief Minister, Arvind Kejriwal, which goes by the name of Fraud Kejri, which OpenAI quickly took down.  
  • On April 19, fact checkers from BOOMLive found that the Government’s Pegasus investigation committee website in India has deleted depositions made to it and has started posting spam content.  

 

Political Parties and Election Monitoring 

  • On April 1, the Election Commission of India censured Bharatiya Janata Party MP Dilip Ghosh and Congress member Supriya Shrinate for their remarks about West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee and actor Kangana Ranaut, who is the BJP’s Lok Sabha candidate from Mandi. The poll body said that their remarks amounted to personal attacks and violated the Model Code of Conduct, a set of guidelines that political parties and governments must follow while campaigning.  
  • On April 11, a group of 87 former civil servants wrote an open letter to the Election Commission, highlighting the poll panel’s lack of assertiveness “in dealing with actions that impact the conduct of free and fair elections” despite the enormous powers vested in it by the Constitution to do so. The former civil servants, who are part of the Constitutional Conduct Group, expressed concern about the arrest of Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal in the liquor policy case and the “disturbing pattern of harassment and witch hunting of Opposition parties and Opposition politicians” ahead of the Lok Sabha elections. 
  • On April 11, data from Google’s Ads Transparency Center revealed that the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) spent over Rs 39 crore (USD 4.6 million) on 81,874 political advertisements on Google since January 1.  This accounts for 32.8% of the total funds spent on political advertisements on Google in India this year.  
  • The Election Commission of India on April 16 barred Congress leader Randeep Surjewala from campaigning for 48 hours over his alleged derogatory remarks against BJP MP Hema Malini. This is the first campaign ban imposed by the poll body in this Lok Sabha election cycle. The ECI on April 9 issued a show-cause notice to Mr. Surjewala for his alleged “undignified, uncivilised and vulgar” remarks against Ms. Hema Malini. 
  • On April 17, an election flying squad team seized ₹81,000 (USD 900) in unauthorised cash and a voter list from a local Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) functionary. The money was taken from R. Jothimani, who is currently the president of the BJP at Alandurai. Authorities suspect that the cash was being transported to be distributed to voters as it was found with a voter list.  
  • The Supreme Court of India on April 18 directed the Election Commission to verify the allegation that during a mock poll in Kerala, extra votes were recorded in favour of the Bharatiya Janata Party in the Electronic Voting Machines (EVMs). On the same day, both the Left Democratic Front (LDF) and the United Democratic Front (UDF) gave complaints to the District Collector that at least four electronic voting machines (EVM) erroneously registered extra votes in favour of the BJP during the mock test in Kerala’s Kasargod constituency. Opposition leaders have cast doubts over EVM’s transparency during the election campaign. The Election Commission of India (ECI) assured the Supreme Court that it is impossible to tamper with electronic voting machines “at any stage”. Replying to a query on whether tampering of EVMs was possible after polling, the ECI said polling officers press the ‘close’ button at the end of polling. “Thereafter, the EVMs do not accept any votes,” a 14-page affidavit said.  
  • On April 19, six districts of Eastern Nagaland saw close to no votes. The Eastern Naga People’s Organization had called on people in the state to abstain from voting in the elections and a total shutdown to press for their demand for autonomy. 
  • On April 19, West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee, who was campaigning at Hariharpara in Murshidabad district, accused the central forces of political bias. “I am not against central forces but this is the first time that the BJP is using central forces as their cadres,” Ms. Banerjee said. She raised questions on why only central forces were used in Cooch Behar and the State police were not deployed. 
  • On April 21, ahead of the Lok Sabha polls in the national capital, the Delhi Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) hosted a mega conclave of Hindu priests, saints and seers to celebrate the Hindu new year and construction of the Ram temple in Ayodhya, at the IGI stadium.  
  • On April 30, the Janata Dal (Secular) (JDS) party, an ally of the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), announced that MP Prajwal Revanna has been suspended from the party temporarily until allegations against him over sexual abuse are probed. The leak of nearly 3,000 videos, allegedly shot by the 33-year-old Prajwal, apparently showing him sexually abusing multiple women, ignited a sex scandal for the MP, his party, and the BJP, at a time when the BJP is counting on the JDS to deliver its coalition a majority of Karnataka’s 28 parliamentary seats.
     

 

Executive 

  • On April 10, the Calcutta High Court ordered the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) to probe all allegations levelled by residents of strife-torn Sandeshkhali in West Bengal since February, and said it will monitor the process. The CBI asserted that it “shall have the power to require any person, organisation, government authority, police authorities, quasi governmental authorities, NGOs, public spirited persons and others who may be genuinely interested in the matter to furnish information on such point or matters, as in its opinion may be useful for, or relevant to the subject matter”. The order sparked a political controversy in the state, with some political leaders believing the order to be a biased order by the court in favour of the Bharatiya Janata Party. 
  • On April 11, the Jammu and Kashmir Police said in a social media post that it had retrieved the body of a “terrorist” from the site of a gunfight that broke out. The police also recovered incriminating material, including arms and ammunition, was recovered from the site gunfight.  
  • On April 12, the Enforcement Directorate (ED) appealed against a single-judge bench order not to summon former minister and communist party leader Thomas Isaac, until the end of the Lok Sabha elections. The central ED agency had initiated an investigation into whether the Foreign Exchange Management Act was violated in issuing the masala bonds in 2019, when Issac was the Kerala finance minister. Isaac, on the other hand, contended that the Enforcement Directorate investigation just ahead of the election would hamper his poll prospects, and that the agency issued the summons without a prima facie case. 
  • On April 12, the National Investigation Agency arrested two men accused in the bomb blast that took place at Rameswaram cafe in Bengaluru on March 1. The two men, Adbul Matheen Taha and Mussavir Hussain Shazib, were accused of recruiting youths for the Islamic State terror group.   
  • On April 16, a joint operation by the Border Security Force (BSF) and Chhattisgarh police carried out the deadliest anti-Maoist operation in Chhattisgarh since 2017, which killed 29 Maoist fighters. The police said that fighting between the security forces and the Maoists had gone on for 4 hours. According to reports, the deceased include at least 15 women, which the police alleged to be cadres who live in the village and are supposed to be informers of Maoists. However, in the past, there has been evidence that tribal women have been targeted by security forces. Over the years, corporate privatisation of Chhattisgarh’s natural resources and land has led to the displacement of Adivasi community, and security operations in the state have often disproportionately affected the community and framing dissidents in the area as Maoists has become common practice. In another encounter with security forces on April 2, Adivasis in the region reported security forces killed some innocents. These operations raises questions about the state’s safeguarding of the right to life (Article 6 ICCPR). 
  • On April 16, the Enforcement Directorate arrested former Jharkhand Chief Minister Hemant Soren and others in connection with the money laundering investigation. The federal agency also undertook some searches in Ranchi against a person named Antu Tirkey, who is allegedly linked to the case. The arrested person identified as Afshar Ali was lodged in jail under judicial custody in another money laundering case and the agency has taken his custody in the latest case after seeking a designated court’s permission. 
  • On April 21, Congress chief Mallikarjun Kharge alleged at a joint Opposition rally that former Jharkhand Chief Minister Hemant Soren had been arrested for refusing to leave the INDIA bloc. Kharge warned Prime Minister Narendra Modi that if he tried to “terrorise” tribals, he himself would be destroyed. 

 

Judiciary 

  • On April 1, the Supreme Court refused to stay the Varanasi district court’s order allowing Hindus to offer prayers in the sealed basement of the Gyanvapi mosque complex. On January 31, the Varanasi court allowed Hindus to offer prayers in the basement of the complex after an Archaeological Survey of India report claimed that a Hindu temple that existed at the site was destroyed in the 17th century. 
  • On April 6, the Supreme Court said that people had a fundamental right to be free from adverse impacts of climate change, and that this right flowed naturally from the right to life and the right to equality guaranteed in the Indian Constitution.  
  • On April 8, the Supreme Court raised a serious alarm over the misuse of social media platforms, denouncing the spread of factually incorrect and unfounded statements regarding pending cases. The Supreme Court initiated a contempt action against Assam legislator Karim Uddin Barbhuiya for his misleading Facebook post regarding a case reserved for judgment, where the top court expressed dismay at the growing trend of social media misuse, which under the guise of freedom of expression, tarnishes the integrity of the Court and sowed misinformation among the masses. 
  • On April 9, the Calcutta High Court ordered a court-monitored Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) probe into the alleged incidents of sexual assault and land grabbing by suspended Trinamool Congress leader Shahjahan Sheikh. At the previous hearing on April 4, advocate Priyanka Tibrewal, a member of the Bharatiya Janata Party and one of the petitioners in the case, demanded that the investigation be transferred to a court-monitored commission authorised to receive complaints from the residents of Sandeshkhali and compile them for the court. Sheikh was arrested by the police on February 29 in connection with a case about an assault on Enforcement Directorate officials, and remains in the Enforcement Directorate’s custody. 
  • On April 10, the Supreme Court allowed a prayer meeting organised by the Christian community to take place after the district administration in Madhya Pradesh’s Indore revoked permission for the event. Hindu supremacist groups had filed a complaint on April 5 opposing the Christian prayer meeting, alleged that the prayer meeting was being organised with an intention to mislead the Hindu community and encourage them to convert to Christianity. 
  • On April 19, a special court in Mumbai granted bail to Yes Bank co-founder Rana Kapoor in the ₹466.51 crore (EUR 52 million) bank fraud case, paving the way for him to walk out of jail after four years. The Enforcement Directorate (ED) arrested Kapoor in March 2020 in a money laundering case, and he has been booked in eight cases related to fraud at the bank. The banker has now secured bail in all the cases. 
  • On April 19, the Supreme Court sought a reply from the Union government and the Assam State government on a petition challenging the Citizenship (Amendment) Rules, 2024, which aims to grant citizenship to ‘non-Muslim’ migrants who came from Pakistan, Bangladesh and Afghanistan before December 31, 2014. 

 

Business and Economy 

  • On April 19, the Consumer Affairs Ministry said it has asked the food safety regulator FSSAI to investigate the composition of Nestle’s Cerelac baby cereals sold in India. This comes after a report released recently by a Swiss NGO, the Public Eye and International Baby Food Action Network, revealed that Nestle’s baby food products sold in India, as well as in African and Latin American countries, have higher sugar content, in comparison to the same products sold in European markets. amid a global report that claimed the company was adding higher sugar content in the product. 
  • On April 20, Tesla CEO Elon Musk postponed his planned trip to India, citing “very heavy” obligations at Tesla. On April 11, Musk had announced a visit to India in a post on X (formerly Twitter). This came after it was reported that the billionaire will visit India this month and could make an announcement related to investment plans in the country which could be related to opening a new factory. Earlier, Elon Musk described providing Tesla electric vehicles in India as a ‘natural progression. 

 

Armed Conflict in Manipur 

  • On April 13, Meitei militants allegedly killed two Kuki-Zo “village volunteers”, a term used to speak of armed civilians guarding villages in Manipur, in a collusion with members of central security forces. Videos of their corpses being mutilated after the firing were shared widely on social media. The Indigenous Tribal Leaders’ Forum condoned the killings, and alledged that “a combined team of Arambai Tenggol and UNLF [United National Liberation Front] militants [have] been attacking tribal areas since [April 12] and openly posting about their activity on social media”. The event raises serious concerns about the state’s ability to protect the right to life (Article 6 ICCPR).  
  • On April 15, the Supreme Court rejected a petition seeking special arrangements for over 18,000 voters, who fled Manipur due to the conflict. The Supreme Court disposed of a petition filed by voters from Manipur, who fled to cities like Delhi, Mumbai, Bengaluru, Hyderabad, Guwahati, Shillong and a few other places, saying it was too late for them to issue a directive to the Election Commission to make special arrangements for such voters. 
  • On April 15, Al Jazeera reported that officials from Assam Rifles, the federal government’s paramilitary force with a long and controversial history in the state, had conducted an assessment on accountability in the ongoing Manipur conflict, which was reviewed by The Reporters’ Collective (TRC). TRC shared a presentation of the assessment to Al Jazeera, which found that the state government, headed by Chief Minister N Biren Singh, a member of Modi’s Hindu nationalist Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), and his “political authoritarianism and ambition” was to blame. 
  • On April 19, the Election Commission of India declared the polling conducted at 11 booths across five Assembly segments in Inner Manipur on April 19 as void as violence broke out. After the main opposition Congress party had demanded a rerun at 47 Manipur polling stations, alleging that booths were captured and elections were rigged, repolling occurred on April 22, which was conducted peacefully as the state deployed huge amounts of security personnel.   
  • On April 19, the youth and civil organisations in Manipur called for the boycott of elections in protest of the government’s response post the violence on 2 May 2023. “This is the way we signify our anger with the government for letting Manipur burn for a year,” Sam, a resident of Churachandpur in Manipur said. The Committee on Tribal Unity (COTU) from the Kangpokpi District, which also saw the recent killings of two Kuki volunteers have said the whole community is abstaining from casting votes.  
  • On April 24, an improvised explosive device (IED) blast blew up part of a vital bridge on one of Manipur’s two national highways connecting the state with the rest of India. The blast, which has still not been attributed, took place a day after the armed volunteers guarding the respective villages of the Kuki and Meitei communities engaged in a fight in the Imphal West district. The blast has cut off all traffic on the state’s most important access point to the rest of India, stranding nearly 200 vehicles, including trucks carrying essential commodities to Manipur’s capital Imphal.  
  • On April 30, the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) made its chargesheet from October 2023 on sexual violence in Manipur. The chargesheet pertains to the case of gang rape, sexual assault, and parading of two Kuki-Zo women by a mob of the Meitei community in May 2023. 

Edit on 02/05: An earlier version reported that the BJP won 10 seats unopposed in Arunachal Pradesh. This refers to earlier elections for the legislative assembly. The results for the Lok Sabha polls have not been announced yet. The reference was therefore removed for clarity.

Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA) 

  • On March 11, the Indian government passed the rules to implement the controversial and discriminatory Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA). The CAA 2019 permits the granting of citizenship to Hindu, Sikh, Buddhist, Jain, Parsi and Christian “illegal immigrants” from Pakistan, Afghanistan and Bangladesh who entered India on or before December 31, 2014, but specifically excludes Muslims. India does not a have a refugee policy or law. Civil society actors have highlighted that the CAA violates Article 14 of India’s Constitution by denying equality and equal protection before the law. In addition, the CAA is very likely violating Articles 26 and 27 of the ICCPR, which guarantee equality and freedom of religion. Immediately after the announcement, Chief ministers of the governments of West Bengal, Tamil Nadu, Kerala released statements expressing their condemnation of the CAA. 
  • On March 10, Assam’s Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma reportedly said that political parties may face deregistration if they organised anti-CAA protests. He added that such protests would be considered a violation of a Gauhati High Court order dated March 19, 2023, which said that protests are “illegal and unconstitutional”. This raises serious concerns regarding freedom of speech and freedom of assembly (Article 19 and 21 ICCPR). 
  • On March 11, politicians, activists and students protested against the implementation of the CAA in the state of Assam. Congress workers, led by the opposition leader in Assam, burnt copies of the new law in protest, while The Asom Jatiyatabadi Yuba Chatra Parishad (AJYCP), a student-led political party in the state, torched effigies of Prime Minister Narendra Modi. The Assam Police issued notices to opposition parties, asking them to withdraw the hartal over the implementation of the CAA, and warned of “legal action”. Similar student-led protests also took place in the states of Meghalaya and Tripura. 
  • On March 11, the police detained 55 student protesters from Delhi University as they were marching against the implementation of the CAA. The police claimed that the detentions were a preventative measure, but the police’s actions still raise serious concerns regarding the possible violation of Article 9 of the ICCPR, which prohibits arbitrary detention. Students in other regions including Assam also organised anti-CAA protests. 
  • On March 12, the United Nations and the United States expressed worries about the discriminatory provisions of the new CAA. A spokesperson of the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights said that the office was worried that the Citizenship Amendment Act “is fundamentally discriminatory in nature and in breach of India’s international human rights obligations”. The US State Department also said it was concerned about the notification of rules and is monitoring the act’s implementation. The Act has a strong likelihood of violating Articles 26 and 27 of the ICCPR, which guarantee equality and freedom of religion.  
  • On March 13, the Uttar Pradesh police arrested two student activists affiliated with the All India Students’ Association (AISA) for organising a protest against the CAA. On March 15, the police arrested two more students in front of the Additional District Magistrate (ADM) office in Prayagraj, where they had gone to provide legal assistance to the jailed activists. According to AISA leaders, one of the two students arrested on March 15 had not even participated in the protests, and police reportedly arrested him because of his participation in previous protests. All four have since been sent to Naini Jail, raising serious concerns about the right to peaceful assembly and expression, the protection from arbitrary arrest and detention, and the right to a fair trial (Articles 9, 19, 21, ICCPR). 
  • On March 14, Amnesty International called the operationalization of the CAA a “blow” to the Indian constitutional values of equality and religious non-discrimination. Amnesty also called out the CAA for violating India’s international human rights obligations referring to the ICCPR and the ICESCR. The CAA strongly contradicts equality and the freedom of religion (Articles 26 and 27 ICCPR) and the right of cultural participation (Article 15 ICESCR). 
  • On March 15, police in Uttar Pradesh allegedly kept Sumaiyah Rana – the national spokesperson of the Samajwadi party and vice president of the women’s wing of the party – along with her younger sister Uroosa Rana under house arrest from morning to evening for leading protests in 2020 opposing the Citizenship Amendment Act. On March 21, Rana was kept under house arrest again on what she believes to be attempts to prevent her participation in an expected protest. These house arrests likely violate the right to peaceful assembly, the freedom of speech and the protection from arbitrary arrests (Articles 19, 21, 9 ICCPR). 
  • On March 19, Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M K Stalin called the CAA “divisive” and declared that it will not be implemented in the state. He deplored the act for reportedly going against the Indian Constitution. 

 

India in the world 

  • On March 7, several United Nations Special Rapporteurs sounded the alarm over reports of attacks on minorities, media and civil society in India and called for urgent action in the runup to the country’s elections. The joint statement asked the Indian government to prohibit advocacy of religious hatred, including incitement to discrimination, hostility or violence, and protect the religious freedom of minorities by repealing anti-conversion and anti-blasphemy laws. UN human rights experts criticised the Indian Government for its low response to UN communications on the issue. Out of the 78 communications sent by UN human rights experts over the past five years, the Indian government only gave 18 replies that could be made public. 
  • On March 7, the Sweden-based Varieties of Democracy Institute (V-Dem) in its new report called India one of the “worst autocratisers” in the world in recent years. According to the report, India remained an “electoral autocracy” at the end of 2023 after first being categorised as one in 2018. V-Dem highlighted the Indian government’s continued suppression of religious freedoms, and intimidation of political opposition and dissent as key aspects behind their assessment. 
  • On March 13, civil society group CIVICUS published their 2024 State of Civil Society Report, where it denounced Modi’s BJP government of supressing civil society while India held the 2023 Annual G20 summit, restricting environmental activism and failing to tackle LGBTQ+ domestic issues. This raises concerns about the freedom of speech (Article 19 ICCPR). 
  • On March 21, Al Jazeera reported that the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) allegedly approached the Observer Research Foundation (ORF), a major Indian think tank, to develop a homegrown democracy ratings index. Inside sources have confirmed that the index will be published before India’s elections. This announcement came after numerous prominent think tanks such as Freedom House, the V-Dem Institute, and the Economist Intelligence Unit downgraded India in their democracy indexes.  
  • On March 21, Member of the European Parliament Bert-Jan Ruissen submitted a written question to the European External Action Service, asking for updates on what it has done to urge the Government of India to stop violence in Manipur. The question comes after the European Parliament passed a resolution in July 2023 on the situation in Manipur, which urged the Indian government to take all necessary measures to stop the conflict, allow unhindered humanitarian access to the populations affected, and allow an international investigating into the violence. 
  • On March 22, Germany’s Foreign Ministry announced that it has taken note of the arrest of New Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal, India’s longstanding face in India’s anti-corruption movement. Germany’s Foreign Ministry said that it expected “standards regarding the independence of the judiciary and basic democratic principles” to apply in Kejriwal’s arrest. With the investigation into Kejriwal being led by a central government agency widely believed to be under the influence of the Bharatiya Janata party (BJP), Kejriwal’s arrest likely violates the right from arbitrary arrest (Article 9 ICCPR).  
  • On March 25, Savera – an interfaith, multiracial, anti-caste coalition of Indian American and partner civil rights groups – released a declaration, sounding the alarm on the rise of Hindu supremacism in the US, and warned that Hindu supremacism “now finds itself in a deepening alliance with various facets of the American far-right”. Over 100 signed onto the declaration, which vows to take action to combat its spread in the US.  
  • On March 28, Reporters Without Borders and Guernica 37 Chambers called on the EU to request member states to sanction Delhi Police officers responsible for the arbitrary raids against 46 journalists from NewsClick, an independent online media outlet. The Delhi Police arrested the founder and the human resources director of NewsClick, Prabir Purkayastha and Amit Chakravarty, who remain in custody. The incident raises serious concerns regarding the freedom from arbitrary arrest and detention (Articles 9 ICCPR). 
  • On March 31, United States Ambassador to India Eric Garcetti said that involvement of a foreign government or its employees in an attempted assassination of a citizen of another country is a “red line” that should not be crossed. Garcetti was referring to an alledged plot in November 2023 under investigation to assassinate Gurpatwant Singh Pannun, a Sikh separatist, in the United States. The killing may violate the right to life (Article 6 ICCPR).  

 

Human rights defenders, press and civil society 

  • On March 5, the Bombay High Court acquitted professor and human rights defender G.N. Saibaba and five other co-accused, who were arrested under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act for alleged Maoist links. Nagpur Central Jail released Saibaba on March 7 after he suffered 10 years in prison, experienced the custodial death of his co-accused Father Stan Swamy, and suffered numerous health-related setbacks. Saibaba’s incarceration likely violated the right against arbitrary arrest and the right to a fair trial (Articles 9 ICCPR).  
  • On March 16, Muslim activist and community leader Javed Mohammed walked out of Uttar Pradesh’s Deoria Jail after 1 year, 9 months and 5 days of incarceration, after getting bail in multiple cases against him over 2022 Prayagraj Violence. The police had arrested him on June 11, 2022, accusing him of organizing protests that turned violent against comments made by the then-active Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leaders insulting Prophet Muhammad and Islam.  
  • On March 17, Human Rights Watch reported that Indian authorities are revoking visa privileges to overseas critics of Indian origin who have spoken out against the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)-led government’s policies. The Indian government has primarily targeted Indian-origin academics, activists, and journalists who have been vocal critics of the BJP’s Hindu majoritarian ideology, by removing their Overseas Citizens of India (OCI) status. OCI status grants residency and visa bypassing rights to foreign citizens of Indian origin and spouses of Indian nationals. The targeted cancellation of OCI statuses raises concerns about the right for all to be equal in front of the law (Article 26 ICCPR).  
  • On March 20, the civil society group CIVICUS, along with Amnesty International, Human Rights Watch, and others called for the immediate and unconditional release of Kashmiri journalist and human rights defender Irfan Mehraj, who remains detained since March 20 of last year. In June 2023, United Nations experts expressed serious concerns regarding the charges against and arrest of Mehraj, where they accused the ongoing detention to be an attempt to “delegitimize their human rights work and obstruct monitoring of the human rights situation in Indian-administered Jammu and Kashmir”. Mehraj’s detention likely violates the right against arbitrary arrest and incarceration (Articles 9 ICCPR). 
  • On March 21, Carnegie Endowment for International Peace released a new report documenting women’s mobilisation around the world fighting for democracy. It documents how women-led movements led to several democratic victories in 2023, including India’s Parliament passing a law reserving one-third of legislative seats for women, women-led protests compelling the state government to finally address the conflict in Manipur in July, and women wrestlers protested sexual abuse by the president of the Wrestling Federation of India sparking solidarity from opposition parties and civil society groups. 
  • On March 22, the Kilimanoor police arrested a Dalit (“untouchable”) man for peacefully protesting with 11 other Dalits for more accessible roads for motor vehicles. Due to the lack of a motorable road, ambulances refuse to come to the residence of one of the 11 Dalit men who remains disabled sustaining injuries from a casteist attack in 2005. The police filed an investigation report, stating that the protesters were disrupting official duties. The arrested Dalit man has reported these allegations to be false. The above raises serious concerns regarding the right of peaceful assembly, the protection from arbitrary arrests and detention, the freedom from discrimination, and the right to health (Articles 21, 26, 9 ICCPR and Article 12 ICESCR). 
  • On March 28, a sessions court in Gujarat sentenced ex-police officer and human rights defender Sanjiv Bhatt to 20 years of prison in a second fabricated case dating back to 1996. Bhatt has been in jail since 2018 on reportedly fabricated charges after he blew whistle on the alleged involvement of Prime Minister Narendra Modi in the 2002 Gujarat riots. Already sentenced to life in jail, the court pronounced Bhatt’s conviction, as the human rights defender was not even allowed to testify or call witnesses. The case raises serious concerns regarding the upholding of rights from arbitrary arrest and detention, and the right to a fair trial (Article 9 and 14 ICCPR).  
  • On March 30, the Delhi Police Special Cell filed an Unlawful Activities Prevention Act case against NewsClick founder and editor Prabir Puryakayastha, who has been in judicial custody since November. Puryakayastha’s Newsclick has been accused of allegedly receiving funds from China “with the intention of undermining India’s sovereignty and territorial integrity” – but there appears to be no evidence to back this. The case raises serious concerns regarding the upholding of rights from arbitrary arrest and detention, and the right to a fair trial (Article 9 and 14 ICCPR). 

 

Hate Crimes and Hate Speech against Minorities 

  • On March 12, a court in Uttar Pradesh found ten persons guilty in the 2018 Hapur lynching case relating to the murder of 45-year-old Qasim. The court gave the culprits life sentences in prison.  
  • On March 16, a group of Hindu supremacists reportedly attacked four foreign Muslim students and ransacked student dormitories at a Gujarat University student hostel. On March 17, India’s Ministry of External Affairs pledged to take “strict actions against the perpetrators” and announced that the local police had begun an investigation into the attack. 
  • Between March 23 and 25, numerous groups of Hindu supremacist men celebrating Holi engaged in multiple incidents of molestation, violence, and harassment against Muslims, particularly women. In Uttar Pradesh, a mob of Hindu supremacist men reportedly harassed a Muslim man along with his sister and mother, returning from a doctor’s visit on March 23. Stand-by police reportedly did not intervene. In Gujarat, a group of Hindu supremacists reportedly assaulted, beat and forcefully coloured a rickshaw driver on March 25. The Hindu supremacists reportedly set his auto-rickshaw on fire while shouting Islamophobic slurs. In Uttar Pradesh, a group of teenagers shouting Hindu religious slogans surrounded a Muslim man and two Muslim women riding a bike, drenched the women in water and forcefully applied colour to the faces of the man and one of the women. In Jharkhand, a gang of 10 to 15 men celebrating Holi forcibly smeared mud on Muhammad Gulzar, a Muslim journalist, while he was on his way to a funeral. 
  • On March 26, unidentified individuals reportedly threw a bomb outside Sadar Mosque in the state of Odisha after Maghrib prayer, injuring three Muslim men. The individuals appear to be Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) supporters, as the bomb was in a box that allegedly bore the name of an Instagram handle “sbp mafia gang” with a bio that reads “Jay Shree Ram, Jay BJP.” 
  • On March 28, an official reported that a case has been opened against Madhya Pradesh Congress MLA Veer Singh Bhuria for allegedly violating the model code of conduct. On March 26, the MLA incited people to “cut of the hands” of people from JAYS – a tribal organisation with pockets of influence in tribal dominated areas – and anyone trying to split the vote during the upcoming general elections. The MLA’s comments likely violate article 20 of the ICCPR, which prohibits incitement to discrimination and violence. 
  • On March 30, Maktoob media reported that the Kerala Police found 770 kg explosives from the residences of a local RSS leader and his relative. The RSS is India’s leading Hindu supremacist organisation. According to the police, preliminary investigations indicate that the explosives were intended for illegal distribution.  
  • On March 30, a man from an upper caste allegedly brutally beat an 8-year-old Dalit (“untouchable”) boy for touching a water bucket. The child’s father filed a complaint to the police after the culprit refused to apologise and shouted casteist slurs instead. 

 

Religious Freedoms and Minority Rights 

  • On March 25, the Maharashtra Police filed a first information report after the words “Shri Ram” were found written on the wall of a mosque. The police acted after the local Muslim community had congregated outside the local police station seeking action.  
  • The Legal Rights Protection Forum (LRPF), said to be ideologically close to the RSS – one of the leading Hindu supremacist groups – reportedly wrote to the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) seeking cancellation of FCRA registration of two prominent NGOs — Caritas India, based in Delhi and Rural Development Trust based in Anantpur, Andhra Pradesh. LRPF alleged that both are involved in religious conversions to Christianity, a common allegation seeking to undermine India’s freedom of religion. 

 

 

Internet and Technology 

  • On March 1, the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY) published its updated AI Advisory. The tech industry has criticized the advisory for being too vague, as it aims to regulate “AI model(s)/LLM/Generative AI, software(s) or algorithm(s)” without processes for compliance. In addition, the advisory asked tech firms to seek government approval before launching new AI tools, which incited concerns from critics saying that such a requirement could curb innovation and free speech. While the advisory is not legally binding, it does indicate the future of AI regulations in India. On March 12, India updated the advisory and removed the controversial government approval requirement.  
  • On March 2, Meta revealed that it took down over 22.6 million pieces of actionable content in its compliance report in India. Of the other 8,488 reports through Meta’s India grievance mechanism where specialised review was needed, Meta acted on 4,632 complaints. 
  • On March 8, Al Jazeera reported that the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) posted an AI-generated campaign video of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, after hiring audio forensic experts to test the clip. The video features an AI-generated soundtrack of music icon Mahendra Kapoor singing an old patriotic Hindi song, with lyrics were modified to highlight Modi’s political ‘achievements’. The post follows another AI-generated post by India’s opposition party, the Indian National Congress (INC) party, mocking Modi. Both posts did not explicitly disclose that the political content was fabricated using AI, which goes against Meta’s political advertisement policy and raises accountability concerns regarding disinformation ahead of the elections.  
  • On March 11, the Bombay High Court refused to block the government from implementing a fact checking unit responsible for obliging platforms to take down “false”, “fake” or “misleading” information about the Indian government. India’s Government can now implement fully state-controlled fact checking units and hold companies liable for not cooperating with the government’s request, which poses serious concerns regarding the freedom of speech (Article 19 ICCPR). On March 21, the Supreme Court stayed the decision, which is scheduled to last as long as the Bombay High Court takes to decide the challenges to the IT Rules amendment 2023.   
  • On March 15, Indians with a mobile phone, including diaspora, received a WhatsApp message from the government with an attached personal letter from Prime Minister Modi addressed to “My dear family member.” Opposition parties have criticised the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) the message for being political propaganda disguised as citizen feedback request, while many recipients are also concerned over the perceived breach of their data privacy. The message targeting may violate India’s rules on data privacy, and Article 17 of the ICCPR on privacy.  
  • On March 19, Meta announced its platform policy in preparation for India’s General Elections, which outlines how it aims to limit misinformation, block voter interference and increase transparency and accountability. The policy claims that content targeted as fabricated or manipulated will appear lower on Facebook feeds and be filtered out on Instagram. However, the new measures have been criticised for being vague, flexible and insufficient to handle rampant hate speech and disinformation during India’s elections. Meta noted that it will work closely with the Election Commission of India to flag unlawful content.  
  • On March 28, opposition party Indian National Congress filed a complaint over a piece of fake news that circulated on March 27 by R Kannada news channel. The footage shared showed Chief Minister Siddaramaiah’s convoy blocking traffic and obstructing an ambulance. However, at the time, the Chief Minister was actually in Mysuru and had not travelled towards Bengaluru. The police have since filed a case against Republic TV chief editor Arnab Goswami for allegedly spreading fake news about the Karnataka chief minister and attempting to incite hatred. 
  • On March 28, Software Freedom Law Centre India (SFLC.in), an NGO focused on digital policy, reported that it sent letters to the Election Commission of India (EC) and X, Facebook, Open AI, and Google to add stringent measures regarding generative AI and manipulated media. SFLC.in expressed concern that political parties’ IT cells, misinformation Campaigns, deep fakes, and AI-driven manipulation will threaten to shape the outcomes of the April-June elections in India. 
  • MemeXpress, a pro-BJP Facebook page which has invested Rs 1 crore (USD 120,000) in political advertising, published four ads featuring the murder of Atiq Ahmed, one of India’s most dreaded gangster-politicians. The caption was “just one bulldozer is needed in Bengal; all the stubborn Shahjahans will fall in line”. Two versions of the ad ran interrupted between March 8 to March 15, raising concerns about Meta’s ability to effectively enforce its policies that prohibit content glorifying violence. 

 

Political Parties and Election Monitoring 

  • The Independent Panel for Monitoring Indian Elections – a group of academic experts from Europe, Bangladesh and India – released its first “pre-election” baseline report in March 2024. The report recalls the exclusion of millions of Muslim, Dalit and Christian voters from electoral rolls in 2019; the BJP’s targeting of Opposition parties; religious polarisation as an electoral tactic; the lack of review of concerns regarding electronic voting machines; the mainstream media’s open affinity with the BJP; and an ineffective Election Commission.  
  • On March 9, Arun Goel resigned from the Election Commission (EC) after Anup Pandey retired on February 15, leaving the 3-member election commission down to the chief election commissioner Rajiv Kumar. Goel gave no reason for his resignation. The timing of this resignation alongside the ongoing electoral bonds case raises questions. 
  • On March 9, Bharatiya Janata Party’s (BJP) Karnataka MP Anant Kumar Hegde said that the party was planning to win 400+ seats in the 2024 legislative elections to give the party a 2/3 majority in Parliament to amend the Constitution. He stated that the BJP could overturn rules that allegedly oppress Hindus. 
  • On March 16, Chief Election Commissioner Rajiv Kumar announced the dates for the upcoming Lok Sabha legislative elections. Voting will be held in 7 phases, beginning from April 19 and ending on June 1, with results being declared on June 4. 
  • On March 17, the Election Commission published a list of electoral bond buyers. Agence France-Presse found that 17 companies facing criminal investigations donated at least USD 94 million to political parties . Opposition lawmakers are claiming that the list shows that firms were donating to Modi‘s ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) in the hopes of influencing the outcome of criminal probes. 
  • On March 18, MP Saket Gokhale announced that he filed a complaint to the Election Commission (EC) against Prime Minister Narendra Modi for violating the EC code of conduct during a visit to the southern state of Andhra Pradesh on March 17. Modi had used an Indian Air Force helicopter to attend an election rally held in the state, explicitly prohibited by EC rules which ban the use of state machinery for campaigning. 
  • On March 21, Delhi’s chief minister Arvind Kejriwal was arrested on charges of corruption by officers from the enforcement directorate (ED), an investigating agency under central government control. Kejriwal is the leader of the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP), a smaller opposition party which currently holds government in the capital region Delhi. All major opposition parties condemned Kejriwal’s arrest, including the former leader of the main opposition Congress Party, Rahul Gandhi, who likened Prime Minister Narendra Modi to a “dictator”. 
  • On March 22, the former secretary to the Government of India E.A.S. Sarma made a complaint to the Election Commission (EC) about a speech Prime Minister Narendra Modi had made in Tamil Nadu earlier that week. Sarma complained that some of his remarks made on the opposition INDIA alliance violated the EC’s mode of conduct, saying that “invoking the religious sentiments by a political leader during elections brazenly violates the model code of conduct”. Sarma has also sent a letter to President Droupadi Murmu, raising concerns about Goel’s resignation being due to his possible dissent against the political executive. 
  • On March 22, the Guardian reported that a near dozen new films promoting Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his government’s Hindu supremacism have been released or will come out at cinemas ahead of the elections tabled to begin in April. Film critics and analysts have warned of several films pushing Islamophobic narratives and debunked anti-Muslim conspiracy theories. Association for Protection of Civil Rights (APCR) filed a public interest litigation case against one of the films produced by a BJP MP, “Razakar: The Silent Genocide of Hyderabad” for promoting inflammatory and divisive content. These releases spark concerns of growing advocacy of national or religious that constitutes incitement to discrimination, prohibited by Article 20 of the ICCPR.  
  • On March 24, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) released its fifth list of 111 candidates for Lok Sabha elections, which features Bollywood actress Kangana Ranaut. The actress is an adamant supporter of the Modi government, and has posted numerous hateful comments on social media, including the labelling of protesting farmers as terrorists, the making of genocidal remarks against Sikhs, and the propagating of Islamophobia.  
  • The Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) called to encircle Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s residence in protest of the arrest of their leader, Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal in a suspicious liquor corruption case by a central enforcement agency. In response, the police ramped up security measures at the residence and in other parts of Delhi. The opposition coalition block, INDIA, of which the AAP is a part of, held a rally on March 31 at Delhi’s Ramleela Maidan to protest the arrest.  

 

Executive 

  • On March 7, The Union Cabinet approved the India Artificial Intelligence Mission for the next five years. The plan aims to make 10,000 graphics processing units (GPUs) available to start-ups. In addition, Research and Development facilities, alongside universities and other academic institutions are meant to benefit from the plan. The Minister of state for electronics and IT Rajeev Chandrasekhar said that AI will be the cornerstone of India’s digital economy.  
  • On March 13, the President of India Droupadi Murmu approved the Uttarakhand Uniform Civil Code (UCC) Bill, 2024, making Uttarakhand the first state in India to pass the controversial bill. The bill imposes the mandatory registration of live-in relationships, with a prison sentence of up to 5 months or a fine of Rs 25,000 in cases of non-compliance, and has sparked concerns from civil society groups for imposing a uniform set of laws upon domestic relationships that potentially infringes upon the rights of religious and cultural minorities to practice their personal laws. This could violate cultural and religious freedoms (Article 26 ICCPR).  
  • On March 17, Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma said that 700,000 Muslims were left out of the National Register of Citizens (NRC) for the state. The NRC is a register that is meant to identify and deport “illegal” immigrants by listing residents that proved that their ancestors has entered Assam before March 24, 1971. But a total of 1,900,000 people who had applied to be on the list were left out of the final list. Sarma said that some of those excluded from NRC could apply for citizenship under the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA). However, as the CAA does not allow Muslims the right to fast-track citizenship, and India has no refugee policy, this would not apply for the 700,000 Muslims omitted. 
  • On March 27, security forces reportedly killed six alleged Maoists in Chhattisgarh. Since the beginning of 2024, 37 Maoists, 17 civilians and six security personnel have been killed in Chhattisgarh, raising concerns about an escalation of violence and violations of the right to life of uninvolved civilians.  

 

Judiciary 

  • On March 4, the Delhi High Court adjourned all cases related to the compensation of victims during the 2020 Northeast Delhi violence. The courts discharged the 11 accused persons in the 2020 Delhi riots, stating that there was no specific evidence to show existence of criminal conspiracy among the accused persons. The communal violence reportedly began after Kapil Mishra, now allied to the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), incited his followers to clear anti-Citizenship Amendment Act protesters. The call led to some of the worst recent Hindu-Muslim violence in India, which saw 53 deaths.  
  • The Supreme Court ordered the State Bank of India (SBI) to submit all the details of electoral bonds, including the unique codes linking donors to political parties by March 6, which was later extended to March 12. Until now, the election funding system, called electoral bonds, allowed people and companies in India to anonymously donate money to political parties. On February 15, the Supreme Court had ruled that the electoral bonds scheme was unconstitutional, violating the right to information.  
  • On March 21, the Supreme Court refused to stay the order to stop blocking the Chief Election Commissioner and Other Election Commissioners Act, 2023. The Act removes the Chief Justice of India from the selection panel appointing election commissioners, and replaces the Chief Justice with a Union Cabinet Minister nominated by the Prime Minister, which raises concerns around the executive influence in the election commission’s activities. The centre government of India rejected claims of possible executive influence and overreach. 
  • On March 22, the Supreme Court quashed a bail condition imposed by the Orissa High Court on Siba Shankar Das, a former Mayor of Berhampur Municipal Corporation. The High Court had ordered that Das could be released on bail upon the condition that he “not be involved in any political activities, directly or indirectly”. The Supreme Court renounced the order, stating that such conditions would breach fundamental rights.  
  • On March 22, the Allahabad High Court in Uttar Pradesh banned Islamic schools by striking down a law governing madrasas. The court ruled that the Madrasa Act of 2004 was unconstitutional and ordered the state government to move students enrolled in the Islamic system into mainstream schools. This raises concerns about the freedom of religion (article 18 ICCPR) and the right to education (Article 13 ICESCR). 
  • On March 30, a court in Kerala acquitted all three RSS – one of the leading Hindu supremacist groups – workers who were accused in the 2017 Riyas Moulavi murder case. Justifying the decision to acquit the RSS activists, judge K K Balakrishnan said, “it can be safely concluded that the investigation is not up to the standard and one sided. So, the accused are entitled to benefit of doubt.”  
  • On March 30, Prime Minister Narendra Modi shared an open letter on social media by a group of over 600 lawyers. The letter, addressed Chief Justice of India DY Chandrachud, alleged that a “vested interest group” is trying to put pressure on the judiciary and undermine public faith in the courts. Most of the prominent signatories to the letter are lawyers associated with the Bharatiya Janata Party, and multiple activists have criticised Modi’s posting of the letter as political interference into judicial matters. 

 

Business and Economy 

  • On March 6, Scroll released an investigation into Foxconn, a contract manufacturer producing iPhones. The findings show that Foxconn factories are keeping women workers isolated, as they are housed in hotels that restricts their movement. Activists claim this is to keep a lid on their working conditions.  
  • On March 10, India and Switzerland, Norway, Liechtenstein and Iceland signed a Free Trade Agreement. Beyond lowering trade tariffs and facilitating customs for trade, the new trade deal will see investments in India of $100bn according to India’s trade minister, particularly in the pharmaceuticals, machinery and manufacturing industries. While the agreement includes a Trade and Sustainable Development Section, the agreement denotes a low level of ambition and lack of binding commitments in relation to environmental, labour and gender issues. 
  • On March 22, the BBC reported that India applied for two more deep-sea exploration licenses to access valuable minerals crucial to a cleaner future. India already has two existing licences in the Indian Ocean, and the International Seabed Authority (ISA) is convening in Jamaica between March 18-24 to discuss regulations on mining licences. If the ISA approved India’s new requests, India will have as many licenses as Russia and one behind China to access deep ocean deposits of critical minerals like cobalt, nickel, and copper. 
  • On March 23, the Forum Against Corporatization and Militarization (FACAM) organised an assembly in Delhi against the corporate exploitation of forests and natural reserves in Chhattisgarh. FACAM released demands ahead of the assembly, which included calls to stop the “genocide” against tribal peoples in the form of “fake encounters, aerial bombings, bogus arrests, forced fake surrenders, sexual violence etc.”; stop the forceful grabbing of adivasi lands and displacement of adivasi peasants; and stop “massive militarization” of mineral-rich regions through hundreds of paramilitary camps in a bid to intensify corporate “loot”. 
  • On March 26, the International Labour Organisation, along with India’s Institute for Human Development, released the India Employment Report 2024. Based on data from 2000-2022, the report examines the serious challenges of youth employment. In 2022, young people made up 83% of India’s total unemployed; women accounted for 95% of youth “not in education, employment or training”. Many highly-educated young people would rather remain without work than take on the low-paying jobs that are available. The report shows a rise in contractualisation and informalisation of the workforce, as well as a reverse movement to agriculture in recent years. In all cases the situation was much worse for Scheduled Caste and Scheduled Tribe categories, especially women. 

 

 

Armed Conflict in Manipur 

Since May 3, 2023, there has been an ongoing armed conflict in Manipur, North-Eastern India, after longstanding ethnic conflict between the Kuki (mostly Christian) and the Meitei (mostly Hindu, but also Christian and Muslim). 

  • On March 4, the United National Liberation Front (UNLF) – the first paramilitary group to sign a ceasefire in Manipur’s 59 years of insurgency –  apprehended three persons at Langol with weapons and ammunition on the charge that they were causing “trouble and fear” among the public. 
  • On March 5, Mizoram Excise and Narcotics Minister Lalnghinglova Hmar said that the smuggling of drugs in Mizoram has increased due to the ethnic violence in neighbouring Manipur. The Mizoram Excise and Narcotics Department allegedly seized 15 kg of heroin, 96.5 kg of methamphetamine tablets and 238.6 kg of marijuana since January this year. Hmar revealed that 10 people have died due to drug abuse since January. 
  • On March 8, an army officer was abducted from his home in Manipur by unidentified individuals. Hours later, the army rescued the officer, and the police opened an investigation into the case.  
  • On March 11, the Supreme Court sought reports from the Manipur government, the National Intelligence Agency (NIA), and the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) on the status of the probe into incidents of ethnic violence in Manipur. The Supreme Court additionally requested answers on whether chargesheets had been filed in any case.  
  • On March 13, India’s National Intelligence Agency arrested top leaders from the United National Liberation Front (UNLF). The Federation of Civil Society Organization, an umbrella of over 10 civil bodies of the valley, declared a 48-hour strike starting March 14 against the arrests.  
  • On March 24, the Indigenous Tribal Leaders’ Forum urged members of the Kuki-Zo community in Manipur not to contest the Lok Sabha elections and encouraged them to vote. MLAs from the Kuki-Zomi-Hmar community urged the Election Commission to allow voters who had been displaced in the state to cast their ballots on the basis of their Aadhaar cards or other valid identifying documents, as many of them are likely to have lost their voter IDs.  

India in the World 

● On February 2, the third EU Indo-Pacific Ministerial Forum took place in Brussels, with the purpose of strengthening partnerships between EU and Indo-Pacific countries, including India. All participants, including representatives of EU member states and India, reaffirmed their commitment to uphold international law. 

● On February 8, the European Union (EU) and India held their first roundtable on countering terrorist use of drones. The roundtable was part of the EU project on Enhancing Security Cooperation In and With Asia (ESIWA), in partnership with the National Security Guard of India and the EU delegation to India. The roundtable primarily centred around the emerging threats linked to consumer grade drone technology, and what regulatory, tactical and investigative responses to drone threats in both regions should be established as best practices.  

● On February 19, India and the EU began the seventh round of negotiations on the free trade agreement (FTA), investment protection agreement (IPA) and a pact on geographical indications (GIs) in New Delhi.  

● On February 21, experts from the EU and India joined for a roundtable on measures to increase cooperation in disinformation responses in both regions. Both sides discussed insights into their respective approaches against disinformation with a special focus on safeguarding free speech and privacy. The roundtable also allowed for experts to identifying opportunities for EU-India cooperation.  

● On February 21, the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) hosted the second edition of the India Europe Business & Sustainability Conclave, which aimed to establish business perspectives, priorities, opportunities, and challenges between India and Europe. Some of the main topics addressed were upskilling, healthcare, defence, sustainability, the Free Trade Agreement, the diversification of supply chains, and digital transformation.  

● On February 21-23, the Observer Research Foundation in partnership with the Indian Ministry of External Affairs held the 9th edition of the Raisina Dialogue. The dialogue was inaugurated by Prime Minister Shri Narendra Modi and Kyriakos Mitsotakis, the Prime Minister of Greece, and officials from France, Germany, Austria, the UK, Portugal, Spain and more gave speeches. The theme was “Chaturanga: Conflict, Contest, Cooperate, Create”, and participants discussed technological regulations, climate finance, military conflict, postcolonial multilateralism, UN Sustainable Development Goals, and democratic challenges.  

● Carnegie Europe and the European Partnership for Democracy published their European Democracy Support Annual Review 2023, which recognised that the numerous elections being held in 2024, including India’s April elections in 2024 will “be an important test given the rise of forces that are hostile to democracy and human rights across the world”. The report highlights the need to maintain electoral integrity to uphold democracy. 

 

Civil society, human rights defenders and journalists 

● On February 1, the police arrested twenty-five members from the Coordination of Democratic Rights Organisations, a fact-finding team, as they were investigating the aerial bombing on areas in the state that occurred in January. A statement by Forum Against Corporatization and Militarization (FACAM) published in January documented that Indian state security forces may have used drones for aerial bombings in Mettaguda, Errapali and Bottethong in Chhattisgarh, on January 13. In another recent incident, police and paramilitary forces killed Ramesh Poyam on January 30. An independent inquiry into these allegations would be necessary, and the arrests thereby likely violate article 19 of the ICCPR on the freedom to impart information. 

● On February 2, officials of the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) raided the home of former bureaucrat Harsh Mander, a prominent human rights defender. The CBI also raided offices of the Centre for Equity Studies (CES) in New Delhi, a think tank linked to Mander, claiming financial irregularities under the Foreign Contribution (Regulation) Act. Human Rights Watch observed that “raids or allegations of financial irregularities seem to have become a norm for the authorities to silence peaceful criticism.” 

● On February 9, supporters of India’s ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) attacked a vehicle transporting journalist Nikhil Wagle, human rights defender Vishwambhar Choudhary and human rights lawyer Asim Sarode on their way to an event. Earlier, the event had received threats from the city unit of the BJP over Wagle’s attendance, who had recently made reportedly contentious remarks on Prime Minister Narendra Modi and BJP leader LK Advani. In response, the Vishrambaug police station has filed a case against Wagle under sections 153A (promoting enmity between different groups), 500 (defamation) and 505 (statements conducing to public mischief) of the Indian Penal Code (IPC). This raises serious concerns about the state’s ability to protect citizens’ safety (Article 6 ICCPR).   

● On February 12, in response to a takedown order by India’s Ministry of Information and Broadcasting (MIB), The Caravan Magazine took down an article on torture and killings by the Army stationed in Jammu & Kashmir. The MIB leveraged Section 69A of the IT Act and the IT Rules, 2021, likely in violation of the freedom to impart information (Article 19 ICCPR) 

● On February 16, the Indian Government expelled French journalist Vanessa Dougnac after officially revoking her India Oversees Citizen of India (OCI) Card in January. Her status was taken away on the grounds of “malicious” reporting that created a “negative perception” of India. Approximately 30 foreign correspondents in India signed a letter of solidarity with Dougnac, urging the Indian Government to mitigate adverse effects on her career and family. The expulsion likely violates the right to work and the right to impart information (ICESCR, Article 6; ICCPR, Article 19).  

● On February 13, authorities from Haryana and Delhi sealed the Shambhu border to Punjab as over 200 farmers’ groups organised a march in favour of enacting a law providing a minimum support price (MSP) for crops. Authorities deployed the Border Security Force and the Rapid Action Force along with cranes and containers to prevent protesters from crossing into Haryana, Punjab and Delhi. Union Ministers met with farmer leaders in Chandigarh for a 4th round of discussions to resolve protests after the first three rounds, held on February 8, 12 and 15 failed to curb protests.  

● On February 14, Amnesty International published a position piece on the Indian government’s actions against protesting farmers. Aakar Patel, chair of board at Amnesty International India, said: “Instead of facilitating the right to protest, the Indian government is yet again going to great lengths to quash the farmers’ peaceful protests in the country” and calls on authorities to “urgently de-escalate the situation and guarantee the rights to freedom of expression, peaceful assembly and movement”. Official police reports document that on February 13, police used approximately 4,500 tear gas grenades during six hours. 

● On February 21, a farmer died during ongoing farmers’ protests after police shot him. Additionally, according to the Punjab Health Minister, at least three farmers have reportedly lost their eye sight from being hit with pellets in the eye, and a dozen others suffered injuries from pellet guns. The Haryana state police is reportedly specifically harsh. Pellet guns have reportedly been used in conflict zone Kashmir for crowd-control, but there have been no reports of them being used against civilians in protests. Human rights groups have therefore sought urgent intervention of India’s Supreme Court. Following the farmer’s death and sustaining numerous injuries caused by police action, Farmers’ unions in India decided to pause the march. 

● On February 23, India’s Bengaluru airport denied the entry of Nitasha Kaul, a professor at the University of Westminster in London, due to “orders from Delhi”. Officials “informally made references to [her] criticism of the RSS, a far-right Hindu nationalist paramilitary from years ago”. Despite having a valid visa, Kaul was held in a cell for 24 hours under CCTV observation, where the airport refused to provide her with basic needs, such as a pillow and blanket, before she was deported back to London. This likely violates the freedom from arbitrary denial of entry (Article 12 ICCPR), and the freedom from arbitrary detention (Article 9 ICCPR).  

● On February 27, Kashmiri journalist Asif Sultan was released from prison after serving five years under the Unlawful Activities Prevention Act (UAPA) for allegedly providing logistical aid to a prohibited militant organisation. On 5 April 2022, the Jammu and Kashmir High Court had approved his release on bail, citing the investigative agencies’ inability to prove his association with any militant group, but the district magistrate of Srinagar maintained his detention under the Public Safety Act (PSA). Nearly two years later, the journalist has been released after the Jammu and Kashmir High Court annulled his detention under the PSA, stating that procedural steps for lawfully detaining an individual without trial have not been adequately followed.  

 

Hate Crimes and Hate Speech against Minorities 

● On February 8, the Haldwani Municipal Corporation demolished mosques and Muslim religious schools in Haldwani, Uttarakhand. The demolitions fueled protests, where the police killed 6 Muslim people with live ammunition. The Haldwani authorities have since given shoot-on-sight orders, imposed a curfew, suspended internet services, closed schools and banned large gatherings, actions that may violate Articles 19, 21, 6 of the ICCPR and Article 13 of the ICESCR. The police reportedly arrested 31 people and detained over 90 people for questioning, and has brutally beaten people at the site of their arrest, resulting in severe injuries. The police raided journalist Saleem Khan’s home and fractured the hands of his wife and children. The above developments likely violate Articles 7, 17, and 19 of the ICCPR.  

● On February 10, a mob of Hindu supremacists reportedly beat a Muslim man and forced him to chant “Jai Shri Ram” [Hail Lord Ram] on a train as he was travelling with his wife and children. The victim, Asif, complained to the train officials, but they reportedly did not do anything to remedy the situation. The incident likely violates the prohibition of religious hatred that incites violence (Article 20 ICCPR).  

● On February 10, OP Jindal Global University expelled two students after they organised a public discussion on the Ram Mandir, a Hindu temple under construction on a demolished mosque site in Ayodhya. The students were expelled for one semester after labelling the Ram Mandir of being a “project of Hindutva [Hindu Supremacist] fascism”. From February 8, two Hindu supremacist organisations – Abhinav Bharat and ABVP – had threatened the two students with rape and murder. The suspension likely violates the right to education (ICESCR, Article 13). 

● On February 11, the Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP) and Bajrang Dal, two Hindu supremacist militant organisationsl reportedly organised an event to distribute Trishul Dikshas, three-pronged weapons, to the attendees. The groups used the occasion to encourage hate speech targeting Muslim minorities. The event likely violates Article 20 of the ICCPR – the prohibition of incitement to discrimination. 

● On February 25, India Hate Lab released a report that found 668 hate speech events targeting Muslims in 2023. 498 (75%) of the events took place in Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)-ruled states, union territories (administered by the BJP-led central government), and the National Capital Territory (NCT) of Delhi (police and public order comes under purview of the BJP-led central government). 

 

Religious Freedoms and Minority Rights 

● On February 2, the Delhi Development Authority (DDA) reportedly tore down the centuries-old Akhonji mosque, which also housed a school and an orphanage. The Muslim community in the area filed a case in court alleging that no prior notice had been given before the demolition. The DDA has responded that it acted in compliance with an order to remove “illegal structures”. The demolition likely violates Articles 11 and 13 of the ICESCR and Articles 18 and 20 of the ICCPR.  

● On February 6, the Bombay Municipal Corporation (BMC) and the police of Mumbai reportedly demolished houses in Panchsheel Nagar, a settlement in Mumbai. These demolishings were conducted only in the presence of young children and elders, and left 110 families homeless. Locals reported that authorities gave no prior notice for the demolitions. These actions violate the Maharashtra Slum Areas (Improvement, Clearance, and Redevelopment) Act, and likely violate international law (Article 11 of the ICCPR). On a separate occasion, authorities in Kishangarh Bas, Rajasthan demolished 12 houses of Muslims and eradicated mustard and wheat crops on 44 acres of land over allegations of cow slaughter. In addition, the police arrested 8 Muslim men. The event raises questions regarding the right to a fair trial (ICCPR, Article 9), the right to work, and the right to housing (ICESCR, Article 6 and 11). 

● On February 7, Amnesty International published two reports on the practice of extrajudicial demolitions of Muslim properties in India, documenting the demolition of Muslim properties in five states – Assam, Gujarat, Madhya Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh and Delhi. These demolitions are reportedly being carried out as part of a hate campaign “punishing” Muslim minorities following episodes of religious violence or protest against discriminatory government policies. The reports document 128 demolitions with at least 33 instances of repeated use of JCB-branded bulldozer equipment, and at least 617 people rendered homeless or deprived of their livelihoods. Amnesty International states that these demolitions “violate the rights of those affected including the rights to a fair trial, adequate housing, dignity and non-discrimination” (Article 11 ICESCR; Articles 9, 10, 20, 26 ICCPR). 

● On February 7, a Hindu Supremacist group in New Delhi reportedly gave Christian schools in the state a 15-day ultimatum to remove all Christian symbols and religious clothing worn by priests, nuns, and brothers on their campuses. The ultimatum also demands the removal of churches located on school complexes, in the aim of “preventing Christian missionaries from using schools for conversion activities”. This likely violates Articles 25-28 of Indian Constitutional Law on religious freedom, and international law (Article 18 ICCPR). 

● On February 9, protests erupted in Uttar Pradesh state after police arrested Muslim scholar Tauqeer Raza Khan for giving a “jail bharo” call, a peaceful protest tactic commonly used in India where protesters voluntarily let themselves get arrested. Khan made the call after Uttar Pradesh’s Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath reportedly stated that Muslims should wilfully give up their claim of the Gyanvapi mosque in light of a court ruling allowing Hindus to worship at the site. The mosque is one of the main sites that BJP-backed right-wing groups are seeking to reclaim. 

● On February 10, police reportedly arrested four Christian worshipers in the state of Uttar Pradesh on charges of unlawful religious conversion, following the complaint from a Hindu supremacist group. The arrests may violate the freedom to choose one’s own religion (Article 18 ICCPR). 

● On February 11, police arrested between 17 and 18 members of a Hindu supremacist group after they held protests outside the screening of a film on Kashmir, which allegedly portrays the Indian Army negatively. The police later stated that the event was not disrupted due to the protests, with no mention of whether protests became violent.  

● On February 13, a group of Hindu supremacists reportedly attacked 21 Christians over a land dispute, linked to the widening of a public road near the Methodist Church in the village. 12 people were admitted to a hospital, while three of them were in critical condition. The attack likely violates Article 20 of the ICCPR – the advocacy of religious violence.  

● On February 14, NGO Open Doors presented its World Watch List report 2024 in the European Parliament , which documents Christian persecution across a ranking of 50 states. India is ranked 11th as Open Doors rated Christian persecution in the country as ‘extreme’, with violence against Christians at 99%. This flags India’s failure to protect the right to freely choose one’s own religion (Article 18 ICCPR) and the right of minorities to practice their own religion (Article 27 ICCPR). 

● On February 21, the Education Department suspended three Muslim teachers in the state of Rajasthan. The education department reportedly received a memorandum from Sarv Hindu Samaj, a local confederation of Hindu supremacist organisations, which accused the three teachers of being involved in ‘Islamic Jihadist Activities,’ ‘Religious Conversion,’ and ‘Love Jihad’. The acting principal of the school, and where the three teachers taught denied the allegations, while 12 other teachers, who are all Hindu, have defended the three teachers, stating that allegations made by Sarv Hindu Samaj were false. The suspensions raise possible international law violations, including the right to work (Article 6 ICESCR). 

● On February 26, the National Investigation Agency (NIA) revealed that it arrested 16 Muslim persons for allegedly conspiring and carrying out a communal attack while numerous Hindu Supremacist groups were celebrating Ram Navami in West Bengal during March last year. The attack in question had escalated into anti-Muslim violence, raising concerns regarding whether those arrested are being treated equally before the law (Article 26 ICCPR).  

● On February 27, police allegedly killed a Dalit teenager and injured two students in Uttar Pradesh state. Congress demanded an inquiry into the killing, while the deceased family and local villagers registered a case under sections 302 (murder) and 323 (punishment for voluntarily causing hurt) of the Indian Penal Code.  

 

Internet and Technology 

● On February 1, a joint investigation by Global Witness and the Internet Freedom Foundation revealed that two social media platforms, YouTube and Koo, are “failing to act” on hate speech complaints. The complaints concern hate speech against women and marginalised groups.  

● On February 14, X (formerly Twitter) and Facebook withheld more than a dozen accounts that had been posting content about the ongoing farmers’ protest, in response to government demands. The pages of farmer leaders, including Sarvan Singh Pandher, Tejveer Singh Ambala, Ramandeep Singh Mann, Surjit Singh Phull and Harpal Sangha, have been withheld in India. The X accounts of journalists Sandeep Singh and Mandeep Punia, who were reporting on the farmers’ protest, were withheld. This raises concerns about censorship in violation of freedom of speech under Article 19 ICCPR. 

● On February 14, a report by The Information divulged that Meta has cut the budget for fact-checking on WhatsApp, meaning that fewer fact-checkers will be monitoring political discussions on Meta’s WhatsApp right ahead of India’s elections. Given the number of elections being held in 2024, Meta’s budget cuts in fact-checking are likely to have far reaching consequences across the globe. 

● On February 15, The Citizen published an article documenting the increase women and vulnerable groups being targeted by AI. It documents two apps that emerged on Github, “Sulli Deals” and “Bulli Bai”, were used to humiliate prominent Muslim women. The Delhi Police eventually opened an investigation into both apps, arresting 6 people in connection with both apps, in order to address potential violations of Articles 17 and 26 of the ICCPR.  

● On February 20, the Indian American Muslim Council in collaboration with Saldef, Equity Labs, and Hindus for Human Rights published a joint report on digital harassment in India. The report documents the existence of a political IT cell, built by Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and Congress and active since 2010, which disseminated and amplified certain political content in India’s social media landscape. In addition, the report delves into the censorship of Muslim voices and advocacy groups, alongside Big Tech’s failure to protect caste equity. All these instances are likely to seriously violate Articles 19 and 26 of the ICCPR.  

● On February 29, the News Broadcasting and Digital Standards Authority (NBDSA) ordered the television news channels News18 India, Times Now Navbharat and Aaj Tak to delete videos from five shows for spreading the “love jihad”, a debunked Hindu supremacist conspiracy theory that accuses Muslim men of trapping Hindu women to convert them to Islam through romantic relationships.  

 

Political Parties and Election Monitoring 

● On February 10, the Education Department of the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) in Mumbai sent letters to numerous civic and government schools compelling teachers into election duty starting February 11. The letters stated that any failure to comply would result in action taken against teachers. Several teachers’ organisations have demanded to be excused, citing provisions from the Right to Education (RTE) Act, which recommends that teachers shouldn’t be provided with non-academic work. In addition, the Education Department’s orders likely violate Article 13 of the ICCPR, which makes primary education compulsory to all.  

● On February 15, the Association for Democratic Reforms (ADR) revealed that the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) received nearly 90% of all corporate donations in the 2022-23 financial year. Total donations declared by the BJP were five times higher than the total donations declared by Congress.  

 

Legislative 

● On February 6, the Gujarat legislative assembly unanimously passed a resolution requesting the BJP government to support the implementation of teaching the “Bhagavad Gita”, a foundational Hindu text, in schools. The Minister of State for Education Praful Pansheriya framed the Gita as a text that exposes students to “Indian culture”.  

● On February 7, the Uttarakhand Assembly introduced the Uniform Civil Code (UCC) of Uttarakhand 2024, a bill which seeks to replace religion-specific law with a uniform set of family laws on inheritance, marriage, divorce and more. A national UCC is one of the major promises of the BJP, which has sparked worry amongst India’s minority groups as they worry that the rules agreed upon in the UCC would be skewed towards the majority. Uttarakhand’s UCC is reportedly also the first law in India to impose rules on live-in relationships. Following the passing of the bill, all residents in Uttarakhand must receive a relationship certificate from the registrar, who has the power to approve or disapprove certificate requests. Couples who fail to comply with the new bill could face a fine of up to Rs 25,000, a prison sentence of up to 6 months, or both. The passing of the law could have serious implications for the right to privacy and the freedom of association (Articles 17 and 22 ICCPR). 

● The Chhattisgarh Assembly is reportedly planning to introduce a new Bill, which will force people to declare their wish to convert religions to the district magistrate to be assessed by the police. The current draft states that conversion “cannot be done from one religion to another by the use or practice of abuse, force, undue influence, coercion, inducement or by any fraudulent means or by marriage”. This could potentially infringe upon Article 18 of the ICCPR. 

● On February 29, opposition parties in Assam state met with the Governor urging the local government to block the implementation of the controversial Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA) which facilitates citizenship for non-Muslims in contradiction with the Assam Accord. Protests against the CAA have intensified since 2019, but the Chief Minister has dismissed the protests, stating that those who oppose the law should go to the Supreme Court. The Supreme Court had left petitions about the CAA pending. The OCHR called the CAA “fundamentally discriminatory in nature”, as it adds a religious criterion to citizenship, and the European Parliament expressed concern about it for violating freedom of religion (Article 18 ICCPR).    

 

Judiciary 

● On February 8, the Madras High Court gave a ruling emphasising the need to acknowledge psychological impacts of hate speech on target individuals or groups. The high court found that statements made by the BJP president for the state of Tamil Nadu, K Annamalai, showed a fraudulent intent to portray a Christian NGO as acting against Hindu culture. The court refused to quash the summons issued to the President during the case. The BJP President then approached the Supreme Court, which paused the ongoing criminal case, stating there was no hate speech after reviewing the transcript featuring alleged hate speech.  

● On February 9, the Supreme Court declined an urgent hearing of a petition by the Association for Democratic Reforms (ADR) challenging the systems’ integrity of Electronic Voting Machines (EVMs) and Voter Verifiable Paper Audit Trail (VVPAT). According to the ADR, the EVMs and VVPATs used in India’s elections raise concerns about transparency, especially regarding the limited visibility in the electronic system which conflicts with voters’ right to understand the electoral process. 

● On February 15, the Supreme Court ruled against the Narendra Modi government’s 2018 electoral bonds scheme for anonymous political funding, stating that the scheme would be unconstitutional. The court criticised the law for violating the rights of freedom of speech and the right to information safeguarded by the Indian Constitution.  

● On February 20, a court heard a petition by the Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP), a Hindu Supremacist organisation, filed in the state of West Bengal after a Zoo put a lioness names Sita (as a Hindu goddess) in the same enclosure as a lion names Akbar (also the name of a Muslim ruling emperor).  

 

Business and Economy 

● On February 1, the Government of India released an interim budget. Key points include the lowering of the fiscal deficit, reportedly improved investment ratings, and a greater focus on boosting the rural economy in the wake of India’s upcoming elections. Budget cuts reduce food subsidies, a point that has sparked concern as demand for the country’s Food for Work program has grown over the last year.  

● On February 7, genocide experts and scholars from around the world wrote a letter to India’s President Droupadi Murmu expressing their “utmost concern” that India’s proposals for development projects on India’s Great Nicobar Island threaten “genocide” of the island’s indigenous Shompen people.  

● On February 7, Bloomberg reported India is close to finalizing a first-of-its-kind trade deal that could see a small group of European nations invest as much as $100 billion over 15 years in exchange for easier trade access to the world’s most populous nation, according to people with knowledge of the matter.  

● On February 23, Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal said at the Raisina Dialogue that India will not conclude and sign free trade agreements (FTAs) unless the trade deals are equitable and fair. FTA talks between the EU have stalled due to disagreements over the EU’s carbon tax. The UK and India are also still in consultations over their FTA deal after they passed the initial 2022 deadline.   

● On February 23, the EU imposed sanctions against approximately two dozen companies, including one from India for allegedly backing Russia’s war in Ukraine. Several analysts suspect the Indian company, Si2 Microsystems Pvt Ltd, which manufactured integrated circuits for commercial, military and space activities was added on the EU sanctions list for facilitating semiconductor shipments to Moscow. 

● On February 28, the European Commission published the conclusions of a trade and sustainability impact assessment, aimed at assessing the potential negative implications of a planned EU-India Free Trade Agreement. The impact assessment found that the trade agreement would have a negative impact on religious minorities, and finds that the trade agreement would have a direct impact on religious minorities’ freedom from slavery and forced labour.  

 

Armed Conflict in Manipur 

Since May 3, 2023, there has been an ongoing armed conflict in Manipur, North-Eastern India, after longstanding ethnic conflict between the Kuki (mostly Christian) and the Meitei (mostly Hindu, but also Christian and Muslim). 

● On February 13, security personnel allegedly killed Okram Sanatom as a large number of armed civilians attempted to access the Manipur Police Training College, which stores a large number of weapons. In a separate incident, a man named Sagolsem Loha was killed as firing between Meitei and Kuki armed groups was intercepted security forces from the Assam Rifles and Indian Army. It is still unclear who – either armed group or security personnel – fired the deadly shot. In addition, a third person was also killed in a gunfight, with no mention of who might be responsible for the death. The incidents pose serious concerns relating to the state’s ability to protect the right to life (Article 6 ICCPR).  

● On February 15, security forces killed two people and injured scores in Churachandpur district, northeast Manipur. Security forces began firing at a mob after it attacked a complex where the offices of the police chief and the district administration are located. The district police had ordered the suspension of a Kuki constable after purported images of him with armed men surfaced on social media. About 400 people stormed the district police chief’s office in protest, demanding the order be revoked. On February 16, the Indigenous Tribal Leaders’ Forum, an umbrella body of the Kuki-Zo community, demanded that the superintendent of police and deputy commissioner be replaced by cadre officers from the Kuki-Zo community. Manipur Chief Minister N Biren Singh stated on February 17 that legal action will be taken against a political leader from inciting the violence at the government complex. The episodes pose serious concerns about the state’s ability to protect the right to life (Article 6 ICCPR).  

● On February 22, the Manipur High Court ordered the removal of a paragraph from its March 27, 2023, order which directed the Manipur government to include the Meitei community in the Scheduled Tribe List, which gives listed communities the right to buy land in the hill areas of Manipur. Ethnic strife between both communities commenced shortly after the order, made public in April 2023, was appealed by numerous tribal bodies. The Kuki-Zo community in particular expressed concern over the potential addition of the Meitei community to the list given their ongoing persecution and the worry that the wealthier Meitei people could push them out.  

● On February 27, Arambai Tenggol (AT), a Meitei group of 200-armed people abducted a police officer as they stormed into the residence of the Additional Superintendent of Police (ASP) to release Robin M., chief of AT, who was arrested the day before. The police officer was later rescued and sent to a hospital for treatment. On February 28, police personnel across Meitei-dominated valley districts in Manipur laid down their arms in protest of the abduction. Police have reported increased support for AT amongst the local community of Manipur, and have said that civil society groups have stopped supporting the police.  

● On February 28, Manipur’s Governor, Anusuiya Uikey revealed that 219 people have been killed and 60,000 people have been displaced since May 3. The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) is reportedly investigating 29 cases related to the violence, while the National Investigation Agency (NIA) is looking into one case. Uikey said that four more cases will be transferred to the CBI and another five to the NIA. The revelation by Manipur’s Governor puts into question the state’s ability to protect the right to life (Article 6 ICCPR). 

India in the World 

● On January 7, the Maldives government suspended three deputy ministers who made allegedly derogatory comments about Indian Prime Minister Modi. Among others, one deputy minister had on social media called PM Modi a “clown”, after Modi posted a picture of himself snorkelling to promote tourism. Relations between India and the Maldives have reportedly been strained since Maldives President Muizzu came to power in November, with the Maldives demanding India withdraw its 75-personnel military presence. On January 14, the Maldives government gave India a March 15 deadline to comply. 

● On January 11, Human Rights Watch published its World Report 2024, which noted that the Indian government “undermined its aspirations for global leadership as a rights-respecting democracy during 2023 with its persistent policies and practices that discriminate and stigmatize religious and other minorities”. It also notes that the BJP-led government also arrested activists, journalists, opposition politicians, and other critics of the government on politically motivated criminal charges, including terrorism. These policies and practices violate Articles 18, 26 and 27 of the ICCPR, which prohibit discrimination against and demand the equal treatment of people from religious minorities, and Article 19, which protects freedom of opinion and expression.  

● On January 12, an initiative of Georgetown University published a factsheet on Prime Minister Narendra Modi, noting that “under his leadership, India has experienced a rise in anti-Muslim hate crimes and hate speech”. On January 4, Georgetown University also published a factsheet on the Hindu Swayamvewak Sangh (HSS), which it describes as “a right-wing Hindu non-profit organization” in the United States. The HSS is the foreign wing of the Rashtriya Swayamsewak Sangh (RSS), which a separate factsheet describes as a “Hindu nationalist, paramilitary” organization whose founders reportedly drew inspiration from fascism.  

● On January 17, the European Parliament adopted a recommendation report on EU-India relations, which seeks to move human rights and democracy “from an appendix to the heart of EU-India relations”, Among other recommendations, the Parliament calls on the other EU institutions to “condemn acts of violence, increasing nationalistic rhetoric and divisive policies and call on leaders to cease making inflammatory statements” and to counter and condemn “hate speech that incites discrimination or violence against any religious minority”. 

● On January 20, Home Minister Amit Shah announced the discontinuation of Free Movement Regime with Myanmar. The border will now be fenced and a visa will be required even for border residents. There are ongoing concerns about pushbacks of Rohingya refugees at the border, in violation of their right to seek asylum under Article 14 UDHR and the absolute prohibition of non-refoulement. The Kuki Inpi Manipur, a Kuki organisation in conflict-affected Manipur, expressed concern over the decision and reported that India and the European Union will hold the seventh round of negotiations over a proposed free trade agreement in mid-February. The discussions will reportedly cover matters related to services and investments after discussions on goods and public procurements in previous rounds. 

● On January 26, French President Emmanuel Macron participated as guest of honour at India’s Republic Day celebrations. This comes as India, for the first reported time, is threatening to expel a French journalist, Vanessa Dougnac, who has been based in New Delhi since 2001. Dougnac, who is married to an Indian citizen, received a formal notice from the Indian authorities on January 18, demanding she surrender her residence permit. In September 2022, the government stripped Dougnac of her right to practice her profession, a decision that the Indian government has yet to justify. The French embassy in India was not able to revoke the decision. This may have serious implications for the right to freedom of expression and the right to impart and receive information (Article 19 of the ICCPR). 

 

Civil society, human rights defenders and journalists 

 

● On January 3, news reported that Kashmiri journalist Sajad Gul remains in jail, even though the Jammu and Kashmir High Court in November quashed his detention of journalist Sajad Gul. Gul was arrested in January 2022 under the “Public Safety Act”. The court said that there was no specific allegation against him to show that his activities could be “prejudicial to the security of the state”. His prolonged and arbitrary arrest therefore appears to violate the right to liberty (Article 9 ICCPR).  

● On January 5, the Editors Guild of India voiced concern over the reported abuse of criminal defamation laws against journalists. This comes after the Jharkhand Police filed charges against news editors for their coverage on the state’s liquor mafia.  

● On January 10, the Ministry of Home Affairs cancelled the Foreign Contributions Regulations act (FCRA) license of the Centre for Policy Research (CPR). CPR is a leading think tank in India, and a government official said CPR received the cancellation order for publishing reports on “current affairs programmes” that “are likely to affect the economic interest of the state and the violations are grave in nature.”. This development raises questions about the government’s potential violations of the freedom to seek, receive and publish information (Article 19 ICCPR). 

● On January 22, police in Jammu and Kashmir arrested two individuals for allegedly making comments condemning the demolition of the Babri Mosque on social media, violating freedom of expression (Article 19 ICCPR). This took place as Prime Minister Modi inaugurated a Hindu Ram Temple at the site of the demolished mosque. 

● On January 25, police in Kerala state registered a case against a 62-year-old Muslim activist for holding a one-man protest on January 22 against the demolition of the Babri Mosque, possibly violating the right to peaceful assembly (Article 21 ICCPR). Police charged him for “giving provocation with intent to cause riot”. This took place as Prime Minister Modi inaugurated a Hindu Ram Temple at the site of the demolished mosque. 

● On January 28, human rights defender Sharjeel Imam has spent four years in pre-trial detention. Imam was arrested in 2020 accused of conspiracy during the Delhi Riots 2020, and has been repeatedly denied bail. On January 30, the Delhi High Court directed a trial court to decide on a fresh bail application by Imam within ten days. His prolonged detention without trial violates their right to “a fair and public hearing by a competent, independent, and impartial tribunal established by law” (Article 14 ICCPR) and the prohibition of arbitrary deprivation of liberty as established in Article 9 ICCPR.   

 

Hate Crimes and Hate Speech against Minorities 

 

● On January 3, a family allegedly killed their adult daughter for marrying a Dalit (“untouchable”) man. Caste discrimination is pervasive and families often refuse to marry their children outside of their caste, raising serious concerns about the state’s ability to protect citizens’ right to life (Article 6 ICCPR). 

● On January 6, students reportedly tricked a Dalit (“untouchable”) student into drinking urine, which raises questions about the prohibition of inhuman and degrading treatment (Article 7 ICCPR).  

● On January 7, Hindu supremacists associated with Bajrang Dal (“Brigade of God Hanuman”) allegedly attacked a Christian missionary school in Madhya Pradesh state, with a video of the purported attack circulating on social media. On January 9, Hindu supremacists reportedly attacked two teenagers from the Muslim community in Karnataka state, after the teenagers had reportedly offered chocolates to a Hindu girl. On January 14, Hindu supremacists reportedly attacked a rikshaw-driver of the Muslim community, after one of his passengers accidentally spat tobacco on one of them. On January 22, Hindu supremacists reportedly assaulted and paraded a teenager from the Muslim community naked for allegedly disrespecting a Hindu flag. The police reportedly arrested the teenager instead of his attackers. All these incidents raise doubts about the state’s efforts to prohibit advocating religious hatred that incites discrimination, hostility or violence (Article 20 ICCPR).  

● On January 7, police in Maharashtra state reportedly filed a case against two legislators from the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) for allegedly making speeches involving incitement to violence against Muslims at a rally. The incident may constitute a ruling party lawmaker advocating for religious hatred that constitutes incitement to discrimination, hostility or violence (Article 20 ICCPR). 

● On January 15, police filed a case against a headmistress of a school, who allegedly forced students to clean the school’s toilets under threat of physical violence. This may violate the prohibition of “manual scavenging” under India’s domestic law, i.e. the manual cleaning of human faeces and sanitation systems, which Dalits have historically been forced into, and which violates human dignity and constitutes inhuman and degrading treatment (Article 7 ICCPR).   

● On January 16, police reportedly killed a young man from the Muslim community in a so-called “encounter” killing, violating the arbitrary deprivation of life (Article 6 ICCPR) 

 

Religious Freedoms and Minority Rights 

 

● On January 3, Uttar Pradesh police arrested two Hindu supremacists who had reportedly posed as Islamists and threatened to blow up a Hindu temple. Photos on their social media reportedly show the two men posing with leaders of the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP). This adds onto a list of cases in which people reportedly assume Muslim names when committing crimes.  

● On January 5, the Supreme Court issued notice to the Uttar Pradesh state government on a plea challenging the constitutional validity of its November ban on halal-certified products. An official spokesperson claimed that the certification was being used to spread “propaganda” and “exploit religious sentiment”. The incident raised questions about the state’s ability to protect its citizens’ right to publicly manifest their religion (Article 18 ICCPR).  

● On January 5, the Supreme Court refused to entertain a plea against a High Court order that dismissed a petition seeking to recognise the Shahi Idgah mosque as the birthplace of Hindu Lord Krishna. There have been several similar petitions filed by Hindu supremacists, and previous similar disputes have led to violence, most notably with a mob extrajudicially demolishing the Babri Mosque in 1992.      

● On January 6, Uttar Pradesh police reportedly arrested a Muslim man for praying at the ruins of a 250-year-old mosque, on allegations of “promoting enmity”. According to a 1940 order by British colonial rule, praying at the ruin is prohibited, which may violate Article 18 of the ICCPR which protects the right to manifest one’s religion. 

● On January 7, a catering service filed a complaint against a customer, who reportedly refused to pay the catering bill over the fact that a waitress was Muslim. The customer held this reason in writing in a note. This incident may have implications for hostility and religious hatred, for which advocacy shall be prohibited under Article 20 ICCPR. 

● On January 7, Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) former deputy Chief Minister KS Eshwarappa reportedly said that it would be better if Muslims voluntarily vacate mosques allegedly built on sites of temples, if they do not want to face repercussions. The incident may constitute a ruling party lawmaker advocating for religious hatred that constitutes incitement to discrimination, hostility or violence (Article 20 ICCPR). 

● On January 8, police arrested eight people in Madhya Pradesh state after people threw rocks at participants of a Hindu religious procession organised to celebrate the consecration ceremony for the Ram Temple. The police also imposed a ban on public gatherings, which may violate Article 22 of the ICCPR which guarantees the right to association.  

● On January 8, Mumbai police registered a case against the creators of the film “Annapoorani: The Goddess of Food” on grounds of “hurting Hindu religious sentiment”. The film follows a dominant caste Hindu woman, who becomes India’s top chef, and also begins eating meat. The case was reportedly registered based on a complaint by a Hindu supremacist group, and may arbitrarily restrict freedom of expression (Article 19 ICCPR)  

● On January 8, two groups clashed with each other after a Hindu supremacist procession by the Vishwa Hindu Parishad passed by. Police imposed a ban on public gatherings and on January 9 reportedly extrajudicially demolished two Muslim-owned properties, in violation of Article 11 of the ICESCR, which established the right to housing without discrimination based on religion. 

● On January 15, police in Karnataka state filed a case against Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) MP Anantkumar Hegde after he reportedly said that a mosque in Bhatkal would be destroyed like the Babri Masjid in Uttar Pradesh was in 1992. Hegde also reportedly said that “the Hindu community won’t rest until more mosques are reclaimed”. This raises concerns about the state’s ability to prohibit religious hate speech that incites discrimination, hostility or violence (Article 20 ICCPR). 

● On January 21, violence erupted when Muslim locals stopped a group of Hindu supremacists chanting “Jai Shri Ram” (Hail Lord Ram) in Mumbai, Maharashtra. On January 23, authorities extrajudicially demolished fifteen shops in Muslim-dominated area as retaliation, constituting a violation of the right to work (Article 6 ICESCR). Amnesty International called on the authorities to stop the punitive demolition of Muslim properties, noting that Article 11 ICESCR prohibits forced evictions.  

● On January 22, Prime Minister Modi inaugurated the Ram Temple in Ayodhya, which has been described as a turning point in making India into a “Hindu nation”. 22 Indian diaspora groups warned that Prime Minister Modi inaugurating the temple would set a “dangerous precedent” and move India towards a “Hindu nation”, as opposed to a secular republic. In 1992, Hindu supremacists had extrajudicially demolished a mosque in the town, as they claimed that the site is the birthplace of God Ram, and riots erupted. Ahead of the inauguration of the temple, police had removed witness protection from victims of these riots. On January 9, Uttar Pradesh’s Chief Minister announced that all educational institutions in the state would be closed on the day, as the inauguration is a “national festival”. Central government offices were closed until the afternoon to “enable employees to participate in the celebrations”. Uttar Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Uttarakhand, and Assam declared January 22 a “dry day” without alcohol. On January 10, the Congress Party said it would not attend the inauguration, claiming that it is serving the electoral interests of the BJP. The celebration, which reportedly gives legitimacy to vigilante violence, further encouraged religious hostility, with a wave of communal clashes and targeted attacks in the days before and after the inauguration. This raises serious concerns about the state’s reported complicity and non-intervention in religious hatred that incites discrimination, hostility or violence (Article 20 ICCPR). 

● On January 26, Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) legislator Acharya made comments on the hijab (Muslim veil) at a school, asking: “What is this deal with hijab? Are the girls married?” In response, Muslim students started protests for the right to wear the hijab. Another state in India had imposed a ban on hijabs in school, arguably in violation of the right to “manifest [one’s] religion or belief in workshop, observance, practice or teaching” (Article 18 ICCPR) and their right to education (Article 13 ICESCR).  

● On January 28, Union Minister Shantanu Thakur reportedly announced that the discriminatory Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA) would be implemented within the next seven days. The CAA allows the government to fast-track asylum claims of irregular immigrants from specific communities, but not Muslims. The OHCHR called the CAA “fundamentally discriminatory in nature”, as it adds a religious criterion to citizenship, and the European Parliament expressed concern about it for violating freedom of religion (Article 18 ICCPR). 

● On January 28, police in Chhattisgarh state arrested a school headmaster after he encouraged following Buddhism and discouraged belief in Hindu Gods. Police charged him for promoting enmity between different groups. This may violate the right of everyone to “manifest his religion or belief in workshop, observance, practice or teaching” (Article 18 ICCPR) and to freedom of expression (Article 19 ICCPR).    

 

Internet and Technology 

 

● On January 10, the World Economic Forum in its “Global Risks Report 2024” concluded that misinformation and disinformation pose the greatest risk to India ahead of the upcoming parliamentary elections. The report gives the example of a BBC documentary examining Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s role in the 2002 Gujarat riots, which was taken down by X (formerly Twitter) and YouTube last January at the behest of the BJP government to highlight how “a crackdown on real or perceived foreign interference could be used to consolidate existing control”.  

● On January 10, at least two review petitions were filed before the Supreme Court challenging its December 2023 judgement that had upheld the abrogation of Article 370 of the Constitution, which stripped Jammu and Kashmir of its semi-autonomous status. The Supreme Court had left petitions on the abrogation of Article 370 pending since 2019. Following the abrogation in 2019, the government imposed a crackdown, with the longest internet shutdown ever recorded in an alleged democracy, violating the rights to freedom of expression, peaceful assembly, and freedom of association under Articles 19, 21 and 22 of the ICCPR.  

● On January 15, the Editors Guild of India made public a letter from 2022, in which they addressed the Minister for Information and Broadcasting with concerns over the newly introduced Broadcast Services Regulation Bill. They warned that the new bill would prove “adverse to the spirit of freedom of speech and freedom of the press guaranteed by the Constitution”, which is also guaranteed under Article 19 ICCPR, and would pave the way for the establishment of an “overarching censorship framework.” 

● On January 16, X reportedly withheld the account of Hindutva Watch in India, following a demand by India’s central government, violating rights protecting the freedom of speech (ICCPR Article 19) and potentially breaching the UN Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights, which sets out a corporate responsibility to protect Human Rights. On January 31, the Indian government blocked access to their website and that of India Hate Lab. Hindutva Watch is a research initiative that monitors hate speech and incitement to violence.  

● On January 31, the Bombay High Court delivered a split verdict on a batch of petitions challenging the Information Technology Rules, which was amended in April 2023 to empower the government to identify and label “fake news”. While some judges criticised that the state would decide what is true and false, others noted that the Rules “were not directly penalising” and “did not bring any chilling effect on their rights.” The petitions will need to be reheard by an uneven number of judges. The judges must ensure that when restricting freedom of speech under Article 19 ICCPR, the Indian government does not do so for arbitrary reasons not listed in Article 19(3). 

 

Political Parties and Election Monitoring 

 

● On January 3, the Assocation for Democratic Reform published a report that found that the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) received more than 70.6% of total donations from electoral trusts in 2022-23.  

● On January 9, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) in Uttar Pradesh state appointed a leader who was accused in the 2018 Bulandshahr violence case, during which a police officer was killed, as the party’s zonal president.  

● On January 14, Congress opposition party leader Rahul Gandhi began a “yatra” (journey) across India, in which he announced to want to march for 6700km and engage with people across the country ahead of India’s general elections. Gandhi previously did a “yatra” in September 2022. On January 21, Hindu supremacists reportedly attacked the yatra, leading to Gandhi being evacuated and others being injured. On January 23, participants of the yatra reportedly tried to push through police barricades, resulting in minor violence. Police later registered a case against Gandhi and others for “acts of violence, provocation, damage to public property and assault on police personnel”, which may on further investigation have implications for the right to freedom of assembly (Article 21 ICCPR). 

 

Legislative 

 

● On January 10, the term of panchayats (local village councils) in Jammu and Kashmir ended. This leaves residents in Jammu and Kashmir without any elected representatives and gives effective control to central government appointed authorities, in potential violation of the right to take part in the government of one’s country through freely chosen representatives (Article 21 UDHR). 

 

Executive 

 

● On January 6, West Bengal police filed a case against Enforcement Directorate officials for alleged “criminal trespass” and “intending to outrage a woman’s modesty”. The officials had reportedly “attempted to force their way into” the home of a female Trinamool Congress party leader in connection with an alleged ration distribution scam.  

● On January 7, news reported that a police officer in Uttar Pradesh state was charged for allegedly repeatedly raping a 23-year-old woman and forcing her to have an abortion. On January 14, a Muslim couple filed a complaint against seven police officers, for alleged torture resulting in kidney failure in police custody in 2023. These incidents constitute a violation of Article 7 of the ICCPR, which protects individuals from torture, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment. 

● On January 10, Forum Against Corporatization and Militarization (FACAM) held a protest against the reported killing of a 6-month-old infant in Bastar region, Chhattisgarh, on 1st January 2024. This incident may have implications on the right to life (Article 6 ICCPR) and the prohibition of targeting civilians under International Humanitarian Law, which applies in the Bastar conflict area. 

● On January 18, AlJazeera reported that Prime Minister Narendra Modi has reportedly held backdoor negotiations with the Finance Commission of India to significantly cut funds allocated to the country’s states. According to AlJazeera, this relevation comes after a top government official admitted publicly that the prime minister and his team tried to restrict states’ finances. 

 

Judiciary 

 

● On January 8, India’s Supreme Court quashed the remission given to 11 Hindu supremacists and ordered their return to prison for having gang raped then pregnant Bilkis Bano and murdered her relatives during the 2002 Gujarat riots. The attackers had been granted remission in August 2022 by the Gujarat government. The United Kingdom has concluded that Narendra Modi, who was then Chief Minister of Gujarat state, was “directly responsible” for the systematic violence in the 2002 Gujarat riots.    

● On January 8, the Karnataka High Court questioned the implementation of the prohibition of manual scavenging, the manual removal and cleaning of human excreta, which is predominantly done by Dalits (“untouchables”). It noted that there has not been “even a single conviction” under the law. Manual scavenging violates human dignity and constitutes inhuman and degrading treatment (Article 7 ICCPR).   

● On January 9, the Gujarat High Court dismissed human rights defender Sanjeev Bhatt’s appeal against his life sentence. Bhatt’s requests to provide additional evidence had been denied. Additionally, the Supreme Court of India had imposed a fine of 3 lakh rupees (3424.2 Euros) on Bhatt for filing petitions in court, raising questions about access to justice and the right to equality before the law under Article 26 of the ICCPR. Bhatt, a former police officer, has been in jail since 2018 on reportedly fabricated charges after whistleblowing on the alleged involvement of Prime Minister Narendra Modi in the 2002 Gujarat riots.  

● On January 15, the Guwahati High Court sought an explanation from the Assam state government on the alleged extrajudicial demolition of the homes of five Muslims as extra-legal punishment for an alleged crime in 2022. The demolitions likely contradict the right to housing (Article 11 ICESCR). 

● On January 17, the Supreme Court declined to prohibit a rally by a Hindu supremacist group and BJP legislator T Raja Singh, who are known for hate speech and incitement to violence. However, the Court ordered authorities to take appropriate steps to prevent hate speech at the rally. 

● On January 19, a Delhi court added charges of “attempt to murder” to the chargesheet of human rights defenders Ishrat Jahan, Khalid Saifi and others in the Delhi Riots case. Them and other human rights defenders protested against the discriminatory Citizenship Amendment Act, when riots erupted in North East Delhi in 2020, which they are accused of having incited. Bail petitions have been repeatedly denied, due procedure in related cases was not followed, and trials are pending, in violation of their right to “a fair and public hearing by a competent, independent, and impartial tribunal established by law” (Article 14 ICCPR) and the prohibition of arbitrary deprivation of liberty as established in Article 9 ICCPR. 

● On January 20, news reported that Rohingya refugees in Delhi filed a Public Interest Petition (PIL), seeking protection under Article 21 of the Indian Constitution, right to life as they face violence “as a result of dissemination of hate remarks targeting them on the basis of their ethnicity and religion” on Facebook. The petitioners claim that Facebook’s inaction against hate speech on its platform harms them and that the posts that target them have Indian origin. On January 30, the Delhi High Court disposed the petition, stating that “prior censorship of any publication of Rohingyas on Facebook is an example of ‘a treatment that is worse than the disease’”. The petitioners are “at liberty to avail the redressal mechanism as per IT Rules, 2021, with respect to any objectionable posts.” 

● On January 31, a Varanasi court passed a court order allowing Hindus to worship inside a sealed basement of Gyanvapi mosque, likely violating India’s 1947 Places of Worship Act, which froze the status of all existing places of worship and prohibits their conversion. Beyond domestic legislation, the court order also violates Article 26 of the ICCPR, whereby all persons are guaranteed equality before the law without any discrimination.  

 

Business and Economy 

 

● On January 3, the Supreme Court refused to transfer an investigation into alleged money laundering by the Adani Group to a special investigation team. The Adani Group is accused of serious market manipulation and accounting fraud, and previous investigations have identified close ties to and favouritism by the Modi government.  

● On January 16, news announced that India bought exploration and production rights to lithium blocks in Argentina in its first such overseas deal, worth $24 million, aimed to reduce dependency on China for the key green technology metal. India imported $33 million worth of lithium in 2022-2023, with more than two-thirds imported from China. 

● On January 22, a report from the Marathwada divisional commissioner’s office revealed that 1088 farmers died by suicide in eight districts of the region in Maharashtra in 2023. This is 65 more such deaths than were reported in 2022. These suicides question the state’s ability to provide the right of everyone to an adequate standard of living (Article 11 ICESCR) and the right to life (Article 6 ICCPR). 

 

Armed Conflict in Manipur 

Since May 3, 2023, there has been an ongoing armed conflict in Manipur, North-Eastern India, after longstanding ethnic conflict between the Kuki (mostly Christian) and the Meitei (mostly Hindu, but also Christian and Muslim). 

 

● On January 1, unidentified armed persons wearing police uniforms killed four and injured 14 other people in Manipur state. This has consequences for the state’s ability to protect the right to life (Article 6 ICCPR)  

● On January 5, the Manipur police arrested Dhanabir Maibam, the editor of a local newspaper in Manipur state, on charges of allegedly promoting enmity between communities. This came after he reported on the deterioration of law and order in a border town, raising concerns regarding police limitations on the freedom of expression (Article 19 ICCPR). On January 7, a court granted him bail.  

● On January 9, Manipur Chief Minister Biren Singh said that an all-tribe committee would decide whether the Kuki community would be removed from the Scheduled Tribes (ST) list, which gives them the right to buy land in the hill areas of Manipur. There are concerns that this will not address the root causes of the conflict and rather fan further tensions, while likely violating Article 26 of the ICCPR, whereby states are obliged to treat all persons equally before the law. In April 2023, the Manipur High Court had directed the state government of Manipur to give recommendations to the Central government for the inclusion of the Meitei community in the ST list. Local activists accuse the BJP government of targeting Kukis over the past years. Kukis feared that granting Meitei an ST status would enable them to purchase land in the prohibited hilly areas, and following a peaceful rally on May 3, 2023, violence escalated.  

● On January 11, security personnel found three missing men dead. The Coordinating Committee on Manipur Integrity, a Meitei organisation, then demanded that Chief Minister Singh replace the security adviser of the state, arguing that the “prevailing security arrangements have undeniably failed” and that the role of the security adviser over the past eight months of the conflict in the state “has been utterly ineffective, with no discernible signs of improvement.”, raising concerns about the state’s inability to protect the right to life (Article 6 ICCPR).  

● On January 17, assailants reportedly killed two Meitei police officers using grenades. On the same day, a mob injured three Border Security Forces personnel. Local women took to the streets to protest the killings and demanded more state security forces, illustrating the inability of the state to protect the right to life (Article 6 ICCPR). Police later arrested two men, one of them reportedly a local BJP leader, in connecting with the killing. 

India in the World 

• On December 6, the European Parliament’s Foreign Affairs Committee voted on a draft report on EU-India relations. The report emphasises human rights and democratic values, and was passed with an overwhelming majority in favour. The final vote in plenary will take place in January 2024.  

• On December 6, the US Senate held a hearing about findings that an Indian government official was reportedly involved in attempting to assassinate a US citizen of Indian origin on US soil. Senate speakers compared it to transnational oppression conducted by China, Russia and Iran. On December 4, the US Principal Deputy National Security Advisor Finer met with India’s National Security Advisor Doval and External Affairs Minister Jaishankar to discuss the matter. A few days before, India had set up an inquiry committee into the allegations. On December 20, Prime Minister Modi said that India will “definitely look into” the evidence. Earlier this year, Canadian Prime Minister Trudeau alleged that there is “credible evidence” linking India to the killing of a Canadian citizen on Canadian soil. Both men targeted were reportedly militant Sikh separatists. A member of Parliament in Australia therefore called on the Australian government to give “a clear and direct assurance” that proactive measures are being taken to ensure the safety of Sikhs in the country. 

• On December 7 to 9, European Commissioner for Agriculture Janusz Wojciechowski visited India with a delegation of over 50 European businesses. They showcased EU products and held meetings with India’s Minister of Agriculture and Farmers’ Welfare and the Minister of Fisheries, Animal Husbandry and Dairying to discuss agricultural policy and market access.  

• On December 12, the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) found that 74.1% of Indians were unable to afford a healthy diet in 2021, a decrease from 76.2% in 2020.  

• On December 13, India voted in favour of a UN General Assembly resolution that demanded an immediate humanitarian ceasefire in the Israel-Hamas conflict. This was the first time India has supported this demand. 

• On December 18-19, Members of the European Parliament and Members of the Indian houses of parliament met in Delhi for the 15th EU-India Inter-Parliamentary Dialogue (IPM). They discussed the political situations in India and the EU ahead of their 2024 elections, trade, and geostrategic issues of mutual concern. Among them, a security and defence delegation met with India’s External Affairs Minister, the Speaker of the Lok Sabha, the Secretary of Defence, the Chief of the Indian Defence Staff, members of the Defence Committee of the Lok Sabha, and representatives of the defence industry and civil society. 

 

 

Civil Society, Human Rights Defenders and Journalists 

• On December 1, police registered a case against medical doctor Dr. Kafeel Khan in Uttar Pradesh state on charges of publicising his book. His book raises awareness about the government reportedly failing to supply oxygen to a hospital, causing the death of infants. Khan was previously arrested in 2017, as the government argues the book tarnishes the image of the state government and instigate minority communities for communal riots. The arrest and new case violate freedom of expression under Article 19 of the ICCPR. 

• On December 9, police in Chhattisgarh state reportedly arrested eight social activists. The activists were commemorating the second anniversary of a movement against the construction of a Border Security Forces camp, which was reportedly done without the consent of the village council. 12 civil society organisations issued a statement condemning the arrests, which may violate the prohibition of arbitrary deprivation of liberty (Article 9 ICCPR) and the right to freedom of association (Article 22 ICCPR).  

• On December 10, police in Kerala state reportedly registered a case against TV reporter Vinita VG, where she reported on a student union protest. The police claims she knew that protestors were planning to throw a shoe, but did not inform law enforcement about it.

• On December 12, the Jammu and Kashmir High Court quashed the preventive detention of journalist Aasif Sultan and ordered his release. Sultan was arrested over five years ago under the draconian Public Safety Act (PSA). His prolonged and arbitrary arrest appears to violate the right to liberty (Article 9 ICCPR). 

• On December 16, news reported about the “Rules of Discipline and Proper Conduct of Students” by Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU), which sparked concerns and criticism from students and activists. As per the new manual, JNU students may be subject to fines of up to Rs 20,000 (220 Euros) for engaging in any form of protest, including hunger strikes and peaceful sit-ins, within a 100-meter radius of academic and administrative buildings. Such curtailment of the right to protest appears to violate the rights to freedom of expression and to peaceful assembly and freedom of association under Articles 19, 21 and 22 of the ICCPR. 

• On December 17, news reported that social activist Kirity Roy filed a complaint against a Border Security Forces officer for allegedly threatening and abusing an elected member of the Gram Panchayat, the village council, who is from the Muslim minority. According to the complaint, the officer threatened the man with a false cow smuggling case, which indicates threats to the rule of law and right to due process.  

• On December 20, the Bombay High Court noted that there is “no material to infer senior journalist and accused Gautam Navlakha had committed a terrorist act”. Human rights defender Navlakha was arrested in the Bhima-Koregaon (BK16) case under India’s Unlawful Activities Prevention Act (UAPA) in 2018, and has been kept in pre-trial detention since. His arrest, which therefore according to the court is based on unsubstantiated facts, violates the right to liberty and prohibition of arbitrary detention (Article 9 ICCPR). 

 

 

Media and Technology 

• On December 10, the Washington Post published a report on the “Disinfo Lab”, an anonymous website that reportedly discredits human rights groups and progressive Indian diaspora by spreading disinformation. The report alleges that Disinfo Lab is run by an Indian intelligence officer. This raises serious concerns about Indian officials’ commitment to the protection of human rights defenders, especially to the action points in the UN Declaration on Human Rights Defenders. 

• On December 8, India’s Electronics and Information Technology Ministry told Parliament that it had asked social media platforms to block at least 36,838 URLs between 2018 and October 2023 under the IT Act. It also said that between 2018 and October 2023, the Centre sent 13,660 blocking orders to social media platform X, formerly Twitter, 10,197 blocking orders to Facebook, 3,023 to Instagram, 5,759 to YouTube, and 4,199 to other unspecified social media intermediaries. The number of blocking orders for X saw a steady increase from just 224 in 2018 to 3,390 in 2023 till October. This raises concerns about censorship in violation of the freedom of expression of journalists under Article 19 of the ICCPR. 

• On December 18, the Lok Sabha (Lower House of Parliament) tabled the Telecommunications Bill 2023. The bill has drawn concerns about enabling surveillance and allowing for blanket internet shutdowns in violation of human rights law. Under the bill, internet shutdowns would be allowed on grounds of “sovereignty, “integrity or national security”, “friendly relations with foreign states”, “public order”, and “preventing incitement to an offence”. Blanket internet shutdowns violate the rights to freedom of expression and to peaceful assembly and freedom of association under Articles 19, 21 and 22 of the ICCPR. These rights may only be restricted on limited grounds, i.e. national security, public order, public health, morals or the protection of the rights and freedoms of others.  

• On December 17, the Adani Group announced it acquired a 50.5% equity stake in the news agency IANS. The Adani Group is accused of serious market manipulation and accounting fraud, and previous investigations identified close ties to and favouritism by the Modi government. In 2022, Adani already bought NDTV, in what commentators called a “blow to independent media”. 

• On December 18, the Delhi Police arrested four people in connection with a leak of the Indian Council of Medical Research data. Two months before, the personal data, including passport records, of over 810 million Indians had been leaked and put up for sale on the dark web, in serious violation of the right to privacy (Article 17 ICCPR). 

• On December 20, the Lok Sabha (lower house of Parliament) passed the Telecommunications Bill 2023, in absence of most opposition members. It has drawn severe criticism over concerns for privacy, free expression and human rights more broadly. The law provides for the Union government to temporarily take control of telecom services in the interest of national security or in case of public emergencies. It also provides for the interception of messages and their transmission to be stopped in case of a public emergency. 

• On December 26, the central government issued an advisory to all social media corporations to comply with the Information Technology Rules amid “growing concerns around misinformation powered by AI-deepfakes.” In November, following a high-profile deepfake, the central government had issued a similar advisory, ordering them to remove deepfakes within 36 hours of complaints. 

• On December 28, Amnesty International and the Washington Post released evidence that an unknown government agency has used the Pegasus spyware to target the phones of two journalists in India, Siddharth Varadarajan of The Wire and Anand Mangnale of the Organised Crime and Corruption Reporting Project. This is at least the second time the Pegasus spyware has been used. 

 

 

Political Parties and Election Monitoring 

• On December 3, the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) won state elections in three states. It recorded a landslide victory in Madhya Pradesh’s state elections. The BJP also won with over half the seats in the Rajasthan state elections, and secured an absolute majority in the Chhattisgarh state elections. 

• On December 15, Bhajanlal Sharma was sworn in as the new Chief Minister of Rajasthan following the BJP’s election win in the state. Sharma is reportedly an active member of the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS), a Hindu supremacist organisation that is the ideological parent entity of the BJP. He was also reportedly actively involved in the agitation to build a Hindu temple at the site of the Babri mosque, which Hindu supremacists extrajudicially demolished in 1992.  

• On December 31, Home Minister Amit Shah announced that the Kashmiri separatist party, Tehreek-e-Hurriyat (TeH) will be declared an “unlawful association” for five years under the Unlawful Activities Prevention Act (UAPA).  

 

 

In focus: National Crimes Record Bureau 

On December 3, India’s National Crimes Record Bureau released its annual crimes statistics and the Prison Statistics India for 2022. It finds:  

• Crimes against Scheduled Castes increased by 13.1%. For the third consecutive year, Uttar Pradesh state reported the highest number of crimes against Scheduled Castes at 15,368 cases, an increase from 13,146 in 2021. Rajasthan ranked second with 8,752 cases, an increase from 7,524 in 2021.  

• Crimes against Scheduled Tribes increased by 14.3%.  

• Cases for “promoting enmity between different groups”, which covers hate speech, increased by 31.25% from 2021. Most cases were registered in Uttar Pradesh state, followed by Rajasthan. 

• Crimes against women increased by 4%.  

• Crimes against children increased by 8.7%.  

• Cyber crimes increased by 24.4%, suggesting a growing digital impact on criminal activities. 

• Over 75% of prisoners in Indian jails were under-trials. 

• Indian prisons had an occupancy of 131%. 

• The reasons for 63 unnatural prison deaths in 2022 were unknown. 

 

 

Hate Crimes and Hate Speech against Minorities 

• On December 4, Hindu supremacists reportedly attacked a 15-year-old boy from the Muslim community as he was returning from school in Uttar Pradesh state. The attackers filmed the incident and shared it on social media. 

• On December 5, three people reportedly beat to death a man from the Muslim community in West Bengal state. The attackers had accused the victim of being a thief. This raises questions about the state’s ability to protect citizens’ right to life (Article 6 ICCPR) and about the right to be assumed innocent until proven guilty. 

• On December 14, the United Christian Front, an Indian human rights group working with Christian minorities, published new data that shows two Christians are attacked daily in India on average. Via their helpline, they recorded at least 687 incidents of violence in the 334 days of 2023 so far. This raises questions about the state’s ability to protect citizens’ right to life (Article 6 ICCPR) regardless of their religion (Article 2 ICCPR). 

• On December 6, Hindu supremacist leaders met to celebrate the demolition of the Babri Mosque at an event organised by the militant Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP) and its youth wing, the Bajrang Dal. Hindu supremacists extrajudicially demolished the Babri mosque in 1992. At the event, the speakers engaged in hate speech. For instance, one speaker reportedly said: “This is not the country of Gandhi anymore who preached of offering another cheek if someone slaps you at one, this country is changed. If a Muslim tries to slap you, cut his hand and give it in another hand.” These incidents raise questions about the state’s ability to prohibit advocating religious hatred that constitutes incitement to discrimination, hostility or violence (Article 20 ICCPR). 

• On December 16, India’s Home Minister Amit Shah reportedly justified the 2002 Gujarat Riots that killed at least 1044 people, claiming that they taught Muslims “a lesson”. Shah reportedly said: “In 2002, there were riots and thereafter Modi saheb taught a lesson to not repeat the act. Have there been riots thereafter? The rioters were taught such a lesson in 2002 that to date no one dares to cause riots in Gujarat.” The incident constitutes a senior minister advocating for religious hatred that constitutes incitement to discrimination, hostility or violence (Article 20 ICCPR). The United Kingdom concluded that Narendra Modi was “directly responsible” for the systematic violence.  

• On December 17, the Rajasthan Police arrested one person for reportedly raping a 20-year-old Dalit (“untouchable”) woman in a bus on December 9. Such a gender- and caste-based atrocity raises questions about the state’s ability to protect its citizens’ rights regardless of their caste and gender. 

• On December 17, police arrested a teacher and principal of a government-run school in Karnataka state, as they allegedly forced Dalit (“untouchable”) students to manually clean a septic tank. This violates the prohibition of “manual scavenging” under India’s domestic law, i.e. the manual cleaning of human faeces and sanitation systems, which Dalits have historically been forced into, and which violates human dignity and constitutes inhuman and degrading treatment (Article 7 ICCPR). 

• On December 29, Karnataka police arrested a man in a 31-year-old rioting case, which took place ahead of the extrajudicial demolition of the Babri Mosque by Hindu supremacists in 1992. The Karnataka Police commented that the arrest is part of routine efforts to address long-pending cases. 

 

 

Religious Freedoms and Minority Rights 

• On December 1, Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) Union Minister Giriraj Singh called for the closure of “illegal madrasas [Islamic schools]” in Bihar state, alleging that they pose a “threat to the internal security of the state and the nation.” In his speech, he also claimed that the “people of Bihar” will face “a major threat to their wealth and their faith” without action against Islamic schools, thereby circulating dangerous disinformation. The incident may constitute a ruling party lawmaker advocating for religious hatred that constitutes incitement to discrimination, hostility or violence (Article 20 ICCPR), and advocates for violations of the right of parents to “choose the kind of education that shall be given to their children” (Article 26 UDHR). 

• On December 1, the Uttar Pradesh Police filed a case against 42 people and arrested nine of them for allegedly luring poor and tribal people to convert to Christianity. Several BJP-ruled states have passed laws criminalising professing one’s religion and converting, in violation of the right to family life (Article 23) and right to freedom of religion (Article 18) in the ICCPR. Such laws have also emboldened vigilante groups, who engage in extrajudicial violence against people from religious minorities in response to alleged violations of these laws. 

• On December 4, a video circulated showing newly elected Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) legislator Balmakund Acharya ordering the closure of all meat stalls run by the Muslim community in his constituency in Rajasthan state. The BJP had won the election in Rajasthan state just days before and Acharya was not yet sworn in. On December 6, he apologised for his actions. This violates the right to work under Article 6 ICESCR, which includes the right of everyone to “the opportunity to gain his living by work which he freely chooses or accepts”. 

• On December 8, a public school reportedly dismissed a teacher in Uttar Pradesh state from duty after Hindu supremacist groups claimed that “he did not respond appropriately” to a student’s Hindu religious greeting. The principal issued an apology and promised “measures to prevent such incidents in the future.” This may violate the right of everyone to “manifest his religion or belief in workshop, observance, practice or teaching” (Article 18 ICCPR). 

• On December 8, the Rajya Sabha (Upper House of Parliament) reportedly announced it would end the 30-minute break allowed for Muslim lawmakers to perform Friday prayers. A break for Friday prayers has been the norm for over 60 years. This may violate the right of everyone to “manifest his religion or belief in workshop, observance, practice or teaching” (Article 18 ICCPR). 

• On December 25, a Hindu supremacist group held a rally in Tripura state, demanding that tribals who converted to Christianity should be removed from the “Scheduled Tribes” list, which guarantees certain reservations and benefits. Such a demand may violate the right to freedom of religion (Article 18) in the ICCPR. 

• On December 25, Prime Minister Narendra Modi organised Christmas celebrations in his residence. Following this, approximately 3200 Christians, among them one MP, signed a statement protesting against community leaders who participated in the celebrations, citing “continued attacks and vilification” of the Christian community by the BJP government. 

• On December 26, authorities in Madhya Pradesh state reportedly demolished the homes of persons accused of having harmed a cow. However, the police claimed that the demolitions were in connection with a separate case of illegal construction. 

• On December 28, Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma deleted and apologised for a social media post which reinforced caste hierarchy. In the post, he had argued that lower caste people have “natural duties” towards dominant caste people.  

 

 

Legislative 

• On December 6, Parliament passed two legislations on Jammu and Kashmir, a conflict region that India unilaterally stripped of its constitutionally guaranteed semi-autonomy in 2019. The Jammu and Kashmir Reservation (Amendment) Bill, 2023 and the Jammu and Kashmir Reorganisation (Amendment) Bill, 2023 introduce reservations in politics and government jobs for marginalised groups and migrants, the scope of which has been criticised. 

• On 12 December, the Rajya Sabha (upper house of Indian Parliament) passed the Election Commission (Conditions of Service of Election Commissioners and Transaction of Business) Bill, 2023. The Election Commissioners will now be appointed by 3 people: The Prime Minister, a person appointed by the Prime Minister, and the opposition leader. This raises crucial concerns about the independence of the appointment process and of India’s upcoming 2024 elections. 

• On December 20, the Lok Sabha (Lower House of Parliament) passed the three proposed criminal law reform bills, which had come under severe criticism. India’s President Droupadi Murmu gave assent on December 25. Civil society notes that the Bills proposed first expand police powers, create a new offence that de facto widens the definition of “sedition”, and do not include procedural safeguards against false implication in terrorism cases. The proposed bill also also expands the definition of “terrorism” to include “economic security”. On November 6, the standing committee of the Lok Sabha (Parliament) had adopted a report on the new proposed Criminal Law reform Bills, and on December 12, the Home Ministry revised the proposed bills. The revised Bills tabled on December 12 are shorter, but reportedly retain the same problematic issues. 

• Throughout December, the two houses of Parliament disqualified 141 members of Parliament. This came after December 13, when two men jumped on the Lok Sabha (Lower House of Parliament) floor from the visitors’ gallery and ignited canisters of yellow smoke, and shouted “Long Live India”. This took place just hours after MPs paid tribute to those who died in a terror attack on the Parliament in 2001, triggering panic among the MPs. According to officials, one of the accused said during questioning that he wanted to “get the attention of the Prime Minister so the government looks after issues such as inflation, poverty, etc.” Subsequently, the two houses of Parliament began a wave of MPs being suspended: On December 14, 14 MPs were reportedly suspended, after they reportedly called on the Home Minister to give a statement explaining the security breach. On December 18, an additional 34 MPs from the Lok Sabha were reportedly suspended. On December 18, the Rajya Sabha (Upper House of Parliament) also reportedly suspended 45 MPs via voice vote for the rest of the winter session, for “causing disturbance” when they continued to demand a statement. By December 20, 141 opposition MPs were disqualified. 

• On December 13, amidst MPs from the opposition being suspended, the Rajya Sabha (Upper House of Parliament) passed the Jammu and Kashmir Reorganisation (Second Amendment) Bill, 2023, and the Government of Union Territories (Amendment) Bill, 2023, to increase women’s quota in Jammu and Kashmir and Puducherry Assemblies. Amendments to the bills proposed by Opposition MPs John Brittas, Binoy Viswam, and V Sivadasan were reportedly not considered as the members were not in their seats to move them. 

• On December 8, the Lok Sabha (Lower House of Parliament) expelled female Trinamool Congress MP Mahua Moitra. She was accused of taking bribes in return for asking questions in Parliament and sharing her log-in details to the Parliament website with third parties. Moitra was reportedly not given space to defend her case, and opposition members allege that the investigation involved “unethical” and “offensive” personal questions. 

 

 

Executive 

• On December 6, a video circulated showing local authorities in Chhattisgarh state bulldozing predominantly Muslim-owned shops over allegations of encroachment, on directions of Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) legislator Brijmohan Agarwal. The BJP had won the election in Chhattisgarh state just days before. The process followed for these demolitions raises concerns about due process and the right to equal protection of the law (Article 26 ICCPR) and the right to housing (Article 11 ICESCR). 

• On December 2, the Jammu and Kashmir police dropped charges under India’s anti-terror-law, the Unlawful Activities Prevention Act (UAPA), against seven University students. The police had arrested the students on November 20 after they allegedly made pro-Pakistan statements following Australia’s victory against India in cricket. The arrests may violate the prohibition of arbitrary deprivation of liberty (Article 9 ICCPR) and the right to freedom of expression (Article 19 ICCPR).  

• On December 14, authorities in Madhya Pradesh state extrajudicially demolished the homes of three Muslim men accused of attacking a BJP worker. This took place a day after the BJP’s Mohan Yadav was sworn in as Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister.  The process followed for these demolitions raises concerns about due process and the right to equal protection of the law (Article 26 ICCPR) and the right to housing (Article 11 ICESCR). 

• On December 22, security forces in Jammu and Kashmir detained eight civilians for questioning after militants reportedly killed five Indian army personnel. Three of them were found dead that night. Family members and political leaders have claimed that the three were beaten to death by the Indian army, which would constitute a grave deprivation of the right to life (Article 6 ICCPR). Additionally, one of the detained civilians reported that they were “stripped, beaten and smeared with ‘chilli powder on the wounds’ until they lost consciousness”, in violation of the absolute prohibition of torture (Article 7 ICCPR). 

• On December 23, Gujarat police charged Congress leader and former MP Virji Thummar with defamation over “objectionable” comments against Prime Minister Narendra Modi. Thummar had publicly claimed that PM Modi is showing favouritism toward specific large corporations. 

• On December 29, the central government, Assam state government and the separatist organisation United Liberation Front of Asom reportedly signed a peace accord, ending a decades-old insurgency.  

• On December 29, the Gujarat government reportedly revoked the security that had been given to witnesses, lawyers and a former judge in cases related to the 2002 Gujarat riots.  

• On December 30, Uttar Pradesh arrested three people for alleged gang-rape of a student. Among the arrested are reportedly two members of the Bharatiya Janata Party’s (BJP) IT Cell.  

 

 

Judiciary 

• An analysis of eight politically sensitive cases shows they were moved to a single judge of the Supreme Court over the past four months, even though the rules of assignment say they should remain with the senior judge or before a judge hearing a similar case. This raises questions about the independence of the judiciary. 

• On December 8, the Supreme Court noted that the governor of Tamil Nadu state is obstructing 12 new bills from being passed, which it called a “matter of serious concern”. This year alone, Telangana, Punjab and Kerala have approached the Supreme Court with allegations that their governor was obstructing legislative and executive work. Commentators note that these are all states ruled by the opposition. As the governor is appointed by the central government, they expressed concerns about the central government potentially using governors to stifle democratically elected state governments. 

• On December 11, the Supreme Court upheld the unilateral abrogation of Article 370 of the Constitution in 2019, which stripped Jammu and Kashmir of its semi-autonomous status. The Court also ordered Jammu and Kashmir to hold local elections by September 30 2024. On the day of the verdict, the Jammu and Kashmir police reportedly placed several Kashmiri political leaders under house arrest, including two former Chief Ministers, and suspended University classes. The Supreme Court also directed the central government to restore the statehood of Jammu and Kashmir as soon as possible, and one judge recommended an “impartial truth and reconciliation commission” be set up in Kashmir to investigate human rights violations by both “state and non-state actors” over the past few decades. The Supreme Court had left petitions on the abrogation of Article 370 pending since 2019. Following the abrogation in 2019, the government imposed a crackdown, with the longest internet shutdown ever recorded in an alleged democracy. 

• On December 14, the Allahabad High Court approved a survey of the Shahi Idgah mosque by a court-appointed and monitored advocate commissioner, and the Supreme Court on December 15 refused to stay the order. This is in response to petitions filed by Hindu supremacists, who claim that the mosque stands on the birthplace of Lord Krishna (a Hindu God). Previous similar disputes have led to violence, most notably with a mob extrajudicially demolishing the Babri Mosque in 1992.   

• On December 15, the judge who presided over the “Delhi riots conspiracy” case was transferred. Human rights defenders and activists have been targeted and falsely implicated in the case. Their prolonged detention without trial violates their right to “a fair and public hearing by a competent, independent, and impartial tribunal established by law” (Article 14 ICCPR) and the prohibition of arbitrary deprivation of liberty (Article 9 ICCPR).  

• On December 15, a court in Uttar Pradesh state sentenced a Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) legislator to 25 years in jail for raping a 15-year-old girl in 2014.  

 

 

Business and Economy 

• On December 6, the Union Power Minister refused to answer questions over allegations against the Adani group. On October 12, the Financial Times had published an investigation that found that the Adani Group “appears to have imported billions of dollars of coal at prices well above market value”. The data supports long standing allegations that Adani, the country’s largest private coal importer, has been inflating fuel costs and led millions of Indian consumers and businesses to overpay for electricity. 

• On December 15, the Indian Defence Research Wing reported that in a move to bolster India’s defence capabilities, Adani Defence partnered with Elbit Systems, an Israeli defence firm.  

 

 

Armed Conflict in Manipur 

Since May 3, 2023, there has been an ongoing armed conflict in Manipur, North-Eastern India, after longstanding ethnic conflict between the Kuki (mostly Christian) and the Meitei (mostly Hindu, but also Christian).   

• On December 3, the Manipur government restored mobile Internet services until December 18, except for areas within a 2-kilometre radius of areas dominated by Kuki and Meitei, the two ethnic groups involved in the conflict. This is a minor improvement, as the internet has been shut down in Manipur since May 2023, making it the second longest shutdown in India, following a previous one in Kashmir. Such blanket internet shutdowns violate the rights to freedom of expression and to peaceful assembly and freedom of association under Articles 19, 21 and 22 of the ICCPR. 

• On December 4, security forces found the bodies of 13 men injured by bullets, more than 100 kilometres from their homes.  

• On December 4, the Supreme Court said that the approximately 4747 students who have fled due to the violence in Manipur can pursue their studies online. 

• On December 5, the Supreme Court stayed criminal proceedings against independent journalist Makepeace Sitlhou, after she made critical remarks on Twitter against the Manipur government’s alleged failure to control the spiralling violence in the state. 

• On December 14, the Manipur government airlifted the bodies of 64 victims and returned them to their respective families. 

• On December 15, the Supreme Court directed the Manipur government to inform a court-appointed committee about the steps it has taken to secure places of worship in the state, especially ahead of Christmas. 

India in the World

 

• On November 17, Prime Minister Narendra Modi condemned the deaths of civilians amid Israel’s war on Gaza: “India has condemned the heinous terrorist attack in Israel on October 7. We also strongly condemn the deaths of civilians in the conflict between Israel and Hamas.” Simultaneously, research shows that Indian actors, including BJP social media accounts, are a major source of disinformation about the conflict.

• On November 18, the Maldives said it has asked India to remove its military presence from the island country. According to the Maldivian defence forces, in 2021 there were 75 Indian military personnel in the Maldives.

• On November 22, India resumed e-visa services for Canadian nationals. They were paused two months ago due to recent bilateral tensions, after Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said that there were “credible” allegations linking Indian agents to the murder of Sikh separatist leader Hardeep Singh Nijjar in June. India’s External Affairs Minister Jaishankar said India does not rule out an investigation into the killing, and asked Canada for evidence. 

• On November 22, the Financial Times reported that US authorities allegedly thwarted a conspiracy to assassinate a Sikh separatist on US soil. The US authorities issued a warning to India’s government over concerns it was involved in the plot, and noted the target is a US citizen. On November 29, US authorities arrested a man of Indian origin for attempted assassination. The same day, India said it has constituted a high-level inquiry committee to examine the allegations.

 

Civil Society, Human Rights Defenders and Journalists

 

• In November, the Delhi High Court announced that it will hear afresh in January the bail petitions of human rights defender Sharjeel Imam and others who were accused of conspiracy during the Delhi Riots 2020. Their prolonged detention without trial violates their right to “a fair and public hearing by a competent, independent, and impartial tribunal established by law” (Article 14 ICCPR) and the prohibition of arbitrary deprivation of liberty as established in Article 9 ICCPR. 

• On November 3, the Supreme Court granted protection from arrest to two journalists of the Organised Crime and Corruption Reporting Project who had been summoned by the Gujarat Police in connection with their report on alleged stock manipulation by the Adani Group. The Adani group reportedly has close ties to the BJP government.  The police harassment arguably threatens freedom of expression of journalists under Article 19 of the ICCPR.

• On November 7, the India-based Organized Crime and Corruption Reporting Project told media that the smartphone of one of their journalists was allegedly targeted using Pegasus spyware in August. This raises concerns about the right to freedom of expression, the protection of human rights defenders (Article 22 ICCPR), and the right to privacy and freedom from arbitrary or unlawful interference with one’s home (Article 17 ICCPR). India acquired the Pegasus spyware from Israel as part of a defence deal in 2017. At least 160 Indians, including prominent activists, lawyers and politicians, have been spied on using the Pegasus malware. The Indian government did not cooperate in the Supreme Court’s investigation.

• On November 9, the Jammu and Kashmir High Court quashed the detention of journalist Sajad Gul, who was arrested in January 2022 under the “Public Safety Act”. The court said that there was no specific allegation against him to show that his activities could be “prejudicial to the security of the state”. His prolonged and arbitrary arrest therefore appears to violate the right to liberty (Article 9 ICCPR).

• On November 16, India’s National Press Day, the Kerala Police summoned and interrogated a Maktoob Media editor and reporter over an article they had published on alleged anti-Muslim bias of police. The police filed a case against them for “provocation with intent to cause riot” in relation to the article, a reprisal which may threaten freedom of expression of journalists under Article 19 of the ICCPR. Maktoob Media condemned the case, calling it a “threat” to the “journalistic independence of reporting stories without reprisal”, and 40 organisations released a statement expressing solidarity with Maktoob. 

• On November 16, Information and Broadcasting Minister Anurag Thakur at an event by the Press Council of India said there are “there are individuals and media outlets that consistently spread fake propaganda against Bharat, both domestically and internationally.” While the statement does not violate human rights, it reportedly refers to so-called “anti-India” journalists, who report independently on human rights violations and are therefore exercising their legitimate freedom of expression.

• On November 17, the Jammu and Kashmir High Court granted bail to journalist Fahad Shah, who was arrested on charges of supporting terrorism 21 months ago. The Court noted that “no evidence has been brought on record” and that not a “single witness” supports the allegations. His prolonged and arbitrary arrest therefore appears to violate the right to liberty (Article 9 ICCPR).

• On November 20, Maharashtra Police arrested over 20 people and beat with sticks Adivasi (indigenous) protestors who were holding a peaceful sit-in against six proposed mines. The arrests may contravene the rights to freedom of expression and to peaceful assembly and freedom of association under Articles 19, 21 and 22 of the ICCPR.

• On November 22, the Delhi High Court ordered news portal The Wire to take down a report that linked the son of the Delhi Chief Secretary to a case related to inflated valuation of land. This may have consequences for the right to freedom of expression (Article 19 ICCPR).

• On November 22, human rights defender Khurram Parvez marked two years of being arbitrarily imprisoned without trial. The UN Human Rights Office of the High Commissioner condemned Parvez’s arrest as violating the right to liberty (Article 9 ICCPR).

• On November 25, a court sentenced four men to life imprisonment for the murder of woman journalist Soumya Vishwanathan in 2008. The murder raised questions about the protection of journalists’ right to life (Article 6 ICCPR).

• On November 29, the Supreme Court again adjourned the bail hearing of human rights defender Umar Khalid. Khalid has been detained without a trial since 2020, when he was arrested under the UAPA and sedition laws for his participation in protests against India’s discriminatory Citizenship Amendment Act. Khalid’s bail petitions have been repeatedly denied, thereby contravening the prohibition of arbitrary deprivation of liberty as established in Article 9 ICCPR.

 

Media and Technology

 

• On November 1, opposition leaders urged the Lok Sabha (Indian Parliament) to seek accountability for potential state-sponsored attacks on iPhones. On October 31, Apple had sent threat notifications to users in multiple countries, including journalists and opposition politicians in India, warning that their Apple devices and accounts were targeted by “state-sponsored attackers”, in violation of the right to privacy under Article 17 ICCPR. However, on November 25, it emerged that the Indian Computer Emergency Response Team was recently exempted from the Right to Information of Indian citizens, hampering accountability. 

• On November 8, following a deep fake about an actress, the central government issued an advisory to social media corporations to remove deep fake videos within 36 hours of receiving a complaint. On November 17, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said that deep fakes have become “a matter of serious concern for the country”. On November 21, the Minister of Electronics and ITC announced the central government would soon frame regulations on deep fakes. 

• On November 10, the central government proposed a Bill that seeks to regulate online streaming platforms, including Netflix and Amazon Prime Video. The Bill proposes to only allow films and shows that are “duly certified” by a “content evaluation committee” to be offered. Streaming services have reportedly faced police cases in India on charges of hurting religious sentiments, and many have reportedly self-censored content in the last few years. On November 20, the Washington Post reported that under pressure from Hindu supremacists, Netflix and Amazon in India have dropped projects touching on political and social issues, and documentaries, and have re-edited scenes showing prayers or the names of Gods. Additionally, following a controversy about the movie “Tandav,” Netflix executives in India reportedly feared arrest. The practice and proposed legislation may have severe consequences for the right to freedom of expression (Article 19 ICCPR).

• On November 24, India’s Information Technology Ministry reportedly criticised social media platforms for not having aligned their terms of service with India’s internet laws and told them to immediately start informing their users what can and cannot be posted on their platforms. The relevant Minister stated that India’s IT Rules prohibit platforms from hosting deep fakes, misinformation, and content that spreads obscenity, among other things, and offered to assist citizens with filing cases against social media corporations for violating the rules. 

• On November 27, Dutch cybersecurity firm Surfshark reported that in the third quarter of 2023, India experienced approximately 370,000 online account breaches, such as sharing of sensitive information to unauthorised third parties. India therefore ranked tenth globally in terms of numbers of breached accounts, raising questions about the state’s ability to protect citizens’ right against arbitrary interference with privacy, family and home (Article 17 ICCPR). 

 

Political Parties and Election Monitoring

 

• The Global State of Democracy 2023 report by International IDEA notes that India saw significant declines in the credibility of its elections and the freedom of opposition parties. Out of 173 countries, India ranked 66 in representation (a decrease from 2021), 83 in participation (the same as 2021), 104 in rights (a decrease from 2021), and 74 in rule of law (an increase from 2021).

• On November 4, “Maoist insurgents” reportedly killed a BJP leader in Chhattisgarh state, three days before elections. This raises questions about the state’s ability to protect citizens’ right to life (Article 6 ICCPR

• On November 4, a former Chief Minister from the ruling BJP demanded that another BJP leader who called for mosques and gurudwaras (Sikh temples) to be destroyed should face legal action. On November 5, the BJP expelled the leader for his call for destruction. The incident constitutes a ruling party lawmaker advocating for religious hatred that constitutes incitement to discrimination, hostility or violence (Article 20 ICCPR). 

• On November 5, Chief Minister of Uttar Pradesh state Yogi Adityanath at an election rally promised action against “love jihad”. Love Jihad is an Islamophobic conspiracy theory purporting that Muslim men target Hindu women for forced religious conversion. The incident constitutes a ruling party lawmaker advocating for religious hatred that constitutes incitement to discrimination, hostility or violence (Article 20 ICCPR). 

• On November 14, the Election Commission issued notices to Congress leader Priyanka Gandhi Vadra and Aam Aadmi Party chief Arvind Kejriwal for allegedly making unverified and false statements about Prime Minister Narendra Modi. They had in separate instances alleged links between Modi and corporate leaders.

• On November 15, Telangana police filed a case against BJP legislator Raja Singh for reportedly engaging in hate speech against Muslims during an election meeting. The incident constitutes a ruling party lawmaker advocating for religious hatred that constitutes incitement to discrimination, hostility or violence (Article 20 ICCPR). 

• On November 22, a Lok Sabha (Parliament) committee summoned a legislator from the ruling BJP, Ramesh Bidhuri, for hate speech made during parliament session. On September 21, Bidhuri had reportedly called another politician of the Muslim community a “militant”, “terrorist”  and “pimp”, and demanded to “throw this mullah [derogatory word for Muslim] out”. On September 26, the BJP then reportedly appointed Bidhuri as in-charge for polling in one district. The incident constitutes a ruling party lawmaker advocating for religious hatred that constitutes incitement to discrimination, hostility or violence (Article 20 ICCPR). 

• On November 28, the Association for Democratic Reforms published their annual analysis of criminal background of candidates in several regional assembly elections. They found that at least 18% of candidates contesting in the selected elections have criminal cases against them. 

 

Hate Crimes and Hate Speech against Minorities

 

• On November 2, police arrested six people for allegedly assaulting, stripping, robbing and urinating on two men from the Dalit (“untouchable”) caste.  The incident may violate the prohibition of torture, cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment under Article 7 of the ICCPR.

• On November 10, a police sub-inspector reportedly raped a four-year old Dalit (“untouchable”) girl in Rajasthan state, which constitutes a gross violation by the state of children’s rights and human rights more broadly. The police issued an order of dismissal against the sub-inspector and filed a case.

• On November 10, a teacher reportedly slapped a 13-year old female student from the Muslim community, after she reportedly said that her father is a beef vendor.  The attack may constitute cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment prohibited under Article 7 of the ICCPR.

• On November 11, the Supreme Court condemned as “shocking” the Uttar Pradesh government’s behaviour in a case filed against a teacher for encouraging violence. The case concerns a video, which reportedly shows the teacher making religiously discriminatory comments and ordering her second-grade students to slap a Muslim classmate for not doing his homework. These incidents raise questions about the state’s ability to prohibit advocating religious hatred that constitutes incitement to discrimination, hostility or violence (Article 20 ICCPR).

• On November 12, a Muslim man died after a Hindu man threw a firecracker at him during Diwali celebrations. The police stated that the two knew each other, but did not receive information about a dispute or whether there was a religious reason for the attack. The incident raises questions about the state’s ability to protect its citizens’ right to life (Article 6 ICCPR) regardless of their religion (Article 2 ICCPR).

• On November 19, a leader from the ruling BJP reportedly attacked a group of Muslim youths at a petrol pump. A video of the incident reportedly shows him shouting communal slurs, including the Hindu war cry “Jai Shri Ram” (Hail Lord Ram). The incident raises questions about the state’s ability, and government leaders’ willingness, to protect its citizens regardless of their religion (Article 2 ICCPR).

• On November 23, police filed a case against a businesswoman and several employees for reportedly forcing a Dalit (“untouchable”) worker to apologise with her shoe in his mouth for demanding his salary. The incident may violate the prohibition of torture, cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment under Article 7 of the ICCPR.

• On November 30, police filed a case after two men assaulted an elderly man of the Muslim community and forced him to chant “Jai Shri Ram” (Hail Lord Ram, a Hindu war cry) in Karnataka state. The incident may violate the prohibition of torture, cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment under Article 7 of the ICCPR.

 

Religious Freedoms and Minority Rights

 

• On November 12, Delhi Police reportedly issued a notice to mosque imams, instructing them not to include prayers for Palestine during religious services. Several political leaders and lawyers denounced the police notice for arbitrarily infringing upon freedom of worship, as the incident raises questions about the state’s ability to protect its citizens’ right to publicly manifest their religion (Article 18 ICCPR) and right to freedom of association (Article 22 ICCPR) regardless of their religion (Article 2 ICCPR)

• On November 19, the BJP-ruled Uttar Pradesh state government imposed a statewide ban on “halal”-certified products. The incident raises questions about the state’s ability to protect its citizens’ right to publicly manifest their religion (Article 18 ICCPR). An official spokesperson claimed that the certification was being used to spread “propaganda” and “exploit religious sentiment”. A day before, police had reportedly already filed a case against a company and three organisations for providing “illegal halal certificates”. In the first three days, the police seized 2275 kg of food products. 

• On November 19, Uttar Pradesh police extrajudicially killed a Muslim man and injured another in police firing. The police claimed the two men were “going to slaughter a cow”. The incident raised questions about the state’s ability to protect its citizens’ right to life (Article 6 ICCPR) regardless of their religion (Article 2 ICCPR).

• On November 20, an elderly woman in Assam state after three years of legal battle proved she is an Indian citizen. Although her father was a freedom fighter for Indian independence, she was among the 1.9 million people who were de facto left stateless during the National Registry of Citizens process. The Foreigners Tribunals she appealed to set their own rules, which gives rise to arbitrary procedure that violates the Rule of Law principle, especially by derogating from the due process of law.

• On November 22, news reported that India’s federal education body is considering including the story of the Hindu deity Ram into school curricula. In April, the federal education body had removed numerous sections from textbooks, raising concerns that it is contorting Indian history and falsely presenting India as a “Hindu nation”, in contravention of its secular constitution.

• On November 25, the police in Tamil Nadu state filed a case against a former director general of police for allegedly “spreading false propaganda”. On WhatsApp, he reportedly circulated the false claim that thousands of temples in Tamil Nadu have been destroyed over the past two years with the help of the police.

• On November 26, the Minister of State for Home Affairs said that West Bengal state would frame rules for the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA) by March 2024. The CAA allows the government to fast-track asylum claims of irregular immigrants from specific communities, but not Muslims. The OHCHR called the CAA “fundamentally discriminatory in nature”, as it adds a religious criterion to citizenship, and the European Parliament expressed concern about it for violating freedom of religion.

• On November 27, a campaign of over 3000 civil society organizations released a report reviewing Indian government policies and schemes, and found that the government’s policies “resulted in systematic exclusion of marginalized communities.”

 

Legislative

 

• On November 6, the standing committee of the Lok Sabha (Parliament) adopted a report on the new proposed Criminal Law reform Bills. Opposition members submitted dissenting reports expressing serious concerns. Civil society notes that the new Bills expand police powers, create a new offence that de facto widens the definition of “sedition”, and do not include procedural safeguards against false implication in terrorism cases. 

 

Judiciary

 

• On November 13, the Armed Forces Tribunal suspended the life sentence of and granted bail to an army captain who had been found guilty of killing three men in a staged encounter in Kashmir in 2020. The tribunal cited an alleged lack of evidence.

• On November 17, a Delhi Court reprimanded the Delhi police for filing cases against three persons accused in the 2020 Delhi Riots based on “hearsay evidence”. On November 20, a Delhi Court acquitted seven persons accused of rioting and vandalising a shop during the riots, stating that there was a “big mishap in the case of prosecution and evidence brought on the record”. Their prolonged and arbitrary arrests therefore appear to violate the right to liberty (Article 9 ICCPR), and add to a list of concerns, including by Human Rights Watch, about police bias in the investigations after the Riots, in which 53 people died.

 

Business and Economy

 

• On November 14, news for the first time reported that a key advisor to Adani, a multinational corporation, is now a member of a committee before which the company’s projects come up for government approval. This raises questions about due process, independence and conflict of interest. 

• On November 26, the Financial Times reported that India is seeking to revive underground coal mining. According to FT, India’s Coal Ministry has outlined plans to triple output from underground coal mines by 2028, preparing to auction new blocks, accelerate environmental clearance and roll out incentives to promote foreign investment and domestic equipment manufacturing.

 

Armed Conflict in Manipur

 

Since May 3, 2023, there has been an ongoing armed conflict in Manipur, North-Eastern India, after longstanding ethnic conflict between the Kuki (mostly Christian) and the Meitei (mostly Hindu, but also Christian). 

 

• On November 2, all legislators in Manipur from the Kuki community accused the police of “unprofessional conduct and inhumane excesses”, such as molesting women and assaulting Kukis during the conflict in Manipur.

• On November 7, a Meitei mob allegedly abducted four people from the Kuki community. The incident led to heavy firing between security forces and the mob. 

• On November 13, the Ministry of Home Affairs extended for five years a ban on several Meitei militant organisations under India’s anti-terror law, the Unlawful Activities Prevention Act (UAPA), for advocating the secession of Manipur through armed means. On November 29, the Union Home Ministry constituted a tribunal to adjudicate whether there are “adequate reasons” to declare them unlawful. Several UN Special Procedure experts have warned that the UAPA violates human rights obligations under the ICCPR.

• On November 15, the Indigenous Tribal Leaders Forum, a frontal organisation of Kukis in Manipur, reportedly gave the Union government two weeks to decide on its demand for a separate administration for Kuki-dominated areas. It claimed that afterwards, it would set up a “self-government whether the Centre recognises it or not”. The day after, the Manipur police filed a case against the group’s leader for sedition.

• On November 16, unidentified persons ambushed and attacked a patrol vehicle of the government paramilitary Assam Rifles, without injuries. The People’s Liberation Army, a Meitei insurgent group, claimed responsibility for the attempted improvised explosive device blast.

• On November 20, a Meitei group reportedly shot dead two people from the Kuki community in a fresh resurgence of violence.

• On November 23, the internet shutdown in Manipur crossed its 200 day mark, making it the second longest shutdown in India, following a previous one in Kashmir. Such blanket internet shutdowns violate the rights to freedom of expression and to peaceful assembly and freedom of association under Articles 19, 21 and 22 of the ICCPR.

• On November 24, a mob reportedly stormed a hospital after a person from Myanmar, which Manipur borders, was taken there for bullet injury treatment. Meiteis have frequently alleged that the conflict in Manipur is being stoked by people from Myanmar.

• On November 26, Manipur Chief Minister N Biren Singh said that his government is allegedly holding negotiations with an “underground” insurgent group, which he did not name, and a peace accord will be signed soon. On November 29, the United National Liberation Front, a Meitei militant group, signed a peace agreement with the Central government, agreeing to “renounce violence”.

India in the world

• On October 3, India reportedly told Canada to withdraw 41 of its 62 diplomatic staff from the country. On October 20, Canada complied. The US State Department and the UK Foreign Office expressed concern regarding the legality under the Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations. This comes amid escalating diplomatic tensions between the two countries, in which India also suspended all visa services for Canadians. India resumed select visa services on October 25. 

• On October 6, Member of the European Parliament Markéta Gregorová (Greens/EFA) in a written question to the European Commission questioned whether India’s data privacy law is compatible with the priorities of the EU-India relationship. “India has recently enacted a comprehensive data privacy law that will dictate how tech companies process users’ data, amid criticism that it will likely lead to increased surveillance by the government. It is therefore crucial that the Commission assess this law’s adequacy with regard to data protection standards,” she wrote. 

• After Hamas attacked Israel on October 7, disinformation from Indian right-wing sources “flooded social media”, news report. According to fact-checkers from BOOM, Indian right-wing sources spreading such disinformation included “verified accounts” on X. 

• On October 11, the UK and India met for further negotiations on a free trade agreement, with the aim to conclude and sign the agreement by October 2023. However, commentators note that the agreement has missed previous deadlines. 

• On October 12, the Global Hunger Index report ranked India 111 among 125 countries, four positions worse than in the previous years.

• From October 16-20, Indian and EU officials reportedly met in Brussels for the sixth round of negotiation for a free trade and investment agreement. On the last day, Spanish Deputy Trade Minister said: “There is an enormous interest from the [EU] member states, but only if there will be an access to the real market, without which the deal would be emptied.”

• On October 16, news reported on a request for asylum in Ireland on grounds of religious persecution in India. The man in question sought asylum in August 2017 due to “cow vigilante” attacks against him. The final asylum decision is pending. 

 

Human rights defenders, press and civil society

• On October 3, the Delhi Police reportedly raided 46 locations associated with independent media outlet NewsClick, and arrested two staff – the founder and the human resources head – under India’s anti-terror law, the Unlawful Activities Prevention Act (UAPA). Following the first incident, authorities from the Central Bureau of Investigation and other investigative agencies conducted additional searches of private homes of NewsClick journalists. In response, 18 journalist bodies wrote to the Chief Justice of India, raising alarm about attacks on free press, and a national farmers’ organisation held a nationwide protest following the crackdown. India currently ranks 161 of 180 worldwide in the Reporters Without Borders Press Freedom Index. By October 5, Newsclick had reportedly not yet been provided with a copy of the First Information Report against it or “informed about the exact particulars of the offences with which we have been charged.” By October 11, five different agencies were investigating Newsclick. Initial allegations concerned alleged ties with China, which the police interrogation, however, reportedly did not address. These incidents raise concerns about freedom of expression, as protected under Article 19 of the ICCPR.

• On October 3, Chief Minister of Madhya Pradesh state Shivraj Singh Chouhan announced several welfare schemes for journalists – including a fellowship for women scribes and a committee to frame a journalists’ protection law – and ensured advertisements for small newspapers. This comes just days after seven cases were registered against journalist Jaalam Singh over an “objectionable” video he reported on, and Singh was arrested, raising concerns about freedom of expression under Article 19 of the ICCPR.

• On October 4, Index on Censorship nominated fact checker and co-founder of AltNews Mohammed Zubair for the 2023 Freedom of Expression Award. Zubair has faced judicial harassment and arrest for his work, threatening freedom of expression under Article 19 of the ICCPR.

• On October 10, the Uttar Pradesh police arrested ten human rights defenders, mostly Dalit (“untouchable”), after they participated in a protest for land rights. The police charged them with “attempt to murder” and “criminal conspiracy”, but did not specifically mention large-scale violence in its police report. On October 28, a local court granted bail to the activists, pointing to inconsistencies in the police report. The arrests raise questions about the protection of rights to freedom of expression and to peaceful assembly and freedom of association under Articles 19, 21 and 22 of the ICCPR.

• On October 10, the Delhi government authorised the prosecution of author and social activist Arundhati Roy and former professor Sheikh Showkat Hussain in a 2010 case on provocative speeches, raising questions about freedom of expression under Article 19 of the ICCPR. Roy won the Booker Prize for Fiction in 1997.

• On October 11, the National Investigation Agency reportedly conducted a search at the Mumbai home of prisoners’ rights activist Abdul Wahid Shaikh, who is known for his advocacy against fabricated cases involving Muslim youth in India. This raises concerns about the right to freedom of association and the protection of human rights defenders (Article 22 ICCPR), and the right to privacy and freedom from arbitrary or unlawful interference with one’s home (Article 17 ICCPR).

• On October 13, the Ministry of Home Affairs published new data on the number of NGOs who received a licence to receive foreign funds under the Foreign Contributions Regulation Act (FCRA). Over the past nine years, 407 of such NGOs reportedly had a religious purpose, of which 194 were reportedly Christian. Conversely, in March, the Union Minister of State for Home had told the Parliament that 1,827 NGOs had their licences cancelled between 2018 and 2022, with the number of religious organisations being unknown. In December 2021, the Centre had refused to renew the FCRA licences of Mother Teresa’s Missionaries of Charity. The denial of permission to seek foreign funds and accompanying criminalisation may contravene the rights to freedom of expression and to peaceful assembly and freedom of association under Articles 19, 21 and 22 of the ICCPR.

• On October 18, the Anti-Terrorist Squad (ATS) in Uttar Pradesh State arrested two activists for alleged links to left-wing extremists. The ATS initially interrogated them four years before, but did not arrest them due to a lack of physical evidence. The arrest now took place on the basis of alleged letters and literature found on their devices that were linked to banned Maoist groups. The arrest raises questions about rights to freedom of expression and to peaceful assembly and freedom of association under Articles 19, 21 and 22 of the ICCPR.

• On October 31, the Campaign Against State Repression reported that police allegedly arrested two activists after they emailed the Principal Secretary of the Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister requesting a meeting with the Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath to discuss unemployment. The arrests may constitute intimidation for human rights work, threatening freedom of expression under Article 19 of the ICCPR.

 

Executive

• On October 1, the administration in a village in Madhya Pradesh state reportedly issued backdated notices to seven Muslim families demanding they produce proof their homes were built legally within 24 hours. Failure to present documents in the time frame, the notices reportedly state, will result in demolitions. The incident takes place following violence in the town, in which Hindu supremacist groups reportedly set homes on fire. The process followed for these demolitions raises concerns about due process and the right to equal protection of the law (Article 26 ICCPR) and the right to housing (Article 11 ICESCR).

• On October 12, police arrested a 20-year old in Karnataka state for allegedly posting a WhatsApp status that reportedly contained the phrase “Palestine Zindabad” (long live Palestine), which the authorities deemed as “provocative” slogans. Police later released him with a warning. Police have arrested others across the country for participating in pro-Palestine protests. The police action against protestors raises questions about the protection of rights to freedom of expression and to peaceful assembly and freedom of association under Articles 19, 21 and 22 of the ICCPR.

• On October 22, The Wire reported that since Yogi Adityanath became Chief Minister in Uttar Pradesh state in March 2017, police reportedly shot dead 190 persons in incidents of alleged exchange of fire that the state terms as “encounters”. In the same period, the Uttar Pradesh police also reportedly shot and injured 5,591 persons in “encounters”. In February 2022, a specialist group of international criminal and human rights lawyers had filed a formal submission with the United States government seeking targeted sanctions against Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Adityanath, for his role in extra judicial killings allegedly committed by the state’s police forces between 2017 and 2021. The submission argues that the encounter killings constitute extrajudicial killings and therefore “serious human rights abuses”.

 

Internet and technology

• On October 6, India’s Ministry of Electronics and IT issued notices to social media platforms X, YouTube and Telegram, warning them to remove child sexual abuse material from their platforms on the Indian internet in accordance with the IT Rules 2021. 

• On October 11, the INDIA coalition of opposition parties sent letters to Meta’s CEO, Mark Zuckerberg, and Google’s CEO, Sundar Pichai, expressing concerns about the purported involvement of their social media platforms in “aiding communal hatred” in the country. They also called upon them to maintain neutrality in the forthcoming elections. 

• On October 14, Indian American Muslim Council and Hindus for Human Rights, two Indian diaspora organisations working for human rights in India, learned that their X accounts were withheld in India in response to a “legal demand” from the Indian government. The censorship raises questions about the protection of the right to freedom of expression (Article 19 ICCPR).

• On October 16, Bellingcat published a new investigation that found that YouTube has auto-generated at least 114 low-budget music videos with a combined view count of over 5.4 million promoting the expulsion of Muslims from India. These videos, categorised as “Hindutva Pop,” feature static images with Hindu supremacist symbols and incendiary lyrics that have incited violence at religious rallies.

• On October 18, the Bombay High Court held that sharing or retweeting a post containing “obscene” content on social media can amount to “transmission” under Section 67 of the Information Technology Act.

• On October 31, Apple sent threat notifications to users in multiple countries, including journalists and opposition politicians in India, warning that their Apple devices and accounts were targeted by “state-sponsored attackers”. In India, civil society organizations, journalists, and activists have previously faced unchecked and unlawful surveillance, as Amnesty reports, in violation of the right to privacy.

 

Hate speech and hate crimes against minorities

• On October 22 the BJP revoked the suspension of Raja Singh from the party. Singh was suspended following offensive comments in 2022, but has reportedly continued to make offensive and hateful comments. On October 1, BJP legislator Raja Singh reportedly at a public event said he wants to “chase away and shoot down” several opposition politicians from a Muslim-dominant political party. Police filed a case against him based on a complaint filed by the Law and Policy Research Institute, which urgently called for action against the hate speech. His statement and revoking of his suspension indicate inability or unwillingness of the state to prohibit advocating religious hatred that constitutes incitement to discrimination, hostility or violence (Article 20 ICCPR).

• On October 1, the police reportedly detained two constables in Andhra Pradesh state for subjecting a Dalit (“untouchable”) man to severe physical abuse which resulted in a fracture of his right leg. The incident may violate the prohibition of torture, cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment under Article 7 of the ICCPR.

• On October 3, the Association for Democratic Reforms released a new report on hate speech by members of Parliament. It finds that 33 of the total 763 sitting MPs and 74 of the 4,005 sitting MLAs are facing cases related to hate speech. Nearly 40% of them are from the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP). This raises serious questions about the state’s ability to prohibit advocating religious hatred that constitutes incitement to discrimination, hostility or violence (Article 20 ICCPR).

• On October 12, Hindu supremacists with loud music celebrated the release from jail of Hindu supremacist Vaibhav Raut, who was imprisoned for his alleged involvement in a plot to bomb the Sunburn music festival in Pune in 2017. Following his arrest, police had found weapons in his home. He was released on grounds that he had been incarcerated for more than five years and the trial was not likely to conclude in the near future.

• On October 15, the wife of a BJP legislator and two others reportedly stripped and molested a tribal woman in order to take her land. A video of the incident circulated online, and police filed a complaint. The attack may constitute cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment prohibited under Article 7 of the ICCPR.

• On October 21, news reported that a police investigation found that a railway security constable shot and killed a colleague and three passengers on a train in July was mentally stable. In a verified video, he said: “If you want to live and vote in Hindustan [India], I am telling you, it’s only Modi and Yogi,” thereby suggesting the attack has a political motive. Local BJP leaders had initially asserted that the incident was not a hate crime, as they claimed the constable was mentally unstable. The incident raises questions about the state’s ability to protect its citizens’ right to life (Article 6 ICCPR) regardless of their religion or political opinion (Article 2 ICCPR). 

• On October 23, students across universities in Uttar Pradesh state launched protests after a University proctor attacked a Dalit (“untouchable”) student the week before. In a video circulating on social media, the proctor hits the student with a stick. No action has reportedly been taken against him, although the attack against the Dalit student may constitute cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment prohibited under Article 7 of the ICCPR.

• On October 25, police arrested two persons after a group of people reportedly lynched a Muslim man in Uttar Pradesh state during the Hindu holiday Dussehra. The incident raises questions about the state’s ability to protect its citizens’ right to life (Article 6 ICCPR) regardless of their religion (Article 2 ICCPR).

• On October 27, a video circulated that reportedly shows a BJP legislator, Mr Mehta, saying that “people with beards and caps” seen around temples “will be beaten”. By this, he arguably means people from the Muslim community. This raises concerns about the state’s ability to prohibit advocating religious hatred that constitutes incitement to discrimination, hostility or violence (Article 20 ICCPR).

• On October 27, a group reportedly tied up and beat to death a Dalit (“untouchable”) worker who demanded his unpaid money. The incident raises questions about the state’s ability to protect its citizens’ right to life (Article 6 ICCPR) regardless of their identity (Article 2 ICCPR).

• On October 31, police registered a case against BJP Union Minister of State for Electronics and Information Technology, Rajeev Chandrasekhar, for hate speech online. The police registered the case as “provocation with intent to cause riot” and “promoting enmity between different groups”. In a social media post, he had claimed that Palestine solidarity protests were linked to an attack on Jehova’s witnesses earlier that week in India.

• On October 31, a new tracker by the Minority Coordination Committee found that at least 55 attacks on minority communities took place in 2022 in Gujarat state alone. The report notes that “Gujarat has been the epicenter of targeted violence against minorities”, but concludes that “the nature of violence has now changed”; while “earlier the violence was prominently in big cities”, now violence has “reached the villages”.

• On October 30, news reported that a group insulted, attacked and inappropriately touched a 12-year-old Muslim girl playing in her neighbourhood in Mumbai. One of the attackers reportedly shouted: “You Muslims are bad; you should be fed pig meat.” Police filed a case. The incident raises questions about the state’s ability to prohibit advocating religious hatred that constitutes incitement to discrimination, hostility or violence (Article 20 ICCPR).

 

Religious freedoms

• On October 11, authorities demolished a church in Uttar Pradesh state, for allegedly being illegally constructed on government land. A notice was reportedly pasted on the gate a week in advance. However, in June 2022, three United Nations Special Rapporteurs had condemned demolitions across India, which they allege deliberately target Muslims through “collective punishment”, and therefore potentially constitute discrimination on grounds of religion.

• On October 13, police reported that local youth engaged in “moral policing” and questioned two male Muslim students who were standing with a female Hindu student at a bus stop. The incident raises questions about the state’s ability to protect its citizens’ right to publicly manifest their religion (Article 18 ICCPR) and right to freedom of association (Article 22 ICCPR) regardless of their religion (Article 2 ICCPR)

• On October 21, the principal of a primary school in Uttar Pradesh state was reportedly suspended after a video circulated showing the students of the school offering namaz (Muslim prayer) at a designated prayer area on the premises. The incident raises questions about the state’s ability to protect its citizens’ right to publicly manifest their religion (Article 18 ICCPR).

• On October 21, an engineering college in Uttar Pradesh state reportedly suspended two teachers for asking a student to not greet the audience at a cultural event of the institute with the Hindu religious slogan “Jai Shri Ram” (Hail Lord Ram). The slogan has been used as a “war cry” by Hindu supremacists. Their suspension raises questions about the prohibition of advocating religious hatred that constitutes incitement to discrimination, hostility or violence (Article 20 ICCPR).

 

Communal violence

• On October 1, communal clashes reportedly erupted in Bihar state following a religious procession. Hindu supremacists reportedly vandalised a mosque. These clashes raise questions about the state’s ability to counter religious hatred that constitutes incitement to discrimination, hostility or violence (Article 20 ICCPR).

• On October 1, communal clashes erupted in Karnataka state during a religious procession, resulting in 12 people being injured and 60 being arrested. These clashes raise questions about the state’s ability to counter religious hatred that constitutes incitement to discrimination, hostility or violence (Article 20 ICCPR).

 

Conflict in Manipur

• On October 1, the Manipur government reportedly extended the blanket internet shutdown that was imposed in the ongoing armed violence in the state. The shutdown has now lasted over 150 days. Such blanket internet shutdowns violate the rights to freedom of expression and to peaceful assembly and freedom of association under Articles 19, 21 and 22 of the ICCPR.

• On October 4, the World Organisation Against Torture (OMCT) issued a statement expressing concern over “credible reports of excessive use of force and use of pellet guns by security forces” during student protests in Manipur on 26 and 27 September, which left 170 injured. Such use of pellet guns against protestors violates the right to freedom of assembly (Article 21 ICCPR) and the absolute prohibition of torture and cruel treatment (Article 7 ICCPR).

• On October 5, approximately 30 people attacked and vandalised the home of Human Rights Defender Babloo Loitongbam, who has been appealing for peace in the ongoing conflict in Manipur. The United Nations Special Rapporteur on Human Rights Defenders and the United Nations OHCHR expressed alarm about the attack. The attack followed threats against Babloo Loitongbam by the radical Meitei Leepun, who allege he “falsely accused” them of violence and demanded he apologies. Following the incident, Mr Loitongbam recorded a video clip in which he reportedly apologised. 

• On October 9, the Supreme Court allowed Dr Kham Khan Suan Hausing, a professor of political science, to file a petition before the Manipur High Court in a case against him. Dr Hausing faces a criminal case for giving an interview to The Wire on the ongoing armed conflict, an Indian media outlet, raising concerns about his right to freedom of expression (Article 19 ICCPR), and 32 academics issued a statement in solidarity with him. 

• On October 19, the Manipur High Court allowed tribal organisations to appeal against its March 27 order. The order is considered the trigger for the ongoing armed conflict as it directed the Manipur government to recommend the Scheduled Tribe status for the Meitei community.

 

Judiciary

• On October 3, the Supreme Court of India imposed a fine of 3 lakh rupees (3424.2 Euros) on Sanjeev Bhatt for filing petitions in court. Bhatt is sentenced to life on reportedly fabricated charges after he blew whistle on the alleged involvement of Prime Minister Narendra Modi in the 2002 Gujarat riots. The Supreme Court judge reportedly said: “How many times have you been to the Supreme Court? At least a dozen times?” This raises questions about access to justice and the right to equality before the law under Article 26 of the ICCPR. 

• On October 16, a court granted bail to Hindu militant leader Monu Manesar. Manesar had been arrested on September 12 in connection with the Nuh violence case, where a religious procession escalated and six people died. However, Manesar remains in jail in another case, in which he is accused of killing two Muslim men by setting them on fire. The incident raised questions about the state’s ability to protect its citizens’ right to life (Article 6 ICCPR) regardless of their religion (Article 2 ICCPR).

• On October 17, the Supreme Court of India delivered its judgement in a petition for marriage equality. The court was in agreement that marriage equality overall must be decided by Parliament, not the Supreme Court. The Chief Justice of India also noted that the state must recognise queer unions, even without marriage, and provide legal safeguards and rights to them.

• On October 19, the Gujarat High Court convicted four police officers over an incident where they flogged Muslim men in public in October 2022. A video of the incident went viral, in which a crowd cheers while the police flog the men. The police officers were only convicted of “contempt of court” and sentenced to 14 days imprisonment, although the incident may violate the prohibition of cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment under Article 7 of the ICCPR.

 

Economy

• On October 9, the Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation published the annual Periodic Labour Force Survey (PLFS) data, for July 2022 to June 2023. It reports that India’s unemployment rate for individuals aged 15 and above has reached a six-year low, standing at 3.2%. However, most are working in the informal sector or are self-employed. 

• On October 12, the Financial Times published an investigation that found that the Adani Group, a “politically connected conglomerate that dominates large parts of India’s economy”, “appears to have imported billions of dollars of coal at prices well above market value”. The data supports long standing allegations that Adani, the country’s largest private coal importer, has been inflating fuel costs and led millions of Indian consumers and businesses to overpay for electricity.

India in the World

• On September 6, Prime Minister Narendra Modi participated in the ASEAN (Association of Southeast Asian Nations) Summit in Jakarta, which reportedly included a new initiative to boost India-ASEAN maritime security cooperation.

• Starting September 7, India’s main opposition leader, Rahul Gandhi, visited Europe for a five-day tour, visiting Belgium, France, the Netherlands and Norway. According to Gandhi’s statements at a press conference, during a roundtable with Members of the European Parliament, he discussed India’s “relationship with EU parliamentarians, the subcontinent’s changing role in the global sphere and […] India’s challenges”, including an “attack on our democratic institutions”. Apart from meeting MEPs in Brussels, Gandhi also reportedly met with officials from the European External Action Service.

• On September 9-10, the annual G20 Summit took place in New Delhi, India, under the rotating G20 Presidency of India. 

• On September 5, news circulated showing invitations for a G20 dinner sent out by India’s President Droupadi Murmu, which described her position as “President of Bharat” instead of “President of India”. Commentators note that India’s constitution refers to “India, that is Bharat” as interchangeable names, while others speculate whether India is planning to drop “India” as its official name. 

• On September 8, in his remarks before the G20 Summit, European Council President Charles Michel thanked “Prime Minister Modi and India for their leadership over the past year, and for their priorities”. 

• On September 8, the Peoples’ 20, a global network of civil society actors that engage with the G20 process towards social justice and human rights, published their recommendations for the G20.

• On 10 September, the G20 leaders published their final declaration. In this culmination of the G20 process, clause 78 notes that the G20 “strongly deplore all acts of religious hatred against persons, as well as those of a symbolic nature without prejudice to domestic legal frameworks, including against religious symbols and holy books”. It also “emphasize[s] that freedom of religion or belief, freedom of opinion or expression, the right to peaceful assembly, and the right to freedom of association are interdependent, inter-related and mutually reinforcing and stress the role that these rights can play in the fight against all forms of intolerance and discrimination based on religion or belief.” The final declaration does not include the word “democracy”, nor does it condemn Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.

• On September 10, US President Joe Biden said that he raised the issue of respecting human rights, especially press freedom, with Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi in discussions on the sidelines of the G20 summit.

• On September 11, UN human rights chief Volker Türk discussed the violence in Haryana and Manipur and called for India to “redouble efforts” to uphold the rights of all minorities. He said his office “frequently receives information that marginalised minority communities are subjected to violence and discrimination”, and noted that “Muslims are often the target of such attacks, most recently in Haryana and Gurugram, in northern India.”

• On September 13, in her annual State of the Union speech, European Commission President Ursual von der Leyen commended a project to build an India-Middle East-Europe Economic Corridor, signed in early September.

• On September 18, Canada’s Prime Minister Justin Trudeau reportedly said Canada was looking at “credible allegations” potentially linking the Indian state to the murder of a Canadian citizen of Indian origin on June 18 on Canadian soil. The Indian government dismissed the allegations as “absurd”. The Canadian government subsequently expelled an Indian diplomat, and India responded by also expelling a senior Canadian diplomat. India also reportedly stopped processing visa applications by Canadian citizens. Some Facebook users report that their posts on the incident are allegedly disappearing and that their accounts are being suspended. Canada also recently put on hold negotiations for a free trade agreement with India, citing “political issues“.

• On September 19, the European Parliament’s Human Rights Subcommittee held an exchange of views on the human rights dimension of the negotiations on an EU-India Free Trade Agreement. The discussion took place in camera, i.e. it was not public.

• On September 19, a senior US official reportedly said that the US is “in active talks with the Indian government to look at producing military systems in areas related to ISR (Intelligence, Surveillance and Reconnaissance)” and “ground-based conventional warfare”.

• On September 20, UN Special Rapporteur on Minority Issues, Fernand de Varennes, told the US Commission for International Religious Freedoms (USCIRF) that there is a “steady” and “alarming” erosion of fundamental rights, particularly of religious and other minorities, in India.

 

Manipur

• On September 2, the Editors’ Guild of India (EGI) submitted its findings from a fact-finding mission to Manipur. The Manipur police then filed a case against the fact-finding team from the Editors’ Guild of India (EGI). “The state government has filed an FIR against the members of the Editors’ Guild for trying to create more clashes in the state of Manipur,” chief minister N. Biren Singh said. The criminalisation of the fact-finding mission may potentially contravene the rights to freedom of expression and to peaceful assembly and freedom of association under Articles 19, 21 and 22 of the ICCPR.

• On September 2, security personnel reportedly forcibly evacuated 24 Kuki residents who had stayed in their home city during ongoing violence. One among them alleged that the evacuation was forced and that it felt “more like an abduction”. In the four months since violence erupted in Manipur, thousands of people from the Kuki-Zomi community have fled. The “evacuation” may potentially contravene the right to freedom of movement (Article 12 ICCPR) and the right against arbitrary interference with privacy, family and home (Article 17 ICCPR).

• On September 4, UN human rights experts issued a press release expressing their alarm over the scale of human rights violations involved in the Manipur violence and at the “inadequate humanitarian response” in its wake. They said the situation was “grave” and pointed out that it has involved alleged acts of “sexual violence, extrajudicial killings, home destruction, forced displacement, torture and ill-treatment”. India responded to the UN experts by saying these comments are “unwarranted, presumptive and misleading.” As of September 14, according to the government: Around 175 people have died and more than 70,000 are displaced, of which at least 10,000 are children. 1118 people have sustained injuries and 32 are officially missing. At least 5,172 cases of arson have taken place, including 4,786 houses and 386 religious places. The internet shutdown has lasted over 3050 hours.

• On September 6, the Supreme Court asked the Manipur government to act on the estimated 5668 weapons which have been looted by civilians during the violence. The free circulation of looted weapons poses a serious risk to the right to life (Article 6 ICCPR), which states must protect.

• On September 12, 21 British MPs tabled an early day motion calling on the UK government to “raise the issue of human rights violations in Manipur with the Indian government and to halt negotiations towards a UK-India free trade agreement (FTA) while such violations continue to occur.”

• On September 27, news reported that the Manipur government has extended the application of the draconian Armed Forces Special Powers Act (AFSPA) in all of Manipur, with only a few exceptions. AFSPA has been in force in Manipur since 1980 and provides sweeping powers to soldiers, including the power to shoot to kill civilians and to arrest people without warrants. AFSPA is widely recognised as allowing gross human rights violations, and has been severely criticised by several UN experts, including the Special Rapporteurs on violence against women, its causes and consequences, on extrajudicial, summary or arbitrary executions, and on the situation of human rights defenders. 

 

Civil society and human rights defenders

• On September 5, the National Investigation Agency (NIA) carried out coordinated raids in Uttar Pradesh state targeting activists associated with Bhagat Singh Students Morcha and Peoples Union for Civil Liberties (PUCL). PUCL national president Kavita Srivastava accused the NIA of carrying out a “witch hunt” and a “tyrannical act” and demanded the immediate withdrawal of the First Information Report in the case, and a halt to the investigation. The targeting of these activists may potentially contravene the rights to freedom of expression and to peaceful assembly and freedom of association under Articles 19, 21 and 22 of the ICCPR.

• From September 7-9, the Indian Coordination Committee of Farmers’ Movement (ICCFM) held a three-day forum, where they discussed among other things ongoing trade negotiations in which India is engaged and the impact of the climate crisis on Indian agriculture. The forum took place under three layers of police security, as one of the attending persons had reportedly received several threats to his life due to his role in the farmers’ protests of 2021. 

• On September 21, a High Court granted bail to human rights defender and forest rights activist Mahesh Raut. Raut has been in pre-trial detention since 2018 under India’s draconian terror law, charges which the High Court noted the evidence does not appear to support. After the National Investigation Agency challenged, the Supreme Court extended the bail on September 27. His prolonged and arbitrary arrest appears to violate the right to liberty (Article 9 ICCPR).

• On September 27, Amnesty International published a new report which finds that the recommendations of the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) – a global body responsible for tackling terrorism financing and money laundering – have been abused by the Indian authorities to bring in draconian laws. This suggests that the FATF provides legitimacy to the criminalisation of people working in civil society organisations that want to improve human rights and democracy, in violation of the UN Declaration on Human Rights Defenders. 

• On September 28, the OHCHR (United Nations Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights) published a report documenting over 220 people and 25 organisations worldwide who faced reprisals for cooperating with the UN on human rights. The OHCHR documents several reprisals in India.

 

Hate crimes against minorities

• On September 1, members of the women’s wing of the Hindu supremacist Vishwa Hindu Parishad assaulted a missionary from the Ahmadiyya Muslim community at a book fair, who had reportedly noted the contact details of female visitors to his stand. A 29-second video reportedly shows the assault. The assault raises questions about the state’s ability to protect the right to freedom from degrading treatment, including by non-state actors (Article 7 ICCPR) and the obligation to prohibit advocating religious hatred that constitutes incitement to discrimination, hostility or violence (Article 20 ICCPR).

• On September 6, police in Uttar Pradesh state registered a case against a district president of the ruling BJP for allegedly raping a 17-year-old Dalit (“untouchable”) girl and killing her father on August 28. The incident raises concerns about the state’s protection of the right to life (Article 6 ICCPR) and women’s right to freedom of violence (Article 2 CEDAW)

• On September 12, a mob beat to death a 20-year old Muslim in Rajasthan state. Witnesses allege that the attack took place in retaliation for previous violence between two communities. The attack raises questions about the state’s ability to protect the right to life (Article 6 ICCPR) and the obligation to prohibit advocating religious hatred that constitutes incitement to discrimination, hostility or violence (Article 20 ICCPR).

• On September 23, a man reportedly abducted and assaulted a Dalit (“untouchable”) woman. This happened after she filed a harassment complaint against him; the police brought in for questioning and released him later. The assault raises concerns about the state’s protection of gender equality in matters of civil and political rights (Article 3 ICCPR) as well as women’s right to freedom of violence (Article 2 CEDAW)

• On September 26, Hindu supremacists tied a 26 year-old man of Muslim faith to an electric pole and beat him to death in Delhi allegedly for stealing “prasad” (ceremonial offering) from a temple stall. The police are reportedly investigating. This attack raises questions about the state’s ability to protect its citizens right to life (Article 6 ICCPR), right to humane treatment (Article 7 of the ICCPR) and to address acts of religious violence and discrimination as laid out by the ICERD.

 

Religious freedoms

• On September 6, the Supreme Court condemned how the police in Uttar Pradesh state are handling a case filed against a teacher for encouraging violence. The case concerns a video, which reportedly shows the teacher making religiously discriminatory comments and ordering her second-grade students to slap a Muslim classmate for not doing his homework. This follows similar incidents in schools: On August 31, a teacher in Karnataka state reportedly made hateful remarks against two fifth grade students of Muslim faith. She reportedly told the students: “This is not your country; this is the country of Hindus. You should go to Pakistan. You are our slaves forever.” These incidents raise questions about the state’s ability to prohibit advocating religious hatred that constitutes incitement to discrimination, hostility or violence (Article 20 ICCPR).

• On September 9, Hindu supremacists vandalised a mosque in Himachal Pradesh state. Additional videos circulated of Hindu supremacists vandalising Muslim shrines across the country. The incidents raise questions about the state’s ability to prohibit advocating religious hatred that constitutes incitement to discrimination, hostility or violence (Article 20 ICCPR). This came on the same day as the New Delhi Declaration of the G20 “strongly deplore[d] all acts of religious hatred against persons, as well as those of a symbolic nature without prejudice to domestic legal frameworks, including against religious symbols and holy books”.

• On September 11, the principal of a private school in Goa state was suspended after Hindu supremacists filed a police complaint that he took a group of Class 11 students to a mosque. The principal responded that the field trip was part of an initiative to promote communal harmony.

• On September 26, the police reportedly filed a case against Milind Ekbote, the president of a Hindu supremacist organisation, for making “provocative speeches” at a rally. The speech involved demanding the removal of allegedly illegally built constructions, a demand which is increasingly resulting in extrajudicial demolitions of Muslim homes in India. Ekbote is already implicated in other cases, including for hate speech in 2021 and instigating violence in 2018. The incidents raise questions about the state’s ability to prohibit advocating religious hatred that constitutes incitement to discrimination, hostility or violence (Article 20 ICCPR).

• On September 21, BJP MP Ramesh Bidhuri reportedly called another politician of the Muslim community a “militant”, “terrorist”  and “pimp”, and demanded to “throw this mullah [derogatory word for Muslim] out”. The BJP has not taken any action against Bidhuri despite his hate speech in parliament, though the deputy leader of the Parliament reportedly “expressed regret” over the remarks and the Parliament Speaker reportedly warned Bidhuri of “strict action” if this happens again. On September 26, the BJP reportedly appointed Bidhuri as in-charge for polling in one district. The incident constitutes a ruling party lawmaker advocating for religious hatred that constitutes incitement to discrimination, hostility or violence (Article 20 ICCPR). 

• On September 24, Hindutva Watch released its annual report documenting 255 documented incidents across 17 states verified instances of hate speech by far-right Hindi groups against India’s Muslim minorities in the first half of 2023. A notable portion of these incidents occurred in states preparing for upcoming legislative elections, raising suspicions of hate speech being exploited for political gains.

• On September 30, organisers of an event at the National Law Institute University, Bhopal, reportedly distributed literature “hostile” to religious minorities and put up posters “deriding academics”. The event was reportedly inaugurated by Union Minister Bhupender Yadav. The event raises questions about the state’s ability to prohibit advocating religious hatred that constitutes incitement to discrimination, hostility or violence (Article 20 ICCPR).

 

Press, media and technology

• On September 1, the BBC published a year-long investigation into the state of journalism in Jammu & Kashmir. Soon after, the Jammu & Kashmir police responded on X, formerly Twitter, that the State Investigation Agency (SIA) “reserves the right to initiate further legal action” against the BBC for “misreporting facts in a case which is sub judice.” The threat of legal action may have consequences for the right to freedom of expression (Article 19 ICCPR).

• On September 6 at 4am, police in West Bengal state reportedly arrested Debmalya Bagchi, a journalist for ABP news, on the basis of a sexual assault complaint. Bagchi was released on bail on September 14. One of Bagchi’s colleagues, however, reportedly told the Committee to Protect Journalists that he was likely arrested because of his recent reporting on illegal liquor production. This could indicate a violation of the right to freedom of expression (Article 19 ICCPR).

• On September 10, communal violence erupted after an “objectionable” post on social media in Maharashtra state. One person died and at least ten were injured, and police imposed a blanket internet shutdown. Such blanket internet shutdowns violate the rights to freedom of expression and to peaceful assembly and freedom of association under Articles 19, 21 and 22 of the ICCPR.

• On September 13, the opposition alliance “INDIA” announced its decision to collectively abstain from programmes or shows hosted by 14 TV anchors, on the basis that these allegedly spread hate or partisanship towards the government.

• On September 19, police in Kerala state removed the name of a woman journalist from a First Information report in a case of alleged defamation and conspiracy to tarnish the reputation of a student leader. She had been charged in June over news she broadcast about a student’s name featuring in a student list although he had not attended relevant exams. Her arrest raised questions about the right to freedom of expression (Article 19 ICCPR).

• On September 20, Meta released its second annual Human Rights Report. Meta claims it has increased the number of groups designated as “Designated Organizations and Individuals” in India, claims it is putting in place measures for election periods in India, and claims it is putting in place a specific program for civil society engagement. Meta has previously been criticised for not disclosing the results of a Human Rights Impact Assessment for India. Despite Meta’s new claims, civil society documents systematic failure to remove content that incites violence.

• On September 25, news reported that the Jammu and Kashmir Police have reportedly secured direct cooperation from major social media platforms (including Meta, X, Snapchat, TikTok and more), granting them access to track individuals deemed involved in “anti-national” activities. This may have serious implications for the human rights impact of these corporations, as well as on the right to privacy (Article 17 ICCPR).

 

Parliament

• On September 19, the Union government introduced the 128th Constitutional Amendment Bill, 2023, to bring in 33% reservations for women in the Lok Sabha and all state Legislative Assemblies. At present there are 82 women MPs in the Lok Sabha, out of 543 total MPs. Opposition leaders criticise that the Bill will only enter into force following contentious changes to the delimitation of political constituencies across the country.

• On September 19, an opposition leader criticised that newly printed copies of India’s Constitution distributed in the Parliament have reportedly removed the words “socialist and secular” from the Preamble. The words were added in 1976, and the Law Minister reportedly responded that the version printed corresponds to the “original”. The controversy erupted amidst calls by Hindu supremacists to turn India into a “Hindu nation”.

 

Executive

• On September 5, the Crime Investigation Department in Assam state arrested several police officers who reportedly wrongfully detained a Muslim man in July and thereby violated Article 9 on the right to liberty of the ICCPR. The complainant alleged that the police wrongfully detained him, told him to pay a large amount of money, threatened to kill him in an “encounter” and justify his killing by accusing him of having “links with Pakistani and Bangladeshi jihadi elements”. 

• On September 9, videos circulated of police in Madhya Pradesh state parading 8 men half naked through the streets, after they were accused of having thrown stones. The incident may potentially violate the prohibition of degrading treatment or punishment under Article 7 of the ICCPR.

• On September 10, Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma announced that the state would launch the second round of its crackdown against child marriage within the next few days, during which he said another 3,000 people would be arrested. In February this year, the Assam government had launched an unprecedented, punitive crackdown against child marriage in the state in which around 3,141 people had been arrested within a span of a month. An analysis of records of those arrested in the last crackdown showed that 62.24% of those arrested were Muslims, while the rest were Hindus and people from other communities.

• On September 12, police arrested Hindu supremacist Bajrang Dal member Monu Manesar for his alleged involvement in inciting the communal violence in Nuh in August, in which at least six people died. Manesar also faces a case for his alleged involvement in the deaths of two Muslim men, who were burnt alive earlier this year.

• On September 13, police registered a case against the anchor of Aaj Tak, Sudhir Chaudhary, for “spreading false and communally inflammatory news against the Karnataka government” in connection with his show aired on Monday, 11 September. Aaj Tak has previously been fined for spreading disinformation and is considered partial to the ideology of the ruling government.

• On September 19, police in Uttar Pradesh state shot dead a man accused of murder after he allegedly fled from police custody. A thorough investigation into the killing is pending. There are serious concerns about extrajudicial “encounter killings” that violate the right to life (Article 6 ICCPR) in the state, with police reportedly killing 179 criminals in 10,814 encounters since Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath came to power in March 2017.

 

Judiciary

• On September 5, the Supreme Court reserved its judgement on the unilateral abrogation of Article 370 of the Constitution, which guaranteed semi-autonomy to the former state of Jammu and Kashmir. It had been hearing a batch of petitions challenging the abrogation, which had been left pending since 2019. 

• On September 26, the Delhi High Court dismissed a plea by youth climate activist Disha Ravi challenging her bail condition to obtain prior permission from court every time she wants to travel abroad. Disha Ravi was arrested in 2021 for publishing a “toolkit” on social media to support farmers protesting against new farm laws. Her case raises questions about arbitrary deprivation of her liberty (Article 9 ICCPR) and her freedom of movement (Article 12 ICCPR).

India in the world

• On August 2, European Commissioner for Equality Helena Dalli arrived in Gujarat state for the G20 Ministerial Conference on Women’s Empowerment 2023, where she gave a statement on education and STEM.

• In a new report on “future shocks“, the European Parliament Research Service notes “recent democratic failure or erosion in countries such as […] India“, and warns that this poses a risk that “extremist and anti-democratic political forces could instrumentalise economic malaise to gain power either through elections or through violent insurgency”.

• On August 15, India celebrated its 77th Independence Day. Indian diaspora in London gathered to protest against the ongoing violence in Manipur and Haryana, and were joined by British MPs.

• On August 25, Prime Minister Modi visited Greece as the first Indian PM to do so in 40 years. Greek news reported that Modi expressed India’s interest in gaining access to ports in Greece.

• On August 26, European Commission Executive Vice-President Valdis Dombrovskis told ANI news agency that the EU is not setting any “specific deadline” for the conclusion of free trade negotiations with India. The signing of the free trade agreement between India and Europe might take a while, as he noted that its “substance” matters more than a deadline and further discussion is needed.

• A new article by the Financial Times investigates potential front men used by the Adani Group to bypass rules for Indian companies that prevent share price manipulation. This follows an investigation by the short seller Hindenburg, which accused the Adani Group of running the “largest con in corporate history”.

 

Communal Violence and Riots

Violence in Manipur

• On August 1, the Supreme Court said that the state machinery in Manipur has “completely failed” and there is no law and order left in the violence-hit state.

• Prime Minister Modi’s government fails to respond to the conflict. On August 6, over 110 former civil servants urged the Central government to impose President’s rule in Manipur. On August 2, a newly founded opposition party alliance met the Indian President Murmu and urged for her “intervention” in establishing peace in Manipur.

• On August 7, the Manipur police suspended five officers, who were reportedly involved in the May 4 incident in which three Kuki women were paraded naked by a mob. The video sheds light on systematic gang rapes in India, and further evidence of targeted sexualised violence has emerged. 

• Mobile internet remains shut off in Manipur, in violation of human rights law, despite an urgent need for accurate information.

• The state government of Manipur has asked its governor to convene a special session on the armed conflict on August 21, but Kuki members of the legislative assembly declared they would not attend such a session.

• Armed violence by civilians continues to escalate. On August 3, a mob of approximately 500 people looted police armoury and weapons. According to The Hindu, about 4,000 weapons have already been looted, of which only 1,600 weapons have been recovered. On August 5, five more persons were killed, and the death toll rose to at least 187. On August 18, three more people were killed. More than 150 people have lost their lives in the violence and tens of thousands have been displaced.

 

Violence in Haryana

• On Monday, July 31, communal violence erupted in the Nuh district of Haryana during a procession by the Hindu supremacist groups Vishva Hindu Parishad (VHP) and Bajrang Dal. The conflict killed at least six people and injured over 50. Prior to the procession, known cow vigilante Monu Manesar, who is absconding from the police in a murder case, called on people to participate in the procession. Unidentified police officials told the Hindustan Times and News18 that Manesar’s call might have incited the violence. The participants were armed, raising questions why the procession received permission. As violence erupted, the Home Minister of the state falsely claimed that “Muslim rioters” had taken Hindus hostage, further escalating the violence. A 19-year-old deputy Imam of the mosque in Gurugram was stabbed 13 times and killed by a Hindu supremacist mob. Hindu supremacists set numerous mosques on fire and destroyed numerous shops. Violence continued until at least August 7, and spread to Gurugram, a business hub in India home to international companies. Migrant workers and Rohingya refugees have been left homeless and displaced, and are fleeing Haryana. 

• Twenty companies of central forces were deployed in Haryana. A total of 18 cases have been registered in Gurugram and at least 116 have been arrested: On August 15, police arrested militant Hindu supremacist Raj Kumar, alias Bittu Bajrangi, in connection with the Haryana communal violence. Bajrangi is the head of a cow vigilante group active in Faridabad, Haryana. The charges against him include assault or criminal force to deter public servant from discharge of his duty, voluntarily causing harm to deter a public worker from doing his duties, rioting, and Section 25 of the Arms Act.

• Local Hindu supremacist groups threatened local Muslims: On August 1, a group of men went around the locality threatening the Muslims to leave, and thousands of residents fled their homes. On August 6, Hindu supremacist group “Hindu Samaj” organised a “religious congregation” despite a blanket ban on public gatherings. At the event, participants called for a social and economic boycott of Muslims. On August 13, another “religious congregation” framed nine demands, which include that the district should become “cow slaughter-free” and that “the government should provide arms […] for self-defence” to locals.

• Following the violence, the government responded with further human rights violations: The district administration suspended internet services until August 11. On August 3, the Haryana government demolished the shanties of more than 250 Muslim migrant workers, who had fled the violence. Additional demolitions continued for the following days, and residents alleged they were not given any prior notice. On August 5, over 45 shops in the riot-affected area were demolished for being allegedly constructed “illegally”. Over five days, over 1200 buildings, overwhelmingly owned by Muslims, were reportedly demolished. On August 7, the Punjab and Haryana High Court took suo moto cognisance of the demolitions and ordered them to stop. In its order, the High Court asked whether the demolitions were “an exercise of ethnic cleansing”. The case was then passed on to another bench, in violation of procedure, which requires it to be passed on to the Chief Justice.

• In early August following the violence, over 50 village councils in the state released identical letters demanding that Muslims living in the villages submit their identity documents to the police, and barring the entry of Muslim traders.

• On August 17, Delhi police detained more than 50 people for protesting against the Haryana violence in New Delhi.

 

Human Rights Defenders and civil society

• On August 1, the Indian government suspended the passports of several Kashmiris, including journalists, arguing the affected parties “were a threat to Indian security” despite no reported charges against them. Recently, officials suspended the passports of two Kashmir-based journalists and one local politician and activist.

• On August 1, tweets by journalist Rana Ayyub, fact-checker Mohammed Zubair, and politician Asaduddin Owaisi on a reported hate crime were removed from Twitter, following a demand from the Indian government. They referred to an incident on July 31, when an Indian railway security constable shot and killed a colleague and three passengers on a train. In a verified video, he says: “If you want to live and vote in Hindustan [India], I am telling you, it’s only Modi and Yogi,” thereby suggesting the attack has a political motive.

• On August 1, the National Investigation Agency raided multiple locations in Kashmir, including the residence of human rights lawyer Parvez Imroz, in an NGO-funding case registered in the year 2020.

• On August 9, the Supreme Court adjourned the bail hearing of human rights defender Umar Khalid, after a judge recused himself from the case. Khalid has been detained without a trial since 2020, when he was arrested under India’s anti-terror law UAPA and sedition laws for his participation in protests against India’s discriminatory Citizenship Amendment Act. Khalid’s bail petitions have been repeatedly denied.

• On August 14, the Supreme Court gave Professor Kham Khan Suan Hausing, professor at Hyderabad University, protection from coercive action. Professor Hausing is facing criminal proceedings for giving an interview on the ongoing armed violence in Manipur.

• On August 15, an assistant professor at Ashoka University resigned from his post weeks after he published the research paper “Democratic Backsliding in the World’s Largest Democracy”, which explores the possibility of electoral manipulation in favour of the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party. The University had publicly distanced itself from the paper. On August 22, the Intelligence Bureau visited the university campus to speak with the former professor about the paper.

• On August 21, UN Special Rapporteur on the situation of Human Rights Defenders Mary Lawlor and UN Special Rapporteur on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities Gerard Quinn called on India to end the inhumane detention of human rights defender GN Saibaba. Saibaba, who suffers from a spinal disorder, has been in pre-trial detention since 2014.

• On August 27, Kashmiri journalist Aasif Sultan marked five years of being arbitrarily imprisoned. Sultan is accused of “complicity” in “harbouring known terrorists” under the Unlawful Activities Prevention Act, India’s counter-terrorism law that reverses the burden of proof. In 2019, Sultan was given the John Aubuchon Press Freedom award.

• On August 28, police arrested tribal rights activist Nitin Varghese, who is with Jagrit Adivasi Dalit Sangathan, a group campaigning for Forest Rights. Police charged Varghese with criminal conspiracy and inciting to violence. 

• On August 29, the house of Muslim woman journalist Khushboo Akhtar burnt down. Akhtar supposes that the house caught fire as an attack against her work as a journalist.

 

Hate crimes against minorities

• On August 3, police arrested three persons, including a member of the Hindu supremacist Bajrang Dal, for assaulting Dalit (“untouchable”) villagers in Madhya Pradesh state. 

• On August 15, a video circulated on social media showing a Hindu supremacist mob beating a Muslim man at a train station, condemning him for going out with a Hindu woman. The mob then shouted “Jai Shri Ram” (Hail Hindu God Rama). The incident reportedly took place in July.

• On August 12, Hindu supremacists lynched a Muslim man with mental health conditions in North-Eastern Assam state on alleged suspicion of cow theft. Police have arrested six persons. On August 17, two more people were lynched in separate incidents in North-Eastern Assam state, allegedly for theft.

• On August 17, Hindu supremacists reportedly threatened and attacked a Muslim food vendor in Himachal Pradesh state. The attack took place following a Facebook post of the week before, in which a Hindu supremacist called on others to boycott Muslim-owned businesses.

• On August 18, a middle-aged Muslim couple was reportedly beaten to death in Uttar Pradesh, supposedly in retaliation for the fact that their son had eloped with a Hindu woman a few years before. According to The Indian Express, the woman’s family members are suspected to have carried out the attack.

• On August 19, a group of Hindu supremacists reportedly beat to death a 27-year-old Muslim man and two others, allegedly for illegally chopping wood in a forest in Rajasthan state.

• On August 20, members of the Hindu supremacist group Bajrang Dal reportedly attacked Christians who were praying inside a church in New Delhi. They carried speakers blaring the slogan “We will make a Hindu nation.”

• On August 25, six persons in Maharashtra state reportedly attacked a Dalit (“untouchable”) man, tied him upside down, urinated on him and forced him to lick their shoes. The incident was recorded on video, and police arrested one accused.

 

Children’s rights

• On August 2, the body of a 14-year-old was found in Bhilwara, Rajasthan state, near a furnace where she had allegedly been set on fire, after reportedly being gang-raped by a group of men. Seven persons have reportedly been arrested.

• On August 4, a group of men reportedly forced two boys, ages 10 and 15, in Uttar Pradesh state to drink urine on suspicion they had stolen money. The men reportedly also thrust chillies into the boys’ anus. Six men were arrested after videos of the incident circulated online.

• On August 6, a video of the gang rape of two minor Muslim girls, aged 14 and 16, was circulated on social media. The incident itself reportedly took place in July.

• On August 25, a 14-year-old boy and three adult members of his family in Uttar Pradesh state reportedly killed their 15-year-old sister and daughter, allegedly because she had spoken to a Dalit (“untouchable”) boy over the phone.

• On August 24, a teacher forced children to beat their 8-year old Muslim classmate in Uttar Pradesh state. The incident was captured on video, which shows the teacher insulting the boy for being Muslim and scolding the children for not beating him hard enough.

• On August 26, police registered a case against two teachers in Rajasthan state, after a tenth-grade Dalit (“untouchable”) student committed suicide following reported caste discrimination and abuse.

• On August 27, a group reportedly beat to death a Dalit (“untouchable”) teenager over a sexual harassment case filed by his sister in 2019 in Madhya Pradesh state. His sister and mother were also beaten and stripped, and allege the attackers wanted them to withdraw the case.

 

Religious freedoms

• On August 1, a video circulated showing Hindu supremacists of the Vishwa Hindu Parishad and Bajrang Dal taking an oath to turn India into a “Hindu nation”. Hundreds of sharp-edged tridents were reportedly distributed among Hindu men.

• On August 15, India celebrated its 77th Independence Day. Meanwhile, several video clips surfaced on social media unambiguously showing hate speech against the Muslim community during the celebrations. For example, in Jammu, participants in an Independence Day rally shouted slogans calling for violence against Muslims, such as, translated from Hindi, “When Muslims are chopped, they will cry Ram Ram”.

• On August 17, members of Hindu supremacist groups including Bajrang Dal held a rally, giving an ultimatum that local Hindus vacate shops and homes rented by Muslims within two days or face consequences, in Haryana.

• On August 27, a group of Hindu supremacists reportedly attacked two Muslim households and vandalised Muslim fruit vendors’ carts in the presence of law enforcement and media.

• On August 28, members of the Hindu supremacist group Sri Ram Sena (“God Ram’s army”) reportedly attacked two Muslim cattle traders in Karnataka state. They were admitted to hospital for treatment.

 

Actions by state actors

• On August 5, Kapil Mishra was appointed Vice President of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) Delhi unit. Mishra, according to the Delhi Minorities Commission, in February 2020 incited riots in North Eastern Delhi, in which at least 53 people died. Mishra called to “shoot the traitors of the nation”.

• On August 6, police in Uttar Pradesh state arrested a 35-year-old businessman for being the administrator of a WhatsApp group in which an allegedly “derogatory” comment against Hindu supremacist Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath was posted.

• On August 9, the authorities notified residents in the Nai Basti slum in Uttar Pradesh state that their houses were illegally constructed. Subsequently at least 135 houses were demolished. Commentators note that the slum is located merely 600 metres from the spot claimed by some to be the Hindu god Krishna’s birthplace, suggesting an ulterior motive. The Supreme Court ordered a stay on the demolitions.

• On August 16, the Uttar Pradesh government issued an order directing officials to investigate “negative” news items published by media outlets. The order said officials concerned must seek explanations from the media houses if the facts in the story were found to be “twisted” or “false” in order to tarnish the image of the government.

• On August 19, Delhi Police prevented people from entering a meeting venue in New Delhi, where a meeting critical of the G20 summit took place, citing that the organisers did not have “permission” for the event. 

• On August 22, police registered a case against actor Prakash Raj over a tweet in which he reportedly mocks India’s Chandrayaan-3 mission to the moon. Hindu supremacist organisations had reportedly filed a complaint.

 

Legislative

• On August 7, the Parliament passed a Bill that gives the BJP-led central government control over posting and transfers of bureaucrats in the capital Delhi. The Supreme Court had previously in May passed a verdict that the power over bureaucrats in the national capital lies with the state government, not the central government. This is now nullified.

• From August 8 to 10, the Indian Parliament debated a no-confidence motion against Prime Minister Modi, filed over his lack of response to Manipur. On August 10, the motion was defeated by voice vote. This is the second time that Mr Modi’s government is facing a no-confidence motion since it came to power in 2014. Opposition parties demanded that Prime Minister Narendra Modi make a statement in Parliament, but the government has so far only agreed to a short duration discussion. In a 2-hour speech defending his government during the vote, Modi criticised the motion as an attempt by opposition parties to “defame India“. Modi only addressed the violence in Manipur when the opposition walked out on his speech after an hour. 

• On August 10, the Central government tabled a Bill which proposes that the members of the Election Commission of India be selected by a committee comprising the Prime Minister, the Leader of Opposition, and a Minister nominated by the Prime Minister. Legal experts note that the Bill will give more power to the executive over the Election Commission and violate an order by the Supreme Court from March. The Election Commission oversees the integrity of India’s elections.

• On August 12, Home Minister Amit Shah introduced three bills to replace the Indian Penal Code, Criminal Procedure Code and the Indian Evidence Act. There are serious human rights risks associated with the penal code reform: While the government frames this as a measure to reduce colonial legacy in India’s penal system, others note that it expands police powers, and creates a new offence that de facto widens the definition of “sedition”. The new Bills also do not include procedural safeguards against false implication in terrorism cases. 

 

Judiciary

• On August 4, the Supreme Court put a stay on the conviction of opposition leader Rahul Gandhi for defamation. Following a remark on the “Modi” surname, Gandhi was convicted to the maximum sentence of two years in prison, which is the minimum needed to disqualify him from Parliament. The suspension of Rahul Gandhi’s disqualification as Member of Parliament was subsequently overturned.

• On August 8, the Supreme Court started hearing a batch of petitions challenging the revocation of Article 370 of the Constitution which unilaterally took away the special status of Jammu and Kashmir. The petitions had been left pending since 2019. Notably, on August 29, the Supreme Court asked the Union Government to provide a time-frame or roadmap for the restoration of statehood of Jammu and Kashmir, noting that it “cannot be a Union Territory” under direct control of the centre “permanently”. The Supreme Court also noted that “restoration of democracy is important”.

• On August 24, a Delhi court acquitted a Muslim man in a case related to the 2020 riots after observing that the police made “artificial statements” against him. This is the second time in a month that the court pulled up the Delhi Police over its investigation in a case related to the riots, in which at least 53 people died. On August 16, the same court said the police had “manipulated evidence” in another case.

 

Internet and technology

• On August 4, a coalition of 35 civil rights groups called on Reuters news agency to terminate its partnership with ANI, an Indian news agency, due to its reported Islamophobic reporting and dissemination of false information.

• On August 8, 20 current and former faculty members of the Indian Institute of Management Bangalore have called in a letter on Indian corporates to defund “the spread of misinformation and hate speech through news channels and social media”, warning that “rapidly increasing levels of radicalization” are “fermenting an atmosphere conducive to large-scale violence.”

• On August 10, the Digital Personal Data Protection Bill was passed in the upper house of Parliament. Opposition MPs had staged a walkout due to another issue and were absent from the vote. The Bill is widely criticised, including by transparency activists, who note that the Bill restricts the Right to Information Act and allows public authorities to withhold critical information in the name of data privacy; that the Bill does not require actors to tell users with whom their data is shared, how long it will be stored, and if their data will be transferred to other countries; and that the Bill does not provide adequate safeguards against government surveillance.

• On August 19, Indian authorities blocked Indians from accessing the independent Kashmiri news outlet The Kashmir Walla and all its social media platforms, triggering strong criticism by the Committee to Protect Journalists.

India in the world

• From July 3-5, UN Deputy Secretary General Amina J Mohammed visited India on an official visit. Her visit focused on digital technology, Sustainable Development Goals, and India’s ongoing G20 Presidency.

• On July 3, Indian diaspora held a protest in front of the United Nations Palais des Nations in Geneva to raise awareness of the persecution of Christians and Muslims in India.

• On July 8, US Under Secretary for Civilian Security, Democracy, and Human Rights Uzra Zeya, arrived in Delhi. During her visit, according to the State Department she discussed “the deepening and enduring U.S.-India partnership, including advancing shared solutions to global challenges, democracy, regional stability, and cooperation on humanitarian relief”. She met civil society organisations working on media freedoms, gender equality, restrictions on NGOs and “marginalised religious and ethnic minorities”. 

• On July 19, India and the UK concluded their 11th round of negotiations for their free trade agreement. They reportedly made significant progress on five chapters dealing with contentious issues such as digital trade, environment and labour in the ongoing free trade agreement (FTA) negotiations.

 

European Parliament Resolution

• On July 13, the European Parliament adopted an urgency resolution warning of the existence of “Hindu majoritarianism” in India. The resolution also calls on the Indian government to “put an urgent end to the ethno-religious violence”, which is ongoing  especially in the state of Manipur. 

• In its resolution, mainly negotiated by French MEP Pierre Larrouturou (S&D), the European Parliament “denounces in the strongest possible terms all nationalist rhetoric” and calls on the Indian authorities to “refrain from criminalising those who are critical of government’s conduct”. 

• In addition to the resolution’s recommendations, MEPs from EPP and ECR in the plenary debate on July 12 called on the EU Special Envoy on Freedom of Religion, Frans van Daele, to urgently visit India. Other MEPs called on the European Commission to act more strongly on human rights in its engagement with India. The European Commission responded on behalf of the High Representative Borrell that they are closely monitoring the situation.

• Ahead of the vote, India’s Foreign Secretary rejected the motion for the resolution, saying Manipur is “totally internal”. 

• Alber & Geiger, a lobbying firm that lists its services to the Indian government on their website, contacted MEPs urging them not to table the resolution. The Indian government in a Right to Information request, however, “refused” to admit that it hired Alber & Geiger. 

• Following the vote, India’s Ministry of External Affairs condemned the resolution as reflecting a “colonial mindset” and as “interference” with India’s internal affairs. 

 

Narendra Modi’s visit to France

• On July 13-14, India’s Prime Minister Modi visited France for a diplomatic visit. Modi was the “guest of honour” on Bastille Day, which serves to celebrate democracy in France. During the visit, France and India announced several deals, including a naval fighter deal and a fighter jets deal.

• On July 10, Justice For Myanmar (JFM) asked Macron to raise the sale of Indian arms and weapons technology to the Myanmar military regime, and asked him to impose a condition that French arms and technology would only be exported to India if it does so.

• On July 11, French MP Arnaud le Gall posed a question in the French general assembly on human rights in India. He questioned why Modi is the “guest of honor” on Bastille Day, which celebrates French democracy.

• On July 13, Indian diaspora and French MPs protested against Modi’s presence at Bastille Day, with significant media coverage.

• On July 14, President Macron bestowed Modi with the “Legion d’honneur”, the highest civilian award in France. Since its creation in 1802, approximately one million people have received the award.

 

Communal Violence and Riots

• On July 8, municipal elections took place in West Bengal. In the runup to the elections, at least 11 people (45 according to BJP) were killed and dozens more injured, according to the Press Trust of India. The Hindu supremacist BJP came second, while the centrist Trinamool Congress came first.

• On July 16, clashes erupted in Gujarat state over a social media post on the controversial movie “The Kerala Story”. 8 people were injured and 10 have been arrested, with the police accused of bias. The movie depicts the alleged conversion of women from Kerala to Islam and their recruitment by the Islamic State. Clashes over the movie across the country have resulted in at least one death. 

• On July 27, the central government introduced the Constitution (Jammu and Kashmir) Scheduled Tribes Order (Amendment) Bill, which would give Paharis – a linguistic minority in Jammu and Kashmir – the “Scheduled Tribe” status. The Gujjars and Bakerwals, other communities in Kashmir, have threatened protests. Commentators see parallels to protests over tribal recognition in May in Manipur, which triggered the ongoing armed violence.

 

Violence in Manipur

• The ongoing conflict is conducted with sophisticated firearms, as civilians have looted at least 4000 guns and as there are 35117 active gun licences in Manipur. A recent investigation shows that since the current BJP Chief Minister Biren Singh came to power in 2017, 8000 gun licences have been issued to civilians.

• On July 2 alone, four people were killed in Manipur. Police say one of them was beheaded.

• On July 3, the Supreme Court ordered the Manipur government to file a “detailed status report” about the “situation on the ground” in the ongoing conflict in the state.

• On July 7, the Manipur High Court ordered the State government to lift the internet ban in the state. On July 10, the Supreme Court heard a plea challenging the restoration of the internet.

• On July 8, the National Federation of Indian Women received a criminal charge for conducting a fact-finding mission into the ongoing violence. They were charged with sedition and conspiring to commit offences of waging war against India.

• On July 6, US Ambassador to India Eric Garcetti said that the violence and killings in Manipur are a matter of “human concern”, and the US is willing to help India “if asked”.

• On July 12, Amnesty International published the results of its investigation into the violence in Manipur. They note complicity by police and right-wing groups affiliated with the ruling BJP in the violence, and note that the government’s response to the violence, including shoot-on-sight orders and an internet shutdown, has violated human rights. 

• On July 12, the Forum for Restoration of Peace in Manipur called on Prime Minister Modi to visit Manipur and take steps towards restoring peace in the state within the next 10 days.

• On July 19, a video of two Kuki women being paraded naked by a mob emerged from Manipur. A police complaint filed by the relatives of the women states that one of the women was subsequently gangraped. The incident is estimated to have taken place on May 4, a day after violence broke out in Manipur state. Police arrested one person after the video surfaced, despite the complaint having been registered already in May. The victims allege the police were complicit in the incident. The Indian government asked Twitter and other social media platforms to take down the video. The video sheds light on systematic gang rapes in India. On July 20, Prime Minister Narendra Modi broke his 79 day silence on the Manipur violence through a 30-second statement. Specifically responding to the video showing women being paraded naked, he said his heart was filled with “with pain and anger” over the situation in Manipur. “The incident that has come to light in Manipur is a shameful incident for any civilised society… I am filled with anguish and anger. The incident of Manipur brings shame to the society… What has happened to the daughters of Manipur can never be forgiven, the guilty will not be spared.” Apart from the delay, Modi’s speech has been criticised for being inappropriate, as Modi apparently equated violence in Manipur with law and order issues across India. On July 28, Home Minister Amit Shah claimed that the viral video had been released as a “conspiracy to embarrass the Modi government” ahead of the monsoon session of the Parliament. 

• On July 20, a Border Security Forces Head Constable sexually assaulted a woman in a grocery store in Manipur, as CCTV footage shows. The Head Constable has been suspended from duty and arrested.

• On July 21, an 18-year-old woman approached the police in Manipur reporting she had been abducted, assaulted and gang raped on May 15. She reports that she was handed over to armed men by women, with “clear instructions” to kill them.

• On July 25, the Manipur state government decided to allow broadband internet access with strict conditions. Mobile internet remains suspended. This comes after a total internet shutdown of almost three months, which violates human rights law.

 

Human Rights Defenders and civil society

• On July 19, the Supreme Court granted bail to social activist Teesta Setalvad. She had been arrested in June and accused of fabricating evidence against Prime Minister Modi. On July 1, the Gujarat High Court directed social activist Teesta Setalvad to “surrender immediately” in a case against her. The Supreme Court, however, said that the High Court’s observations were “perverse” and “contradictory”. Setalvad has been advocating for an investigation in Prime Minister Modi’s role in the 2002 Gujarat riots, but last year, the Supreme Court in passing accused Setalvad of conspiracy. The police initially arrested her in June 2022, which Amnesty India and Human Rights Watch called an attack on civil society and demanded her release.

• On July 3, a group of prominent civil society members, including economists, lawyers and retired IAS officers, issued a statement condemning the silence of the country’s senior leadership on ongoing wrestlers’ protests. Female wrestlers are protesting against the President of the Wrestling Federation of India, whom they accuse of sexual harassment and who is also a member of Modi’s BJP. The Wrestling Federation’s President was finally arrested after months of protest, but granted bail on July 19. 

• In March, Union Minister of State for Home told the Parliament that the registration certificates of 1,827 non-profits to receive foreign contributions had been cancelled between 2018 and 2022. A day later, Director of the Commonwealth Human Rights Initiative (CHRI) filed a Right to Information application seeking access to all 1,827 cancellation orders. In July, the Ministry responded, did not disclose this information, and instead told CHRI that details were available on the FCRA website. The website, however, only listed the 1,808 organisations and had a single order from October 2019. There are no detailed cancellation orders for every organisation that has lost its FCRA licence.

• On July 12, the Delhi High Court granted bail to Tahir Hussain in five different cases registered against him. Hussain, who reportedly participated in peaceful protests against the discriminatory Citizenship Amendment Act, was accused of conspiracy to incite the 2020 Delhi riots, in which at least 53 people died. However, Hussain will still remain in judicial custody, as he is also charged under India’s anti-terror law, the Unlawful Activities Prevention Act. 

• On July 28, human rights defenders Vernon Gonsalves and Arun Ferreira were granted bail after five years of jail without trial. They were arrested alongside fourteen others – the “BK16” – under India’s counterterrorism law, the Unlawful Activities Prevention Act (UAPA), for alleged association with Maoist groups. Evidence was found to have been planted on their laptops. One of the other accused, Father Stan Swamy, died in custody in 2022.

• On July 29, police arrested 93-year-old human rights defender Ayinoor Vasu, over a protest he led seven years ago against alleged extrajudicial killings by police. Police claim they arrested Vasu as he had failed to appear before a court.

 

Political opposition

• On July 17, nine opposition parties in Assam state moved the Supreme Court to challenge the Election Commission’s proposal to change the election constituencies in the state of Assam. Some Muslims in the region fear that the proposed change will divide voters on religious lines and that sitting legislators will lose their seats. Protests erupted and several protestors were detained.

• On July 18, Prime Minister Modi called an alliance meeting of opposition leaders a “hardcore corruption convention”. Leaders of 26 opposition political parties in India have united to form an alliance in an attempt to oust Prime Minister Narendra Modi in the 2024 general election. The roadmap of the “Indian National Developmental Inclusive Alliance” (INDIA) reportedly focussed significantly on countering polarisation, hatred and religious divisions. 

• On July 26, the Lower House of Parliament accepted to debate a “no-confidence” motion against Prime Minister Modi, filed by opposition parties. The date for the debate is to be decided. Commentators note that the move is merely procedural and symbolic, and that the BJP government is “at no risk of being voted out”.

 

Judiciary

• On July 9, a Delhi court framed charges against six men for burning a Muslim man alive during the 2020 Delhi riots, in which 53 people died. The court observed that the accused were part of a mob that planned to commit riots. 

• On July 10, Kerala High Court criticised the state’s police for seizing a journalist’s mobile phone in a probe involving an online media organisation. The court orally observed that it was a violation of the fundamental rights of the journalist.

• On July 11, the Supreme Court after 3 years and 11 months heard a set of petitions filed challenging the change of Jammu and Kashmir’s semi-autonomy. In 2019, the central government had unilaterally removed Article 370 of India’s constitution, which governs Jammu and Kashmir’s status in the country. The Central government argued that its decision has brought an “unprecedented era of development, progress, security and stability to the region.” The Supreme Court dismissed this as irrelevant, noting that political arguments do not have a bearing on the constitutional legality. The petitions had been left pending, and the Supreme Court in July set up a new constitution bench for the matter. 

• On July 21, the Supreme Court heard the plea by India’s opposition leader Rahul Gandhi against a Gujarat High Court order that refused to put on hold his conviction and a two-year jail term in a defamation case. Gandhi was convicted in March in a case related to his speech ahead of the 2019 Lok Sabha elections in which he referred to thieves as having the surname Modi. This led to his immediate disqualification as an MP.

• In late July, civil society actors filed a Public Interest Litigation in the Gujarat High Court seeking a judicial inquiry into police behaviour. On June 16, the police had reportedly publicly flogged Muslim men.

• On July 28, the Supreme Court agreed to hear a Public Interest Litigation filed National Federation of Indian Women raising alarm over an increase in cases of lynching and mob violence against Muslims, particularly by ‘cow vigilantes”. In a previous 2018 judgment, the Supreme Court had already issued guidelines to the union and state governments regarding the prevention of lynching and mob violence.

 

Actions by state actors

• On July 1, a BJP legislator, Sharanu Salagar, and several of his supporters reportedly barged into a Muslim electrician’s home and abused his family members claiming that they were slaughtering cows during Eid Al-Adha festival. The BJP legislator was criminally charged later.

• On July 8, police filed a case against a young man on the basis that his social media post “was against Prime Minister Narendra Modi”.

• On July 11, India’s National Security Advisor Ajit Doval said that “no religion is under any threat” in India. He claimed: “India has successfully managed to provide space for all its citizens, regardless of their religious, ethnic or cultural backgrounds.”

• On July 17, police filed several complaints against the Chief Minister of Assam state, Himanta Biswa Sarma, for hate speech against Bengali-speaking Muslims. The Chief Minister had called on Assamese youth to take up farming to “push the ‘Miyas’ out of business”.

• On July 18, a video was posted showing BJP leader Naveen Dhul forcing Muslim-owned restaurants in Haryana state that serve meat to be closed, citing an ongoing Hindu festival.

• On July 18, the BJP mayor of Kanpur city demanded that the state government pass legislation preventing Muslims from buying a house from a Hindu and vice versa. She further reportedly said: “We are angry with their [Muslims] behaviour as they throw waste, dirt in temples.”

• On July 26, police in Bihar state shot and killed at least two people who were protesting against power outages, irregular power supply and tariffs. 

• On July 31, an Indian railway security constable shot and killed a colleague and three passengers on a train. In a verified video, he says: “If you want to live and vote in Hindustan [India], I am telling you, it’s only Modi and Yogi,” thereby suggesting the attack has a political motive.

 

Religious freedoms

• Following the Muslim holiday Eid al-Adha on June 29, police reportedly filed a case against 40 Muslims for praying in public in Kanpur.

• The work on the controversial Ram Temple in Ayodhya reportedly gathered pace in July, as the number of workers working around the clock increased from 550 to 1,600 and a deadline of January 2024. In 1992, Hindu supremacists had extrajudicially demolished a mosque in the town, as they claimed that the site is the birthplace of God Rama, and violence erupted. In 2020, India’s Prime Minister inaugurated the construction of a new temple at the site.

• In early July, government officials denied a Muslim registration for his newly built house, because they reportedly did not want a Muslim to live in their village. “Registration cannot be done because the concerned person is from the religion of Islam,” the officials wrote on the front page of the application. 

• On July 1, the last day of the Eid celebrations, a Muslim juice vendor was reportedly harassed and heckled by a group of Hindu women for religious identity reasons in Uttarakhand’s Dehradun. In a video recorded by the women, one of those women says: “We don’t eat anything prepared by Muslims, we don’t eat spitted food).”

• On July 11, a video went viral showing a woman asking a bus conductor to remove his religious cap, which identifies him as Muslim. After an argument, the Muslim bus conductor takes off his cap.

• On July 17, police arrested a man in Uttar Pradesh, accusing him of converting 230 Dalit (untouchable) families to Christianity. Police registered a case against him under the Uttar Pradesh Prohibition of Unlawful Conversion of Religion Act 2021, following a complaint by a Hindu supremacist group. The Uttar Pradesh law has been challenged by civil society for violating India’s constitutionally guaranteed freedom of religion.

• In mid-July, officials in Maharashtra state temporarily sealed a 16th century mosque. The move comes after Hindu supremacists claimed that the mosque was constructed on the remains of a demolished Hindu temple.

• In mid-July, the Indian Railways issued a notification to two historical mosques in Delhi, telling them they had been built without permission on its land, and demanding the mosques be removed. One of the mosques is reportedly 400 years old, and therefore older than the Railways. 

• On July 26, child rights officials of Madhya Pradesh state reportedly raided a Christian orphanage. Citing attempts to convert children to Christianity, the orphanage has been closed down.

 

Hate crimes against minorities

• The United Christian Forum (UCF) reports that India witnessed 400 incidents of violence against Christians across 23 states in the first half of 2023 alone, Uttar Pradesh state leading with 155 incidents. In the same period last year, 274 incidents were reported.

• In the first week of July, a mob of Hindu supremacists reportedly beat the principal of a school in Pune city in Maharashtra state for allegedly teaching Christian education in the school.

• In the first week of July, Hindu supremacists in Uttar Pradesh state reportedly raided Muslim-owned meat shops and forced them to close down. In Delhi, members of Hindu supremacist groups Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP) and Bajrang Dal forced numerous Muslim-run meat shops to keep stores shut on Tuesdays, citing a need to honour “Hindu sentiments.”

• In early July, Hindu supremacists assaulted a Muslim man in Madhya Pradesh state. A video shows him being forced to lick the assaulter’s feet.

• In early July, a prominent Hindu supremacist TV anchor, Suresh Chavhanke, organized an anti-Muslim hate speech event in Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)-ruled Madhya Pradesh along with several Hindu extremist monks, to incite violence against Muslims. Another monk called for Muslim men in interfaith relations to be hanged, shot to death in public, or burnt alive. Last year, Chavhanke had administered a genocidal oath to a Hindu group in India’s capital, New Delhi, that said, “We take an oath and make a resolution that till our last breath, we shall fight, die for and if need be, kill, to make this country a Hindu Rashtra (nation).”

• In early July, an electricity department lineman forced a Dalit (untouchable) man to lick his slippers, and subjected him to humiliation and physical abuse in Uttar Pradesh state.

• On July 3, a 14-year-old Dalit (untouchable) boy in Bihar state was reportedly tied to a tree and physically assaulted for 10 hours after being accused of stealing a one-rupee (0.01 Euros) coin. Two people were arrested.

• On July 4, Hindu supremacists reportedly barged into a Muslim man’s house, sexually assaulted his 18-year-old daughter, injured other family members and vandalised vehicles in Uttar Pradesh state. 

• On July 4, a video went viral showing a man urinating on a tribal person. The man was reportedly an “aide” of a BJP legislator in the state, and the video is supposedly several months old. In response, the police arrested the man. On July 5, local authorities demolished the house of the accused, alleging it had been “constructed illegally”.

• On July 6, Hindu supremacists reportedly assaulted two Muslims students, who were accompanying their friend, a female Hindu, to watch a movie in Karnataka state. The police filed a case against the attackers, and the Chief Minister of the state condemned acts of moral policing. 

• On July 8, Hindu supremacists in Rajasthan state assaulted a young Muslim man and forced him to chant “Jai Shri Ram” (Hail Hindu God Ram), as he was going to buy groceries. Police arrested three men in connection with the incident.

• On July 11, Hindu supremacists vandalised, turned over and set on fire the car of a Muslim couple. 

• On July 13, an upper-caste man attacked a student from the Dalit (untouchable) caste who had urinated in his field. The upper-caste man also forced the Dalit student to manually remove his excreta, which is a crime under the Scheduled Tribes/Scheduled Castes Prevention of Atrocities act.

• On July 16, police arrested three persons for gangraping a minor Dalit (untouchable) girl in front of her boyfriend in Rajasthan state. The police claimed that the accused are campaigning for the ABVP, the student wing of the RSS, which is the ideological parent of Narendra Modi’s BJP.

• On July 21, an upper-caste man in Madhya Pradesh state reportedly smeared faeces on the face and body of a Dalit (untouchable) man. The victim initially reported the incident to a local council, but was fined Rs 600 (approx. 6 Euros). When he filed a police complaint, the police detained the accused. 

• On July 23, approximately 30 Hindu supremacists reportedly attacked a Christian pastor and his family as they were getting ready to begin Sunday worship. The family was injured, and police reportedly held the pastor and his wife for 24 hours for forced conversions.

• On July 25, a mob beat a man to death on suspicion of cattle theft in North-Eastern Assam state. Police who intervened were injured and required treatment in hospital. 

• On July 26, two young men reportedly stripped and beat a Dalit (untouchable) woman and tied her to a tree, where she remained overnight.

• On July 27, two men working for the trust managing a known Hindu temple in Madhya Pradesh state reportedly raped a 12-year-old girl. The two men were arrested.

• On July 28, four unidentified men reportedly attacked and attempted to rape a Muslim physiotherapist on her way home from work in Madhya Pradesh state. A woman neighbour reportedly came and supported the attackers. 

• In mid-July, a middle-aged man reportedly raped a 5-year-old Muslim girl in Uttar Pradesh state and left her in a field.

 

Refugees

India is not a signatory to the Refugee Convention, and India does not have a refugee law or policy. State governments have been conducting a drive against “illegal immigrants” on orders of the Central government:

• On July 12, news reported that the Manipur police detained ten people from Myanmar for illegally entering India without valid documents. It is not clear whether they are Rohingya refugees or whether they fled the coup. They have been undergoing treatment at Churachandpur district hospital for bullet injuries. Officials confirmed that the bullet injuries are not related to the violence in Manipur, but likely came from the Indian Armed Forces. 

• On July 18, Jammu and Kashmir authorities allegedly shot and tear-gassed a group of more than 200 Rohingya refugees, resulting in several people being injured. Among the Rohingya were pregnant women, disabled persons, and sick and elderly persons who required urgent care and attention. On July 20, a one-month-old baby subsequently died at a refugee “holding centre”, and her parents attended her burial in handcuffs according to photos.

• On July 22 and 23, 718 Myanmaris, including 301 children, reportedly fled to India due to the ongoing unrest in Myanmar. The Manipur government ordered the paramilitary Assam Rifles to “push them back”. 

• On July 24, the Uttar Pradesh state Anti-Terror Squad detained 74 Rohingya refugees, among them 5 minors, according to its official statement. 

• On July 25, the Uttar Pradesh police estimated that 9000 Rohingya refugees live in Uttar Pradesh state. Police have been asked to send these details to the state government in order to start deportation.

 

Evictions and demolitions

• On July 17, a woman was killed during violence following an eviction in Assam, north East India. She was killed by gunshots during “retaliatory firing”. Five months before, 2000 people had been evicted by the forest department, which bulldozed their homes. 

• On July 19, the district administration in Ujjain, Madhya Pradesh state, demolished the home of a Muslim man, as it was allegedly a “dangerous building”. The demolition was accompanied by people banging drums and playing music. The demolition notice, issued the day before, was reportedly only pasted outside the home half an hour before the demolition. On July 17, the man had also reportedly spit on Hindus at a procession, causing outcry.

• From July 22, 210 poor families in North Eastern Assam state received eviction notifications by the forest department, ordering them to vacate their homes within 15 days. The forest department alleges the villagers are “encroaching” on forest land. Evictions due to alleged encroachment are increasing in India, and residents rarely receive sufficient time to prove their case before bulldozers arrive. 

 

Internet and technology

• On June 30, a court in southern India dismissed a lawsuit brought by Twitter that challenged broad censorship orders issued by Indian authorities. Twitter had filed the lawsuit in July 2022 after receiving orders from Indian officials between February 2021 and February 2022 to remove more than 1,400 accounts on the grounds that they undermined India’s “sovereignty and integrity.” In dismissing the lawsuit, the judge noted that “many of [the accounts] have outrageous content; many are treacherous & anti-national.”

• On 13-14 July, Nneena Nwakanma called on India to “stop shutting down the internet anytime” at a G20 conference on “Crime and Security in the Age of Non-Fungible Tokens (NFTs), Artificial Intelligence (AI) and Metaverse”, where she was a panellist.

 

Environment

• On July 13, the central government reportedly cleared amendments to the Mines and Minerals (Development and Regulation) Act, 1957, to allow commercial mining of 6 critical minerals: lithium, beryllium, titanium, niobium, tantalum and zirconium. Previously, private companies were not allowed to mine these minerals. The amended law also allows pitting, trenching and sub-surface excavation, which were previously prohibited. Earlier this year, India announced it had discovered its first lithium deposits in the conflict region Jammu and Kashmir.

• On July 26, the Parliament passed the controversial Forest Conversation (Amendment) Bill. On July 13, more than 100 former civil servants had written to all members of parliament in India expressing their concern with the Forest Conservation (Amendment) Bill, 2023. They said they were worried both by the contents of the Bill, which redefines a “forest”, and the process being followed in passing it, as objections by stakeholders did not lead to amendments. The Bill passed without discussion.

India in the World 

• From 11-12 June, European Commissioner for International Partnerships, Jutta Urpilainen, was in Varanasi, India, to participate in the G20 Development Ministers meeting. She took part in the official session on ‘Multilateralism – Collective Actions for Acceleration Progress towards SDGs’ and ‘Green Development – a LiFE approach’.

• On June 13, at a Civil Society Dialogue with Sabine Weyand of DG TRADE, Weyand noted that India is a “difficult” partner during the ongoing negotiations for a Free Trade Agreement. Asked about human rights concerns, Weyand argued that geopolitical imperatives require the conclusion of an agreement, including compromises. 

• On June 16, at a Civil Society Dialogue on the human rights and sustainability impact assessment of the EU-India trade agreement, civil society raised concerns regarding repression of civic spaces and human rights issues. Additionally, the preliminary assessment predicts an increase in production in sectors that cause high water pollution and foresees an increase in CO2 emissions.

• From 19-23 June 2023, the EU and India met for their fifth round of negotiations for trade and investment agreements in Delhi. Indian civil society actors report that the minutes of civil society consultations by India are confidential. In a joint statement, more than 130 Indian actors expressed concern at the lack of transparency and non-inclusive consultation processes adopted by India in its FTA negotiations. EU and Indian citizens called on them to take human rights and democratic values seriously in a Twitter campaign under the hashtag #SellGoodsNotValues. 

• A new The Guardian investigation shows that since 2021, senior Indian officials have held at least four meetings to discuss India’s global democracy rankings, which widely do not consider India a democracy. Meeting minutes suggest that India’s Prime Minister Modi is concerned about the reputation of India’s democracy abroad.

• According to a recent YouGov poll conducted prior to Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s state visit to the US, 4 out of 5 Indians are concerned regarding the state of their democracy. The YouGov poll was commissioned by Friends of Democracy, a new network of citizens devoted to protecting and promoting democracy globally.

• On June 27, the United Nations Secretary-General published its report on children and armed conflict, and for the first time since 2010 did not name India as a country with recruitment of children by armed groups. The report said India has been “removed from the report in 2023” in view of measures taken by the government to “better protect children”. 

PM Modi’s visit to the United States

• On June 20, Prime Minister Narendra Modi left for a three-day state visit to the United States. India and the US agreed to a cooperation roadmap for defense industries, aiming to enhance collaboration in co-production, co-development, and supply chain management, bolstering trade and investment relations, technology sectors such as telecommunications, space, and manufacturing.

• On June 26, former President Barack Obama expressed concern in an interview about human rights violations in India under Prime Minister Modi’s leadership. He said that if a US president meets with Modi, “then protection of the Muslim minority in a majority-Hindu India, that is something worth mentioning.” He also said: “By the way, if I had a conversation with Prime Minister Modi, who I know well, part of my argument would be that if you do not protect the rights of ethnic minorities in India, then there is a strong possibility that India, at some point, starts pulling apart.”

• The visit was met with widespread criticism from civil society and US legislators. In a joint effort, U.S. Representative Pramila Jayapal and U.S. Senator Chris Van Hollen led a letter signed by over 70 congresspersons across both chambers of Congress. The letter appeals to President Biden to prioritize discussions on safeguarding human rights and upholding democratic values in India. Bernie Sanders urged President Biden in a tweet to raise human rights concerns.

• On June 20, Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch organized a screening of the BBC documentary “India: The Modi Question”, which is banned in India. The documentary screening took place before Modi attended a state dinner and addressed a joint session of Congress during his visit.

• On June 23, three Congresspersons and the USCIRF Commissioner held a briefing on India, which addressed growing authoritarian rule and human rights abuses in India.

• Several Congresspersons announced their decisions on Twitter to boycott Prime Minister Modi’s address to Congress.

• A journalist with the Wall Street Journal has faced harassment online, including from the ruling BJP’s communications head Amit Malviya, after she posed a question on minority rights to Modi during a joint press conference in the US. The White House spoke out in support of the journalist.

• Over a dozen Indian diaspora groups, community advocates and organizations staged a National Teach-In on June 13, and hundreds attended a protest against human rights violations in India outside the White House.

• For a more extensive list of civil society efforts around Modi’s US visit, see this resource.

Communal Violence and Riots

• After more than a month of ongoing violence in Manipur, the death toll has risen to over 100, and incidents of firings continue to occur in various regions of the state. On May 4, violent clashes erupted between tribals and non-tribals in multiple locations across the northeastern state of Manipur, and the government imposed a blanket internet shutdown that continues to date. Prime Minister Modi has not spoken on the violence, while expelled opposition leader Rahul Gandhi on June 29 traveled to Manipur, but police stopped his convoy.

• On June 19, protests erupted in various cities due to a controversy surrounding the movie “Adipurush”. It adapts a Hindu mythology, the Ramayana, and criticism concerns the portrayal of certain characters from the mythological epic.

• On June 25, Hindu supremacist groups in the state of Himachal Pradesh held a rally in which they engaged in hate speech and incitement to violence. Examples include “When Muslims get chopped, they will cry Ram Ram” (a Hindu God), and demands for social boycott and expulsion from the state.

• On June 25, different religious communities held a rally in Maharashtra in support of inter-faith harmony.

• On June 27, one person from a political party died in reported clashes between political opponents from the BJP and the TMC in West Bengal. Since June 9, when nominations for local polls began, 11 people have died due to political violence.

Human Rights Defenders and Civil Society

• On June 5, Malini Parthasarathy, journalist and former chairperson of The Hindu Group Publishing, announced her resignation via a tweet. She cited a diminishing “space and scope” within the publication for her “editorial views” as the reason for her departure.

• On June 13, the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) suspended the foreign funding license of CARE India due to alleged violations of the Foreign Contribution (Regulation) Act, 2010. CARE India, a non-governmental organization and a member of the CARE International Confederation, has been actively involved in combating poverty and promoting social inclusion for the past 70 years.

• On June 14, the Ministry of Home Affairs revoked the Foreign Contribution Regulation Act (FCRA) license of the Centre for Equity Studies, an organization affiliated with Nobel Peace Prize nominee Harsh Mander, for a period of 180 days. The ministry cited as a reason that Harsh Mander and colleagues have consistently contributed columns to prominent newspapers. Amnesty India stated that this cancellation “is an alarming reminder of the wide, arbitrary, and overly broad power FCRA provides the Indian government in restricting the legitimate work of NGOs”.

• On 5 June, the UN Working Group on Arbitrary Detention released an opinion urging the Indian authorities to immediately release human rights defender Khurram Parvez, who has been held in arbitrary detention since November 22, 2021.

• Renowned author Salman Rushdie has been awarded the German Peace Prize. The jury highlighted Rushdie as a “passionate defender of freedom of thought and expression”.

Hate Crimes and Attacks against Minorities

• After receiving eviction notices pasted on their homes and businesses, approximately twelve Muslim families were forced to leave Purola, located in Uttarakhand state in northern India. The threats were primarily issued by two Hindu supremacist organizations, the Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP) and its youth wing, the Bajrang Dal. Hindu supremacists ordered Muslims to leave town before June 15. Hindu supremacist groups organized several rallies demanding the expulsion of Muslims from the area. Additionally, some Muslim shops were reportedly vandalized and signboards bearing Muslim names were removed, forcing most Muslim-owned businesses in Purola to close down. At least three abandoned homes of Muslims have now been put up for sale.

 

• The state of Uttarakhand responded to a petition filed by the Association for Protection of Civil Rights (APCR) seeking to prevent a Hindu supremacist gathering, and denied permission to the gathering. The gathering was planned for June 15, in the context of the ongoing eviction notices towards Muslim families. The gathering was called in response to an alleged incident on May 26, where two individuals, among them one Muslim, were accused of attempting to abduct a 14-year-old Hindu girl. Minority groups and NGOs have expressed concerns that the proposed gathering specifically targets individuals from a particular community and could potentially escalate tensions, leading to a further decline in peace within the state.

• On June 8, a Muslim man was lynched and another injured after they were assaulted by a Hindu supremacist group in Maharashtra state. The police alleged that the perpetrators were associated with the Rashtriya Bajrang Dal, and arrested six persons in the case. 

• On June 14, a Dalit man was attacked by Hindu supremacists from an upper caste, in an instance of caste-based violence. The Dalit man had tried to stop the Hindu supremacists from felling a tree on his property. He reported that the attackers tried to chop off his private parts, injuring them, and attacked his pregnant wife.

• On June 14, a 28-year-old Muslim man was reportedly assaulted after being accused of mobile phone theft in Uttar Pradesh. He was reportedly tied to a tree, physically assaulted, had his head forcibly shaved, and was coerced into chanting ‘Jai Shree Ram’ (hail Lord Ram). The police initially arrested the victim, claiming to have found a knife in his possession, while taking no action against the perpetrators despite video recordings of the incident. 

• On June 17, an estimated 500 Hindu supremacists tortured and publicly humiliated two Muslim men in Orissa state, binding them with ropes, stripping them, parading them through piles of garbage, shaving their beards, and filming the torture over suspicions of them carrying cattle meat.

• On June 24, a Muslim man was reportedly beaten to death on his birthday, and another severely injured by Hindu supremacists in Maharashtra state. They were traveling in a car and were accused of transporting beef. While police arrested 11 accused, they also charged the two Muslim men under the cow protection law.

• At a briefing on June 26 for European Parliament representatives, former ICC Prosecutor Dr Fatou Bensouda, former United States Ambassador-at-Large for War Crimes Issues Stephen Rapp, human rights defender Cedric Prakash, and President of the PUCL Kavita Srivastava warned that there is credible evidence of crimes under international law committed against religious minorities in India. As Prime Minister Modi is expected to visit Europe next month, they called for immediate action at the highest level.

• On June 27, Hindu supremacists with the Bajrang Dal and Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP) tore down the wall of an under-construction church near Kanpur and wrote “Jai Shri Ram” (Hail Lord Ram) on the walls. Police filed a case but has not made arrests despite CCTV footage.

• On June 28, a Muslim truck driver was beaten to death by Hindu supremacists, who accused him of transporting beef.

• On June 29, during the Muslim holiday Eid al-Adha, a mob of an estimated 200 people reportedly attacked a Muslim family in Mumbai that was transporting a goat in accordance with the traditions of the holiday.

Action by State Actors

• On June 20, four people, including a lawmaker from the ruling BJP, allegedly set on fire a mosque in Alwar, Rajasthan. They were later arrested.

• On June 23, after former US President Barack Obama expressed concern about religious minorities in India, the Chief Minister of Assam Himanta Biswa Sarma posted on Twitter that “there are many Hussain Obama [sic.] in India itself. We should prioritize taking care of them.”

• On June 24, Indian military personnel reportedly entered a mosque in Kashmir during prayers and forced Muslims to chant “Jai Shri Ram” (Hail Lord Ram), a Hindu religious slogan that has been turned into a warcry by Hindu supremacists.

• On June 25, BJP leader and a former deputy chief minister of Karnataka state at a party gathering called for mosques to be demolished to make way for the construction of temples.

• On June 27, the Hindu supremacist Chief Minister of India’s most populous state, Uttar Pradesh, Yogi Adityanath, claimed that an “international syndicate” is operating in India to illegally convert people to other religions.

• On June 27, the Karnataka police filed a case against the head of the ruling party BJP’s communications (IT cell) head, Amit Malviya, over a video reportedly spreading disinformation on opposition leader Rahul Gandhi. Malviya is accused of “conspiring to create enmity among voters”.

Religious freedoms

• According to a new research paper, the degree of segregation experienced by Muslim and Scheduled Caste communities in Indian cities is comparable to the segregation issues faced by Black and White racialized populations in the United States.

• On June 9, a Muslim family alleged that railway staff subjected them to Islamophobic treatment during a train journey. Two railway staff members reportedly inquired about her religion. Once the family confirmed being Muslim, the woman alleged her family was served unsanitary food. The personnel reportedly admitted the food was retrieved from the garbage.

• On June 10, Hapur police arrested a man for allegedly offering namaz (Muslim prayer) on the premises of a Hindu temple. Members of Bajrang Dal alleged that the incident was a “conspiracy to disturb the communal harmony in the region”. Despite no evidence of the man offering namaz, the police arrested him based on footage of where he is seen entering and leaving the temple.

• While on an official state visit in the US, Prime Minister Modi during a joint press conference denied religious discrimination in India, and referred to constitutional safeguards for religious and ethnic minorities.

• On June 26, a video circulated of Hindu students chanting “Jai Shri Ram” (Hail Lord Ram) at Muslim students praying in a coaching institute. Fact-checkers established that it is recent.

• On June 27, a Catholic school in a central Indian state was reportedly forced to hold online classes after police claimed ownership of the approach road and blocked it overnight and prevented entry of students.

• On June 26, the Hindu supremacist Vishwa Hindu Parishad issued a warning to hotels in the city of Ahmedabad, warning them of consequences if they gave rooms to interfaith couples.

• On June 28, the administration in the Muslim-majority region of Jammu and Kashmir prohibited prayers from taking place in the largest mosque, Jama Masjid, on the Muslim holiday Eid al-Adha. Police in the state of Uttarakhand told local Muslims to celebrate the Muslim holiday Eid al-Adha in another town, 40km away.

Executive

• On June 15, fourteen individuals were arrested in a town on the Indo-Bangladesh border, for attempting to cross the border to India. Among them were four Rohingya refugees, including two infants. A report by the Border Security Force (BSF) revealed that at least 59 Rohingyas were arrested in Tripura in 2022 alone. Additionally, India regularly engages in illegal pushbacks of Rohingya refugees.

• On June 15, Karnataka’s Law and Parliamentary Affairs Minister announced that the new Congress government will repeal amendments to the Karnataka Right to Freedom of Religion Bill, 2021 introduced by the previous BJP government. The bill prohibits the act of converting from one religion to another through misrepresentation, force, fraud, allurement, or marriage. The Minister also took decisions on changes made by the BJP in school textbooks, and said it would remove lessons on the founder of the Hindu supremacist RSS and Hindu supremacist ideologue Savarkar.

• In the week of June 19, the Election Commission proposed a change to the election constituencies in the state of Assam. Some Muslims in the region fear that the proposed change will divide voters on religious lines and that sitting legislators will lose their seats. Protests erupted and several protestors were detained.

Judiciary

• On June 10, a Delhi Court acquitted a Muslim man of rioting in the 2020 Delhi Riots, targeted religious violence which killed at least 53. The court noted that the police had “falsely” cited the complainant as a witness, and questioned the failure to stop the riots by the police. 

Media and Technology

• During a statement on June 9, Minister of State for Electronics and Information Technology, Rajeev Chandrasekhar, emphasized that while Artificial Intelligence (AI) is disruptive, it is unlikely to pose an immediate threat to the job sector. Chandrasekhar further mentioned that India intends to regulate AI by focusing on potential harm to users. He stated that the government plans to introduce regulations for online gaming, which will be based on three core principles: preventing harm, addressing addiction, and tackling betting practices, all with the aim of safeguarding digital citizens.

• On June 9, Prime Minister Narendra Modi held discussions with Sam Altman, the CEO of OpenAI, the company creating ChatGPT. The conversation covered a range of topics related to AI, including the importance of global regulation in this field.

• During an interview on June 12, Jack Dorsey, co-founder and former CEO of Twitter, alleged that the Indian government had issued threats of shutting down the platform in the country because Twitter did not comply with its orders to take down content. Dorsey claimed that Twitter received numerous requests from the Indian government to block accounts related to farmers’ protests and posts critical of the government. He further stated that the Indian government had threatened Twitter with threats of raids at its employees’ homes in the country.

• On June 12, reports emerged that a bot on the messaging platform Telegram was allegedly leaking sensitive information about politicians, bureaucrats, and other individuals from the CoWIN portal, India’s Covid-19 vaccination tracking platform. A special unit of the Delhi Police arrested a man for allegedly leaking the data.

• On June 14, an Indian court ordered a temporary halt to broadcasting the AlJazeera documentary “India… Who Lit the Fuse?” investigating hate crimes by Hindu supremacist groups against Muslims. The court stated that broadcasting the movie could lead to “evil consequences”.

• On June 14, Human Rights Watch published a report that revealed that internet shutdowns in India have a disproportionate impact on poor communities who rely on the government’s social protection measures for sustenance and livelihood. Since 2018, India has imposed the most internet shutdowns worldwide. A mid-year report by AccessNow finds that India has imposed a total of 33 internet shutdowns already in 2023. Although many of these shutdowns continue to be implemented at a local or even neighborhood level in response to religious anniversaries, protests, and communal violence, authorities have also imposed sweeping state-wide shutdowns and extended shutdowns across the entire country.

• On June 21, Prime Minister Narendra Modi met Elon Musk, Tesla and SpaceX CEO, in New York. Musk expressed his admiration for PM Modi, referring to himself as a “fan”.

India in the World

• A new investigation shows that the Modi government reportedly widely distributed fortified rice before fully understanding its impact on human health. This reportedly provided a Dutch company with significant profits. Despite concerns raised by the finance ministry dismissing the project as “premature”, the government proceeded with its plan.

• According to government and industry sources, India intends to submit a formal complaint to the World Trade Organisation (WTO) concerning the European Union’s proposal to impose tariffs ranging from 20% to 35% on imports of high-carbon goods, such as steel, iron ore, and cement from India. With this, New Delhi aims to combat the European Union’s Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism (CBAM).

• On May 15, Fernand de Varennes, the UN’s special rapporteur on minority issues, issued a statement saying the G20 was “unwittingly providing a veneer of support to a facade of normalcy” whilst human rights violations are ongoing in Kashmir. China and Saudi Arabia boycotted a G20 meeting held in Kashmir. Civil society actors also called for a boycott, citing human rights concerns.

• On May 16, the European Union’s foreign and security policy chief, Josep Borrell, called on the EU to crack down on India for reselling fuels produced with Russian oil.

• From May 19-21, Prime Minister Modi attended the G7 Summit in Japan to reportedly represent “the voice of the global south”. Important agenda points included the impacts of Russia’s war on Ukraine, but India chose not to explicitly condemn the invasion.

• On May 22, a 19-year-old Indian-origin man crashed a truck into security barriers near the White House in the United States. The driver told the authorities he would kill the president and expressed personal admiration for Hitler. He was detained and convicted afterward.

• On May 24, human rights groups, including Amnesty International, organised a screening of the BBC documentary, ‘India: The Modi Question’ at the Australian Parliament House in Canberra during PM Modi’s Australia visit. The documentary, which was released in January this year, examines responsibility for riots in Gujarat, India in 2002, in which at least 1044 people died, and reports partial responsibility of India’s current Prime Minister Modi.

• On May 25, the European Commission’s Climate Policy Chief, Frans Timmermans, began his two-day visit to India. Frans Timmermans engaged in discussions with government officials, stakeholders, and civil society regarding the upcoming COP28 UN Climate Change conference.

• On May 25, EU Special Representative Eamon Gilmore met with HRD Avinash Kumar to discuss mounting human rights challenges in India, including the situation of minorities.

• Global labor unions condemned the Indian government’s decision to disrupt the participation of independent unions at the G20. The Indian government has insisted on the Bharatiya Mazdoor Sangh (BMS), affiliated with Prime Minister Modi’s ruling party and known for its Hindu nationalist stance, chairing the Labour 20 working group.

• The United States urged India to condemn religious violence one month ahead of Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s visit. The US has expressed concerns about incidents of violence against religious minorities in India.

• India is shifting its focus from being a major arms importer, to becoming a defense manufacturing hub and export leader. Prime Minister Narendra Modi has announced plans for India to become the world’s largest defense manufacturing base. The government aims to increase defense exports by $5 billion over the next two years. India’s defense exports have reached a record high of approximately $1.95 billion for the fiscal year 2021-2022, marking an increase of more than 10 times in six years and sales to over 70 countries.

• For the second time, the re-accreditation of the National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) of India has been postponed by a UN-affiliated agency for a year. The re-accreditation process occurs once every five years. Without this accreditation, the NHRC will be unable to represent India at the United Nations Human Rights Council.

Communal Violence and Riots

Violent clashes on May 4 erupted between tribals and non-tribals in multiple locations across the northeastern state of Manipur:

• These clashes come after a longstanding ethnic conflict between the Meitei (mostly Hindu) and the Kuki (mostly Christian) over special protections under the constitution. There have also been concerns about a rise of Meitei nationalism, and an increase in militant groups, coinciding with the BJP assuming power in Manipur in 2017. The Manipur High Court on 20 April directed the Manipur government to consider the request of the Meitei community to include them in the Scheduled Tribe category.

• In response, the state government imposed a curfew, shut down internet services, and issued “shoot-on-sight” orders on May 4 to enforce the curfew. The Indian Army deployed an estimated 10,000 troops and paramilitary forces.

• It is reported that more than 80 people have been killed and at least 35 000 have been displaced (according to the Chief Minister) in this violence. At least 250 churches have been reportedly burned. Within the first four days, at least 1700 homes were destroyed.

• The United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights Volker Türk said in a statement that the violence in Manipur “revealed the underlying tensions between different ethnic and indigenous groups”. He urged the authorities to “respond to the situation quickly, including by investigating and addressing root causes of the violence in line with their international human rights obligations”.

On May 5, the controversial movie “The Kerala Story” was released in theatres:

• The film allegedly depicts the conversion of women from Kerala to Islam and their recruitment by the Islamic State. Initially, the filmmakers asserted that 32,000 women from Kerala had been converted to join the Islamic State. However, when pressed for evidence, they modified the trailer, now stating that the movie is a “compilation of the true stories of three young girls”.

• Prime Minister Narendra Modi argued that the film revealed a “terror conspiracy” and shed light on the “ugly truth of terrorism”.

• Movie screenings of “The Kerala Story” have been used by the Hindu supremacist Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP) to recruit people, such as in this video which records VHP getting the audience to make an oath to take action.

• On May 8, the West Bengal government banned the screening of the movie. On May 18, the Supreme Court issued a stay order on the West Bengal government’s ban, after the Kerala government approached the Supreme Court challenging the ban. Two state governments, Uttar Pradesh and Madhya Pradesh, have made the film tax-free.

• On May 13, a heated argument on social media regarding the film escalated into violent clashes in Akola, Maharashtra. One group threw stones and caused damage to properties and vehicles. The violence resulted in the death of a 40-year-old man and left eight others severely injured. The local police responded by arresting around 147 individuals, implementing curfews, and suspending Internet services.

Human Rights Defenders and Civil Society

• In May, a new report published by the Business & Human Rights Resource Centre documented that India, Brazil, and Mexico had the highest number of attacks against human rights defenders. Next to the United Arab Emirates, India also had the highest number of attacks related to companies, such as JSW Steel, a prominent Indian steel and coal manufacturer.

• On May 3, independent journalist Sakshi Joshi was assaulted by police. According to Joshi, she was trying to capture footage of the police deployment at a protest organized by women wrestlers against alleged sexual harassment. Joshi was detained for approximately an hour and released without any charges.

• On May 3, India dropped to rank 161/180 in the Press Freedom Index published by Reporters without Borders (RIF). Between 2010-2020, 154 journalists were arrested, detained, interrogated, or harassed for their work in India.

• On May 6, 75-year-old human rights activist and lawyer, Mohammad Shoaib, renowned for taking up the cases of individuals falsely accused of terrorism, has allegedly been arrested by the anti-terror squad of Uttar Pradesh police.

• Teesta Setalvad, journalist and HRD, was awarded the PEN international ‘Empty Chair’ award at the 55th International Writers for Peace Committee Meeting in Bled, Slovenia.

• On May 12, sixteen human rights organizations issued a joint appeal to the Indian authorities, urging them to immediately cease the retaliatory actions taken against human rights defenders and organizations in Jammu and Kashmir, particularly targeting individuals such as Khurram Parvez, Irfan Mehraj, and the Jammu and Kashmir Coalition of Civil Society (JKCCS). Khurram Parvez has been subjected to arbitrary detention since 22nd November 2021 as a punitive measure for his dedicated human rights activities, which involve documenting and advocating for the rights situation in Jammu and Kashmir.

• After the BBC documentary ban and the office raid, the BBC has now been summoned by the court in a defamation case on 22 May.

 Hate Crimes against Minorities

• On May 4, a 24-year-old Dalit groom and others were allegedly physically assaulted during a wedding procession. A group of 20-25 reportedly upper caste individuals, reportedly attacked the groom armed with sticks and iron rods.  The groom’s mother-in-law reported that Dalit women who intervened were molested.

• On May 17, a Delhi-based cow vigilante group reportedly stormed a slaughterhouse and assaulted two Muslim men. Cow vigilante groups have been accused of increasingly cracking down on cow slaughter through violence, often resulting in assaults and lynchings of Muslims. Several similar incidents took place across May.

• On May 19, a man from Rajasthan was allegedly beaten to death by his wife’s family due to their interfaith marriage. Three members of the wife’s family have been arrested and sent to judicial custody.

• On May 25, a Muslim man was reportedly beaten by a mob in Muzaffarnagar, Uttar Pradesh, who stopped him on the pretext of asking for directions. Locals claim he was targeted because of his faith.

• During May, there were three separate instances of events where speakers delivered anti-muslim speeches in Maharashtra alone. One of these events was attended by Shrikant Shinde, a Member of Parliament from the Shiv Sena party and the son of Chief Minister Eknath Shinde. During two of the rallies, it was noted that at least one speaker made references to weapons.

• Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader in Uttarakhand, Yashpal Benam, has decided to stop his Hindu daughter’s marriage to a Muslim man due to “current circumstances”. Following the circulation of the wedding invitation online, groups associated with the Hindu supremacist Vishwa Hindu Parishad and the Bajrang Dal organized a protest against the inter-faith marriage.

• During May, several Hindu supremacist groups reportedly organised weapons training, such as the Durga for minor girls in Madhya Pradesh.

• The Rashtriya Bajrang Dal, a group led by Hindu supremacist Pravin Tagodia, reportedly organised a training camp for youth in Ahmedabad, in which firearms training was held. In several places, the Hindu supremacist Bajrang Dal (“God Hanuman’s army”) reportedly held camps in which they also practiced using firearms. This came after the Bajrang Dal and other Hindu supremacist groups are increasingly holding street marches with weapons.

• On television, recorded in Sitapur, Uttar Pradesh, Bajrang Muni called on Hindus to pick up weapons. Bajrang Muni is a Hindu religious leader who is known for having threatened to rape Muslim girls in retaliation for harassment of Hindu girls. Similarly, television personality Suresh Chavhanke, whose hate speech is extensively documented in this report by The London Story, again called for Hindus to keep swords ready. Similar incidents took place across May.

• The province president of the Hindu supremacist Vishwa Hindu Parishad, Kapil Khanna, threatened that Rohingya refugees will not be allowed to live in Delhi. India continues to deport Rohingya to Myanmar. Amit Shah has a consistently hostile approach to refugees, as is visible when he referred to Rohingya as being “termites” in 2019.

• In Nawagarh, Chattisgarh, Hindu supremacist groups reportedly organized a mass rally against the opening of a church in the village.

• Hindu supremacist leader Sadhvi Prachi engaged in hate speech against Muslims at a movie screening of the Kerala Story, and was subsequently charged with “delivering provocative speech”.

Demolitions and Evictions

• At least 1,600 homes have been forcibly demolished in India’s capital over three months, which has left approximately 260,000 people homeless. Demolition squads frequently served notices as they carried out the four destructions. Additionally, Delhi demolished homeless shelters. This is in the context of a “beautification” plan for Delhi, as it prepares for G20 summit meetings scheduled on 9 and 10 September. These incidents follow a surge in demolitions that violate due process across India, colloquially called “bulldozer raj”, including in Kashmir, Delhi, and across the country. In June 2022, three United Nations Special Rapporteurs condemned the demolitions across India, which they allege deliberately target Muslims through “collective punishment”.

Executive

• On May 3, an order from the Manipur Human Rights Commission (MHRC) revealed that Myanmar refugees had been detained in Manipur’s state jails for longer than the prescribed detention period. The MHRC has instructed their release and urged the state government to address the issue with the Union Home Minister for their immediate deportation to Myanmar.

• On May 10, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s party, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), lost the elections in the state of Karnataka, a key stronghold for the BJP. The defeat is seen as a significant setback for Modi and raises questions about his ability to secure a third term as prime minister in the upcoming national elections in 2024.

• On May 15, police raided a house where Christian community members were holding a prayer in Shahdol, Madhya Pradesh. Latest reports suggest police have confiscated their religious books and launched an investigation into allegations of religious conversions.

• On May 16, the Chief Minister of Assam announced that 300 more madrassas (Muslim religious schools) will be closed, which may be in violation of the freedom of religion enshrined in India’s constitution.

• On May 20, the Central Government issued an ordinance to strip Delhi’s power to control bureaucracy. This violates a ruling from the Supreme Court given on May 11. The constitution bench determined that the legislature has authority over bureaucrats in the administration of services, except in areas that fall outside the legislative powers of the National Capital Territory (NCT). The three areas outside the control of the Delhi government are public order, police, and land.

• On May 23, the Academic Council (AC) of Delhi University approved several modifications to the syllabi, one of which involved the removal of a Muslim poet from the BA political science syllabus. This revisionism comes against a larger trend. In 2022, the National Council of Educational Research and Training (NCERT) of India conducted a textbook “rationalisation” exercise. In this, it reportedly deleted several passages and even entire chapters that concern controversial historical events, and education on democracy. For instance, the entire chapter “Key Elements of a Democratic Government” was omitted in one textbook. India also cut out periodic tables and evolutionary theories from textbooks last month. Both will not be taught anymore to under 16-year-olds.

• On May 25, Prime Minister Modi inaugurated the new Parliament building in Delhi amidst major criticism. Earlier this week, 20 opposition parties decided to boycott the inauguration of the new Parliament building, demanding that President Draupadi Murmu, rather than PM Modi, conduct the ceremony.

• On May 28, several prominent female wrestlers and supporters were violently detained by the police. This incident unfolded as a culmination of the ongoing protests against the president of the Wrestling Federation of India (WFI), Brij Bhushan Sharan Singh, whom they accuse of sexual harassment. It was reported that officers “forcefully dragged and detained” the protesters.

• An article published on May 29 shows that according to the All India Survey on Higher Education (AISHE) 2020-21 carried out by the Ministry of Education, while the enrolment rates of Scheduled Castes (SCs), Scheduled Tribes (STs), and Other Backward Classes (OBCs) in higher education witnessed improvements, there was a decline by 8% in the enrolment of the Muslim community. This is reported to be partially influenced by the COVID-19 pandemic, highlighting the economic challenges faced by the community, because many students are compelled to seek employment after completing school rather than pursuing higher education.

Judiciary

• On May 24, a Delhi court sentenced Kashmiri separatist leader and the chief of the banned Jammu & Kashmir Liberation Front (JKLF), Yasin Malik, to life imprisonment in a case related to terror funding. The National Investigative Agency (NIA) had previously sought the death penalty for Malik after he pleaded guilty to charges connected to terror funding, spreading terrorism, and engaging in secessionist activities in Kashmir back in 2017.

Media and Technology

• On the recommendation of the Ministry of Home Affairs, the Indian government has to blocked 14 mobile applications, including the secure messaging app Threema. Central intelligence agencies claimed they were being used by terrorists and their supporters in Jammu and Kashmir.

India in the World

• On April 4, the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC)’s General Secretariat expressed profound concern over the incidents of violence and destruction perpetrated against the Muslim community in multiple Indian states during the Ram Navami processions.

• On April 6, the Indian government condemned the recent vandalism of a Hindu temple in Canada‘s Ontario province with “anti-Hindu and anti-India graffiti” and has called for action against the perpetrators. Local authorities launched an investigation into the matter and described the vandalism as a “hate-motivated incident”.

• On April 12, a coalition of 10 NGOs published a joint statement on human rights concerns in the EU-India Free Trade Agreement, urging the EU and India to put strong commitments on TSD and all human rights at the core of their negotiations.

• On April 17, Russia announced they are negotiating a Free Trade Agreement (FTA) with India to strengthen economic ties between the two countries and expand trade relations. Despite Western attempts to impose sanctions on Moscow and exclude Russia from global supply chains, trade between Russia and India has increased significantly since the invasion.

• On April 23 to 24, President of the European Commission Ursula von der Leyen visited New Delhi where she met the President of India, Ram Nath Kovind, and PM Narendra Modi. On April 24, Von der Leyen and Modi announced the recently launched joint Trade and Technology Council and reaffirmed commitment to negotiations for an EU-India Free Trade Agreement, an Investment Protection Agreement, and an Agreement on Geographical Indications.

Communal Violence and Riots 

Human Rights Watch has said India’s ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) was using Hindu festivals “to rally voters, leading to an increase in violence”. Clashes and riots include:

• A recent communal clash on April 8 between Hindu and Muslim communities in Chhattisgarh left several people dead and injured. In response, a statewide shutdown was initiated by right-wing groups, including Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP) and Bajrang Dal. Residents from Biranpur village have reported that tensions had been developing since January. This was allegedly due to a meeting held by members of the Sahu community, which urged Hindus to cut connections with the Muslim community and prevent interfaith marriages.

• On April 9, communal violence broke out in Jamshedpur, Jharkhand, between members of Hindu and Muslim communities over the alleged desecration of a Hindu religious Ram Navami flag. As per the police, there was tension in the region since April 8 after a piece of meat was found wrapped in the flag. The incident led to the imposition of an internet shutdown and a prohibition of gathering more than four people in a public place. Muslim leaders have alleged that members of Hindu supremacist organizations and the Jharkhand police targeted Muslims and their properties during the outbreak.

• According to an officer, the Delhi Police denied permission to the Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP) and other Hindu supremacist organizations to carry out a “Hanuman Jayanti” (birthday of God Hanuman) procession in Jahangirpuri on April 6. During the processions last year, communal violence broke out that left nine people injured.

Human Rights Defenders and Civil Society

• On April 6, the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) recommended a Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) investigation into Oxfam India for alleged violations of the Foreign Contribution Regulation Act (FCRA), which led to a raid of Oxfam’s office in Delhi on April 19. The ministry alleged that Oxfam India continued to transfer foreign contributions to different entities in violation of the FCRA. Oxfam India is the second NGO to be recommended for a CBI inquiry for FCRA violations by the Home Ministry in a month, with the first being Aman Biradari, an NGO founded by human rights activist and Nobel Peace Prize nominee Harsh Mander.

• The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) has filed a case against environmental lawyer Ritwick Dutta and his non-profit organization, Legal Initiative for Forest and Environment (LIFE), for allegedly violating the Foreign Contribution (Regulation) Act (FCRA). The CBI has claimed that LIFE was receiving foreign funds from non-profits based in the US with the intention of “targeting and stalling” coal projects in India.

• On April 19, the Supreme Court of India overturned the Bombay High Court’s order acquitting former Delhi University professor G.N. Saibaba. In 2014, Saibaba was arrested for his alleged involvement in terrorism, which the initial acquittal order concluded was “bad in law and invalid”. Saibaba is wheelchair-bound and considered 90% disabled.

Hate Crimes against Minorities and Extrajudicial Killings

• On April 4, a delegation of Muslim leaders met with Union Home Minister Amit Shah to raise concerns about “violence committed against Indian Muslims” in the country, inter alia, during the Ram Navami processions. They requested Shah to “take stern action” against the culprits. Jamiat spokesperson Niaz Ahmad Farooqui said that Shah was “very positive” and that “he will take action on the matter”.

• On April 7, Adivasi people in the Bijapur district of Bastar, in the Indian state of Chhattisgarh, were targeted by an aerial bomb attack. The bomb attack was carried out using drones. Immediately following the bombing, the government forces deployed three helicopters to discharge heavy machine gun fire on villagers. The attack on 7 April 2023 is the 4th such aerial attack in the past three years. Adivasis are indigenous people, who live in areas of India where mining for precious minerals takes place. The attacks are part of the ongoing Operation SAMADHAN-Prahar, a military policy against indigenous people who resist mining and environmental destruction.

• An online video has emerged allegedly depicting a 12-year-old boy from a minority community in Indore, Madhya Pradesh, being forced to chant religious slogans after being stripped. As a result, Indore police have filed a First Information Report against three minors who are accused of the act. The incident took place on April 12.

• A group of men in Barmer, Rajasthan beat a Dalit man to death with sticks, reportedly due to an old dispute over a piece of land.

• A Hindu supremacist mob tied a 20-year-old Muslim man to an electric pole and beat him to death over allegations of theft in a village near Ranchi, Jharkhand. Three men were arrested and the police reportedly have filed two First Information Reports; one for the man’s murder and another for attempted theft.

• A leader of the BJP youth wing, Shubhankar Dwivedi, has been charged by the Raipur police for allegedly posting hateful content on his social media page regarding communal violence in Biranpur village. He allegedly posted a video of a burning house with the caption ‘Relaxing anger in the heart of Bemetara’. The situation in the village has been tense since leaders of the Hindu supremacist Hindu Samaj called for a social boycott of Muslims who engage in interfaith marriages.

• Rajasthan police have arrested two of the eight suspects in the murder case of Junaid and Nasir. On February 14, the two Muslim men were allegedly kidnapped and burnt alive in Haryana by members of the Hindu supremacist Bajrang Dal on the pretext of cow slaughter. A First Information Report has been registered against the accused.

• On April 12, four members of the Hindu supremacist group All India Hindu Mahasabha were arrested for filing a fake complaint against four Muslims for slaughtering a cow. Based on their complaint filed in Agra during Ram Navami festivities, a First Information Report was registered but the police investigation revealed the innocence of the four men. Rishi Trivedi, the state unit president of All India Hindu Mahasabha, claimed that implicating his group members is “[…] part of a conspiracy”.

• On April 15, two brothers, who are gangsters and former politicians, were shot dead on live TV while in police custody in the state of Uttar Pradesh. One of the three shooters shouted “Jai Shri Ram” (“Hail Lord Ram”) as he surrendered to police, a slogan that has become a war cry for Hindu supremacists. Uttar Pradesh has witnessed a disproportionate amount of extrajudicial killings since the ruling BJP came to power. Specialist international criminal lawyers have filed a formal submission for Magnitsky sanctions against the Chief Minister, Yogi Adityanath, for his alleged role in extrajudicial killings.

• On April 22, the Uttar Pradesh Police booked more than 1,700 Muslims for offering “namaz” on the roads outside mosques in Kanpur on the occasion of Eid Al Fitr.

• During an interview held by the president of the US think tank Peterson Institute for International Economics (PIIE) in the US, India’s Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman claimed that widespread violence against Muslims is not taking place in India.

Demolitions and Evictions

• Three churches in Manipur, India, have been demolished by the administration for alleged illegal construction on government land.

• A Muslim man consumed poison along with his two children after administration officials informed him that his house would be demolished because it was allegedly built on government land. The man and one of his children died. The executive has been bulldozing houses without due process over the year.

• On April 7, the Chief Minister of Uttarakhand, Pushkar Singh Dhami, announced in a video shared on Twitter that all illegal mazars (Islamic shrines) in the state will be demolished. “[…] No one should even think about encroaching on land here, let alone doing it […] We will not allow ‘land jihad’ because we trust in the law”, Dhami says in his speech.

• On April 9, a mob of about 15-20 men vandalized a mosque in Sonipat and attacked people offering prayers. At least nine people were injured and the police reportedly registered First Information Reports against 19 people.

• A school in Dehradun, India, was vandalized by protesters after Muslim students performed a play to celebrate Eid. Previously, parents and local organizations lodged a complaint with the Dehradun district administration, alleging that their children were forced to participate in Eid festivities and learn Urdu.

Executive

• On April 3, five alleged Maoists were killed in Jharkhand during a joint operation by the state police and the Central Reserve Police Force.

• In April, the National Council of Educational Research and Training (NCERT) began implementing a school textbook “rationalisation” exercise, in which it reportedly deleted several passages and entire chapters. For instance, the entire chapter “Key Elements of a Democratic Government” was omitted in one textbook. Additional changes include the removal of references to the 2002 Gujarat riots, as well as of key passages about Muslim rule during the Mughal empire. Critics argue that erasing Muslim contributions from Indian history is a dangerous move.

• The Congress party accused the Modi government of targeting Nobel Laureate Amartya Sen following an eviction notice from Visva Bharati University, which demands that he vacate 13 decimals of land on the campus that is allegedly “illegally occupied”. The eviction order is, however, not a demolition order.

• On April 24, the Tamil Nadu government put on hold the Factories Amendment Bill 2020 which was passed on April 21 after facing opposition from trade unions. The bill includes provisions for extending the daily working hours of factory workers from 8 to 12 hours in the event that they choose to work a four-day week.

• India’s Ministry of Environment has stopped providing public access to information on projects affecting the environment, citing confidentiality and sensitivity. This move comes after the Ministry decided last September to only disclose information when sought under the Right to Information (RTI) Act.

Judiciary

• On April 3, a court in Surat granted bail to Congress leader Rahul Gandhi and suspended his sentence until the outcome of his appeal seeking a stay on his conviction in a defamation case related to his 2019 Modi surname remark. Gandhi was granted bail with a surety of Rs 15,000, and his request for a suspension of conviction will be heard by the court on April 13. The same court, however, has declined to stay the conviction, and Gandhi remains suspended as an MP.

• On April 11, the Supreme Court dismissed the objections of the Tamil Nadu government and upheld a ruling by the Madras High Court permitting the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS), a Hindu supremacist organization associated with the BJP, to conduct route marches in the state. On March 3, the Tamil Nadu government told the Supreme Court that certain restrictions shall be imposed on the ability of the RSS to hold marches in the state due to violent outbreaks.

• On April 13, a court in India acquitted all 13 police officers accused in the 2007 gang-rape case of 11 tribal women in Andhra Pradesh.

• On April 20, all the 67 accused in the “Naroda Gam” case, including BJP leader Maya Kodnani and Bajrang Dal leader Babu Bajrangi, were acquitted by the Gujarat High Court. On February 28, 2002, 11 Muslims were burnt to death in Naroda Gam during the 2002 Gujarat riots.

• On April 21, the Supreme Court of India granted bail to eight men convicted in the 2002 Godhra train burning case in which 59 people were burnt to death by a mob. Four other convicts were denied bail in view of their involvement in the case and the evidence found against them. Civil society actors express concern about the increasing trend of acquitting many of the accused in the 2002 Gujarat riots cases.

• On April 23, controversial self-styled preacher Amritpal Singh was arrested in Punjab under the National Security Act (NSA) after having been on the run for over a month. On February 23, armed supporters of Amritpal Singh stormed a police station in Punjab. Singh supports the Khalistan movement seeking to create a separate Sikh homeland.

• The Rajasthan High Court has ordered a stay on the arrest of yoga guru and businessman Baba Ramdev in connection with a case of hurting religious sentiments. On February 2, Ramdev made controversial remarks during a public gathering in which he accused Muslims of “resorting to terror” and “abducting Hindu women”. He furthermore alleged that both Christianity and Islam had no intent other than converting people.

Media and Technology

• Twitter has been accused of censorship in India after blocking more than 120 accounts in recent weeks, including those of activists, journalists, and politicians. The move came after the Indian Government introduced an internet shutdown in Punjab during the search for Sikh separatist leader Amritpal Singh, after which the government allegedly sent notices to Twitter requesting the removal of certain people from its platform. Twitter’s action drew criticism from free speech advocates who accused the platform of giving in to government pressure and cracking down on dissent.

• On April 8, senior Congress leader Kapil Sibal criticized the Indian government’s recent amendments to the Information Technology rules, which allows the Ministry to appoint a fact-checking unit to determine whether online information related to the Central Government is accurate. All platforms are required to take down any news that has been flagged as “fake” by the Press Information Bureau’s appointed fact-checking unit. The unit has frequently faced criticism, and civil society expressed concerns about press freedom.

• The Indian government is reportedly in the process of procuring a new spyware system to replace the controversial Pegasus software and has allocated a budget of up to $120 million for the new contracts. The move comes in the wake of the Pegasus scandal, which had raised concerns about privacy violations and government surveillance.

India in the World

• On March 2, India’s External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar said that no joint communique was issued after the G20 Foreign ministers meeting in Delhi due to irreconcilable differences on the Russia-Ukraine conflict.

• The 2023 report released on March 3 by the Swedish Varieties of Democracy (V-Dem) Institute placed India among the “worst autocratizers” in the last 10 years.

• From March 1-4, the High Representative of the European Union for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy and Vice-President of the European Commission, Josep Borrell, visited New Delhi to attend the G20 Ministerial Meeting and the Raisina Forum. During his visit, Borrell had bilateral meetings with his counterparts from different countries to discuss regional and bilateral issues. Human rights organizations criticized his silence on human rights topics.

• On March 10, PM Modi expressed concern over several incidents of Hindu temple vandalism during a bilateral meeting with Australian PM Anthony Albanese. Modi reportedly did not bring up violence within the diaspora more generally. For example, in 2020, a member of the Indian diaspora was deported from Australia for a hate crime he committed against people of the Sikh faith.

• On March 17, Shiromani Gurdwara Parbhandak Committee chief Harjinder Singh Dhami raised the issue of human rights violations in India in front of different G20 delegates.

• On March 20, the US State Department released a report listing “significant human rights issues” occurring in India throughout 2022, including the targeting of religious minorities, dissenters, and journalists.

• On March 23, the Chair of the European Parliament’s Delegation for Relations with India, Morten Løkkegaard, welcomed Members from the Parliament of India for the 14th EU-India Inter-parliamentary Meeting (IPM). The agenda covered the G20 Presidency of India, trade, investment, green transition, and digital transformation.

• The 4th round of negotiations for the EU-India Free Trade Agreement took place. Insights from DG Trade and the chief negotiator Christophe Kiener suggest significant divergences across the board, including on labor, environmental, and human rights protections. These suggest that the concerns will not be able to conclude the agreement by the ambitious deadline before 2024.

• On March 29-30, the second Summit for Democracy was jointly hosted by the United States, Costa Rica, the Netherlands, the Republic of Korea, and the Republic of Zambia. During the Summit, a declaration was drafted that reaffirms the leaders’ “commitments or obligations to respect, protect, and fulfill human rights”. Whilst India endorsed it, they denoted a reservation or disassociation for Preambular Paragraph 3 (Rule of Law & Justice), Operative Paragraphs 4 (Military Accountability), and 14 (Business & Human Rights). Civil society organizations from India and their international allies urged the participating states to call on India to pledge to ensure constitutionally guaranteed democratic freedoms.

Human Rights Defenders and Civil Society

• On March 1, one of the leading public policy think tanks in India, the CPR, said it had been “intimated” by the Ministry of Home Affairs that its registration under the FCRA had been “suspended for a period of 180 days”. Following amendments to the Foreign Contribution (Regulation) Act (FCRA), there has been a decline of 40 percent in funding to NGOs in India between 2015 and 2018. The European Parliament called on the EU to “address the harmful effects of the Foreign Contribution Regulation Act (FCRA) on civil society organisations”.

• On March 20, the Ministry of Home Affairs recommended a Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) inquiry against Aman Biradari, an NGO founded by human rights activist and 2022 Nobel Peace Prize nominee Harsh Mander, for allegedly violating the Foreign Contribution (Regulation) Act (FCRA). Between 2018 and 2022, the registration of 1,827 associations was reportedly canceled due to violations of the FCRA.

• On March 20, Kashmiri Journalist Irfan Mehraj was arrested by the National Investigation Agency (NIA) under India’s counter-terror law, the Unlawful Activities Prevention Act (UAPA) for an alleged case of terror funding. Mehraj is the senior editor of twoCircles.net, a non-profit and digital news platform, and also the founding editor of Wande magazine.

• Khurram Parvez, who had already been in detention since November 2021 over terrorism allegations, was arrested for the second time on 22 March 2023 by India’s main counter-terrorism agency, the National Investigation Agency. He stands accused of funding terrorism under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act through his work with the Jammu and Kashmir Coalition of Civil Society (JKCCS). Ms. Mary Lawlor, Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights defenders, called on India to immediately end its crackdown on Kashmiri human rights defenders.

Hate crimes against minorities

During March, xenophobic violence and discrimination continued to erode Indian civil society, with news of discrimination, mob violence, Islamophobic assaults, and killings. As the list of incidents is extensive, with several documented incidents a day, this list is illustrative and not comprehensive. For a more comprehensive list, see the documentation by HindutvaWatch.

• In March, 50 hate speech rallies against the Muslim community reportedly took place over 4 months in the state of Maharashtra alone. At almost all of these events, party leaders from the local BJP MLA and MP were present, and speakers called for an economic boycott and attacks against Muslims.

• On March 3, the Hindu supremacist leader of the Antarashtriya Hindu Parishad (AHP), Pravin Togadia, engaged in anti-Muslim hate speech. Statements recorded on video include: “We will control the state power, and we will decide what the police and army will do. Then we will not have to fight”.

• On March 4, members of the Hindu supremacist groups Bajrang Dal and Vishva Hindu Parishad (VHP) targeted two churches in Kanpur accusing members of the Christian community of “forced religious conversions”. The police detained six people from the church, allegedly including minors. On March 5, another church in Kanpur was attacked by members of Bajrang Dal during prayers. The pastor and members of the church were taken into police custody but were later released.

• On March 7, Hindu supremacists beat a Muslim man to death in Chhapra.

• On March 7, members of Bajrang Dal and the cow vigilante group Gau Raksha Dal assaulted a Muslim man for allegedly transporting beef. On the same day, members of the Gau Raksha Dal assaulted another Muslim man over allegations of cow smuggling.

• On March 10, members of several Hindu supremacist organizations, including Bajrang Dal, protested in Jammu, claiming a murder of a woman to be a case of “love jihad”. Love Jihad is an Islamophobic conspiracy theory purporting that Muslim men target Hindu women for forced religious conversion.

• Hindu supremacist leader Radha Semwal Dhoni was invited to a Holi celebration organized by the far-right group Hindu Raksha Dal. She received a bouquet of flowers and was introduced as someone who has “demolished 370” Muslim shrines. It has been reported that Dhoni frequently indulges in hate crimes, such as demolishing shrines and harassing Christian NGO workers.

• On March 26, unidentifiable individuals entered a mosque in Anwa village, Maharashtra, and physically assaulted an Imam who had been leading a prayer. The attackers demanded that he chant ‘Jai Shri Ram’ (“Hail Hindu God Ram”), and beat him up upon his refusal.

• On March 29-30, communal violence broke out across several cities during processions for the Hindu holiday Ram Navami, leaving more than 20 people injured.

Executive

• An analysis of data submitted in the General Assembly revealed that 62.24% of those arrested in Assam’s crackdown on child marriages are Muslims. From February 3 on, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) government in Assam launched a massive crackdown on “child marriages”, leading to the arrest of about 2,500 people and the filing of 4,074 cases.

• After posters with remarks critical of PM Modi were found in India’s capital, the Delhi Police registered 44 First Information Reports and arrested four persons on March 22. The four persons worked for example as drivers or in the printing press. At least 2,000 posters were reportedly removed and about 2,000 more were seized by the police.

• On March 22, actor Chetan Kumar was arrested by Karnataka police for criticizing the Hindu supremacist ideology in a tweet, following a complaint by a Hindu supremacist. Last February, Kumar was already arrested for tweeting against a judge who was hearing pleas against banning Muslim girls from wearing hijabs in schools.

• On March 25, one of the convicts who was granted remission in the 2002 Bilkis Bano gangrape case, Shailesh Bhatt, was present at an event by a state government. Officials claimed to have no knowledge of who invited him.

Judiciary

• The Karnataka state legislative assembly on March 1 passed an amendment to its labor laws, thereby increasing the previous limit of nine-hour shifts to 12 for four consecutive days before taking three days off and allowing women to work at night. According to an official, Karnataka modified its labor legislation following “extensive inputs” from multinational firms Foxconn and Apple.

• On March 2, the Supreme Court of India appointed an expert committee to investigate allegations made against the Adani Group, a major Indian conglomerate. On January 24, Hindenburg research found that the Indian conglomerate Adani Group has engaged in serious market manipulation and accounting fraud over the last decades.

• On March 3, the Tamil Nadu government told the Supreme Court that certain restrictions shall be imposed on the ability of the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS), a Hindu nationalist organization associated with the BJP, to hold marches in the state. The speaker highlighted that there had been explosions in Coimbatore previously, and therefore, the state told the RSS to not march openly in such sensitive areas. On March 27, the Supreme Court reserved its verdict on the plea of the Tamil Nadu government challenging the Madras High Court order allowing the RSS to hold rallies in the state.

• Seven Hindu men accused of killing two Muslim men during the Delhi riots in 2020 have been granted bail by a Delhi court, citing a lack of serious evidence against them. As per the police investigation report, the prime accused were members of a WhatsApp Hindu supremacist group called “Kattar Hindut Ekta”, formed by rioters the night before the killings. The charge sheet stated that group members bragged about “killing Muslims” and offered weapons.

• In the Hathras gang rape and murder case, three of the four accused were acquitted. One was sentenced to life imprisonment. The victim was a 19-year-old Dalit woman who was gang-raped in September 2020 and later died of her injuries.

• On March 23, Rahul Gandhi, a member of India’s main opposition party, was convicted under India’s criminal defamation law for remarks made over PM Modi’s surname during an election campaign in 2019. The court sentenced him to 2 years in jail and imposed a fine of 15,000 Rs, leading to Gandhi’s disqualification from the Indian Parliament on March 24. Gandhi also recently criticized the Modi government during his speech at Cambridge University in London. During a press briefing on March 30, the German Foreign Ministry spokesperson took note of the case.

• On March 29, the Supreme Court of India stated that hate speech continues to occur due to the state’s inability to take effective action against it. The court made the remarks while hearing a plea by a Kerala journalist who sought contempt proceedings against Maharashtra Police for not acting to restrain hate speeches at rallies.

• The Rajasthan High Court has acquitted four Muslim men who were convicted and sentenced to death in 2019 in connection with the Jaipur bomb blast case. The Court stated that “apparent manipulations and fabrications have been done during the investigation”.

• New research shows that while India has a unique law that mandates companies to pay for reforestation if they are responsible for deforestation, the allocation of funds has been hindered by unused funds and the unsuitability of the land allocated. This has led to a lack of progress in meeting India’s reforestation and climate change goals.

Media and Technology

• The Indian government is reportedly planning to amend clause 17 in the new Data Protection Bill which would allow cross-border dataflow to all geographies by default but includes an official blacklist of countries where transfers would be restricted. Another expected change concerns excluding private entities from the provision of ‘deemed consent’ for processing personal data. Clause 8 of the original draft implies that if a user has willingly shared their data with an entity for a specific purpose, the entity may assume given consent for other related purposes.

• On 18 March, authorities in Punjab imposed an internet shutdown, leaving 30 million people without access. The shutdown was launched as an operation to search for Amritpal Singh, leader of the Khalistani separatist organization Waris Punjab De. Although the shutdown was lifted in most districts, restrictions were extended until March 23 in five. Sikhs abroad launched a protest in front of the European Parliament in Brussels on March 27 demanding condemnation of India’s ongoing mass targeting of Sikhs in Punjab.

India in the World

• On February 5, India, France, and the United Arab Emirates finalized their plan for a trilateral cooperation initiative in defense, energy, and technology.

• On February 6, the EU and India strengthened their relationship as strategic partners by setting up a new Trade and Technology Council (TTC).

• On February 6, the Managing Director of the European External Action Service (EEAS) publicly expressed concern about India. At an event organized by the Swedish Council Presidency, she said that when India abstained from the Russian vote at the UN, the EU saw it as a “signal of where we are failing in promoting democracy” and “of where we should possibly engage more.” India is a “democratic system which is under a lot of threat.” Days before this speech, the European Parliament called on the EEAS to make more public statements about the safety of journalists and human rights abroad.

• On February 21, Kyiv sought support from Delhi on a resolution to be presented at the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA).

• From February 25 to 26, German chancellor Olaf Scholz visited India. In their meeting, Scholz and Modi agreed on a vision statement to strengthen collaboration in the areas of innovation and technology and highlighted their strong economic ties.

• In February, a new report by internet rights group Access Now and the #KeepItOn coalition documented India as the world leader of Internet shutdowns for the fifth consecutive year. India imposed 84 internet shutdowns in 2022.

Business: Adani Group

• Opposition parties in India have held protests across the country in the context of new findings regarding the Adani conglomerate. Opposition parties in India have previously demanded a Joint Parliamentary Committee against the Adani Group and questioned the silence of the Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) on the matter. On 24 January, Hindenburg research found that the Indian conglomerate Adani Group has engaged in serious market manipulation and accounting fraud over the last decades. Previous research identified close ties to and favoritism by the Modi government. For instance, a protest outside the BJP headquarters in New Delhi alleged that the ruling BJP favors the Adani group.

Human Rights Defenders

• On February 2, the Kerala High Court granted bail to journalist Siddique Kappan, who was arrested while on his way to report on the gang rape of a Dalit girl in Uttar Pradesh in 2020. Although the Supreme Court had granted him bail on September 9, he remained in pre-trial detention on terrorism charges.

• On February 16, human rights defender Khurram Parvez was awarded the prestigious Martin Ennals Award in Geneva. Parvez was arrested in November 2021 and falsely charged with criminal conspiracy to wage war against India, and participation in and financing terrorist activities.

Hate crimes against minorities

• On February 3, the Maharashtra government informed that it would only allow a public meeting organized by the Sakal Hindu Samaj in Mumbai on the condition that “no hate speech will be made by the participants”. Sakal Hindu Samaj is an umbrella organization of Hindu nationalist groups opposing interfaith marriages and religious conversion. It reportedly engaged in anti-Muslim hate speech during a previous event held on January 29.

• On February 5, several Hindu supremacist groups held events at Delhi’s Jantar Mantar where speakers made offensive remarks about minority communities. In one video, a monk asks Hindus to stock weapons to kill Muslims and Christians.

• On February 12, a church in Madhya Pradesh’s Narmadapuram district was vandalized.

• On February 14, two Muslim men were allegedly kidnapped and burnt alive in Haryana by members of the Hindu supremacist Bajrang Dal on the pretext of cow slaughter. A first information report (FIR) has been registered against the accused. Members of the Hindu supremacist Vishwa Hindu Parishad and Bajrang Dal rallied in Haryana to support one of the accused, Monu Manesar, the leader of Bajrang Dal. Protesters gathered across Haryana and Rajasthan in support of the Muslim men and demanded justice.

• On February 14, Valentine’s Day, Hindu supremacists harassed and assaulted couples. In Gujarat, several Bajrang Dal members were detained for wielding sticks in a park to intimidate couples. In Uttar Pradesh, a Bajrang Dal group publicly humiliated a Muslim man and called him a “Rohingya Muslim”. At least 50 Bajrang Dal members harassed couples in Jamshedpur city. Members of the Hindu supremacist Shiv Sena (“Shiva’s army”) wielded oil-soaked sticks, shouting: “Wherever couples are found they will be given befitting treatment.” In the weeks leading up to Valentine’s Day, mobs associated with the Hindu supremacist Bajrang Dal stormed the apartments of people in interfaith relationships in Indore city.

• On February 15, Vishwa Hindu Parishad and Bajrang Dal members vandalized a mosque in Uttar Pradesh, claiming it was illegal.

• On February 16, members of the Hindu Janjagruti Samiti organized a protest in Panvel demanding India be declared a Hindu nation and the death penalty for “love jihad.”

• On February 19, Christians held a protest against the vandalization of churches in India and the ongoing violence carried out against Christians. The United Christian Forum, a human rights group based in Delhi, recorded 598 incidents of violence against Christians in 21 states in 2022.

• During the Hindu Janakroash Morcha rally on February 26, Hindu supremacist leader Raja Singh made open calls for violence against Muslims. He threatened that if the government does not pass laws on love jihad, religious conversions, and cow slaughter, then “Hindus will take law into their own hands and use swords”.

Judiciary 

• On February 3, the Supreme Court issued a notice to the Centre on petitions challenging the ban on the BBC documentary ‘India: The Modi Question’. The court will hold the first hearing in April.

• On February 6, Justice K M Joseph of the Supreme Court stated that “there is no room for hate crimes in a secular country” like India and reiterated the country’s constitutional duty to protect the freedom of individuals irrespective of caste and religion. This statement occurred in the context of a July 2021 incident, in which a Muslim man alleged that a gang that robbed him also mocked his religious identity. The Uttar Pradesh Police, however, did not label the incident as a hate crime against the man’s religious identity.

• On February 20, the Supreme Court imposed a fine of Rs. 10,000 on former police officer Sanjiv Bhatt for challenging the fast-tracking of a Gujarat High Court order in a drug planting case from 1996, which critics say punishes him for exercising his legal right. Bhatt had alleged that he was falsely implicated in the case and had sought a stay on the proceedings against him. Sanjiv Bhatt is a whistleblower who claims that Modi was complicit in the Gujarat riots in 2002. He was charged with several false charges, and sentenced to 30 years in prison in 2018.

Demolitions

• From February 4 on, authorities in Jammu and Kashmir demolished the homes and properties of residents without due process. The demolitions are based on a circular issued by the Jammu and Kashmir administration, which is under the control of the central government, to remove “all encroachments on state land”. Several residents alleged that they did not receive any prior notices nor any opportunity to provide proof of ownership. Amnesty International described the ongoing incidents as a “gross violation” of human rights.

• On February 16, authorities in Sonitpur district in the North-Eastern state Assam evicted over 2,500 families, predominantly Bengali-speaking Muslims, who allegedly live illegally on forest land. On February 27, the Guwahati Metropolitan Development Authority in the North-Eastern state Assam launched an eviction drive, reportedly to make Guwahati city “flood-free”. The evictions have caused mass displacement.

• These incidents follow a surge in demolitions that violate due process across India, colloquially called “bulldozer raj”. In June 2022, three United Nations Special Rapporteurs condemned the demolitions across India, which they allege deliberately target Muslims through “collective punishment”.

Executive 

• From February 3 on, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) government in Assam launched a massive crackdown on “child marriages”, leading to the arrest of about 2,500 people and the filing of 4,074 cases. Chief Minister Biswa has been accused of targeting religious minorities with this, especially as people accused of “child marriage” have been detained in “transit camps” meant for immigrants.

• On February 14, Indian tax authorities raided the BBC’s offices in New Delhi and Mumbai alleging that they detected “irregularities and discrepancies” in BBC’s taxes. The BBC defended its documentary and said it was complying with the tax investigation. The crackdown on BBC has raised new concerns about press freedom in India.

• On February 23, Pawan Khera, a senior member of India’s main opposition Congress party was arrested for allegedly insulting Prime Minister Narendra Modi. India’s Supreme Court ordered Khera to be released on interim bail. For context, 96% of sedition cases after 2014 have been filed against citizens criticizing the government and politicians.

Media and Technology

• According to a report published in February, a software linked to an Israeli company is allegedly being used to operate fake social media campaigns and spread disinformation online in several countries, including India. The “Team Jorge” unit has been linked to using “hacking, sabotage, and automated disinformation online”.

• On February 27, the News Broadcasting and Digital Standards Authority imposed a fine of Rs 50,000 against four shows hosted by news anchor Aman Chopra of the popular news channel News18 India for making objectionable statements about Muslims.

Tensions

• Since mid-February, Sikh activists are holding protests in a tent camp in Punjab demanding the release of Bandi Singhs. ‘Bandi Singhs’ is a term given to Sikh prisoners who were convicted and imprisoned for involvement in militancy in Punjab three decades ago. The issue became current after a signature campaign was launched by the Sikh Gurdwara Parbhandhak Committee (SGPC) in November 2022.

• On February 23, armed supporters of controversial self-styled preacher Amritpal Singh Amritpal Singh stormed a police station in Punjab. Singh supports the Khalistan movement seeking to create a separate Sikh homeland.

In focus: BBC Documentary Ban

• A new BBC documentary, “India: The Modi Question” examines responsibility for riots in Gujarat, India in 2002, in which at least 1044 people died, and reports partial responsibility of India’s current Prime Minister Modi. On January 19, India’s Ministry of External Affairs put out a statement that the BBC documentary is “propaganda” and “lacks objectivity”.

• On January 21, the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting reportedly invoked its emergency powers under the IT Rules 2021 to direct social media platforms to block links to the documentary. The Supreme Court will hear petitions challenging the centers’ ban on the documentary in February.

• Twitter complied with the direction from India’s government to block the documentary, sparking criticism among diaspora and digital rights NGOs. Indian diaspora members who tweeted about the documentary received notices from Twitter that the Indian government issued a legal removal request.

• On 24 January, a campus screening of the BBC documentary at the Jawaharlal Nehru University was disrupted by a power shutdown. One day later, at least 70 students were detained at Jamia Millia Islamia university ahead of a planned screening. While the police released a majority of the students on the same day, the remaining 13 detained students were only released after the Republic Day parade on 26 January.

• On January 29, Indian diaspora members in London protested against the Modi documentary and asked the BBC to cease broadcasting it.

India in the World

• On 5 January, the Regulator of the University Grants Commission presented a draft legislation to facilitate the entry and operation of foreign universities in India.

• On 10 January, the UK’s Foreign Affairs Committee held a formal oral evidence session exploring India’s evolving geopolitical role, the UK’s relationship with the country, and an in-depth examination of India’s human rights record with a special focus on Kashmir. The recording can be found here.

• On 13 January, External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar told his counterparts from the developing countries that “choosing peace, cooperation and multilateralism” is the course that the world must take.

• On January 17, Guernica 37 Chambers in London filed a criminal complaint under the principle of universal jurisdiction before the General Prosecutor in Switzerland against the Chief Minister of Uttar Pradesh, Yogi Adityanath, for crimes against humanity. Adityanath is reported to have ordered the false imprisonment, torture, and murder of civilians to suppress protests against adopting the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA) in India.

• On 18 January, the European Parliament adopted its annual report on human rights and democracy in the world. The 2022 report calls on the EU to adopt specific local strategies to combat caste-based discrimination. It affirmed the importance of protecting Dalit rights and called for stepping up consultations with communities and the adoption of a policy addressing intersectional discrimination. The European Parliament published its annual report on the Implementation of the Common Foreign and Security Policy, which calls to strengthen the EU’s strategic partnerships with India in a comprehensive way. The report also calls for human rights and democratic values to be adequately addressed in this partnership and expresses concern about India’s stance on the Russian war of aggression against Ukraine.

• On 25 January, Alviina Alametsä, the European Parliament’s Standing Rapporteur on India spoke at an event by think tank The London Story. She said: “The celebrations of Republic Day are overshadowed by urgent human rights violations.” And: “Defending human rights should be at the core of the EU-India partnership. When freedom of speech and democratic opposition are at risk within a country, their international partners must cooperate and hold each other accountable.”

• On 26 January, Egyptian President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi attended India’s Republic Day celebration as the chief guest. India and Egypt maintain a strategic partnership.

Business

• On 16 January, a report by the Special Advisory Council for Myanmar noted that companies from India support Myanmar’s military with raw materials, training, and machinery, and are thereby reportedly complicit in human rights violations. The Myanmar military is under EU sanctions.

• On 24 January, Hindenburg research found that the Indian conglomerate Adani Group has engaged in serious market manipulation and accounting fraud over the last decades. Previous research has identified close ties to and favoritism by the Modi government, and Adani has previously been the focus of 4 major government fraud investigations which have alleged money laundering, theft of taxpayer funds and corruption, totaling an estimated U.S. $17 billion. While most private investment companies have halted their investments in the Adani Group following the revelation, the government-owned Life Insurance Corporation of India continues to invest in Adani. In total, it has invested more than $4 billion into the group. Gautam Adani has refuted Hindenburg’s findings as an “attack on India”.

Human Rights Defenders

• Activist Hidme Markam was acquitted in four cases and granted bail in one after the police failed to prove charges. Markam works as forest rights and prisoners’ rights activist, was accused of involvement in Naxal activities and arrested nearly two years ago.

• On 9 January, the Supreme Court extended the house arrest of social activist Gautam Navlakha once more until February 17. On November 10, the Supreme Court allowed Navlakha to be placed under one-month house arrest due to his medical condition. He has been in custody since April 2020 on fabricated charges of supporting terrorism.

• On 27 January, Emmy-nominated US-based journalist Angad Singh was deported from India because his documentary India Burning allegedly presented a “very negative view of India’s secular credentials”.

Hate crimes against minorities

• In its most recent report, the Early Warning Project ranks India 8th highest-risk of concern for mass atrocities among 162 countries.

• On 2 January, approximately 50 people barged into a school in Chhattisgarh’s Narayanpur district and attacked the Sacred Heart Church that shares its premises with the school. The mob attacked a police team that was trying to stop them.

• On 7 January, over 100 retired lawmakers and civil servants sought legal action against BJP MP Pragya Thakur, who recently delivered a speech urging attendees of a conference to “keep weapons sharpened” so they can be used if Muslims attack. Thakur is the prime accused in the Malegaon terror attack in September 2008.

• On 9 January, a Dalit man was allegedly assaulted by a group of people for trying to enter a temple in Uttarkashi district. Four days later, five persons were arrested in connection with the incident. In its annual report on human rights, the European Parliament affirmed the importance of protecting Dalit rights.

• On 23 January, a video went viral of Hindu supremacists beating up a Christian man in Bihar, accusing him of encouraging religious conversion.

• On 28 January, the family of a 22-year-old Muslim claimed that he was beaten to death by Bajrang Dal members for allegedly transporting a cow in Haryana. The police claimed that the man died after a car collision, although videos show he was assaulted.

• On 29 January, at least 10,000 people participated in the Hindu Janakrosh Morcha (“Hindu public outrage rally”) in Mumbai. There, suspended BJP leader T Raja Singh publicly engaged in hate speech and provocative comments against the Muslim community. The police have issued a notice.

Judiciary 

• On 9 January, former senior Supreme Court judges warned that branches of the executive and other oversight bodies had been “turned into extended arms of the central government” and had been “ignoring the Constitution of India”.

• On 3 January, Justice Nagarathna delivered a separate judgment on the extent of free speech available to public functionaries, reiterating their duty to be more responsible and restrained in their speech. Nagarathna also touched on the aspect of hate speech and said that “[…] whatever its content may be, [hate speech] denies human beings the right to dignity”.

• On 5 January, the Supreme Court stopped the Uttarakhand High Court’s direction to evict people living in Haldwani, north of Delhi. On 20 December, the order declared 4,365 houses “illegal” and ordered their demolition. The Supreme Court stated that they cannot be uprooted overnight and rehabilitation schemes are necessary for those claiming legal rights in the land.

• On 9 January, the Supreme Court dismissed a plea challenging the implementation of the Uniform Civil Code in Uttarakhand and Gujarat. The plea contended the law violates constitutionally guaranteed religious freedom.

• On 13 January, the Supreme Court made a strong oral observation against TV anchors who engage in hate speech.

• On 16 January, the Supreme Court sought a response from the Union government on several pleas seeking the criminalization of marital rape, which is currently legal.

Media and Technology

• On 4 January, a tribunal declined Google’s request to block an antitrust ruling that had fined Google for exploiting its dominant position in markets. Google said that denying their request would hurt consumers and also the firm’s financial viability.

• On 17 January, the Union Information Technology Ministry introduced a draft amendment to the Information Technology Rules, 2021, which will make it mandatory for online platforms to take down any content deemed fake by the Press Information Bureau (PIB) or any other agency authorized by the government. The PIB has frequently faced criticism, and associations expressed concerns about press freedom.

India in the World

• On 1 December, India assumed the monthly rotating presidency of the UN Security Council (UNSC). Two signature events took place, an open debate on Reformed Multilateralism and a Counter-Terrorism meeting.

• On 1 December, India formally assumed the G20 presidency. External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar said New Delhi will seek to emerge as the “voice of the Global South”. PM Modi presented the theme of the G20: “One Earth, One Family, One Future”.

• From 4-6 December, German Foreign Minister Baerbock visited India. She and External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar discussed the Russian war against Ukraine, cross-border terrorism and they signed a mobility partnership pact, which will make it easier for people to study, do research, and work in each other’s countries.

• On 7 December, Member states of the UN Economic and Social Council voted to grant consultative status to the International Dalit Solidarity Network (IDSN). With 15 years, the International Dalit Solidarity Network (IDSN) held the record for the longest pending application in the history of the UN NGO Committee, as India had blocked its application.

• On 26 December, 185 Rohingya refugees were rescued in Aceh, Indonesia, after their boat drifted in the Andaman sea for a month. It was one of five Rohingya boats fleeing the overcrowded refugee camps of Cox’s Bazar in Bangladesh. Approximately 180 Rohingya refugees died. The UNHCR stated that previous calls for intervention were ignored by surrounding countries. Indian diaspora organizations published an open letter appealing to governments for their rescue.

Human Rights Defenders

• On 13 December, a US-based forensic firm found that digital evidence was planted on the computer of Human Rights Defender Father Stan Swamy. Swamy was then arrested, and died in custody in July 2021 while denied bail on medical grounds.

• On 13 December, the Supreme Court extended the house arrest of social activist Gautam Navlakha until the second week of January. On November 10, the Supreme Court allowed Navlakha to be placed under one-month house arrest due to his medical condition. He has been in custody since April 2020 on fabricated charges of supporting terrorism.

Academic freedom

• On December 8, author Farhat Khan received an arrest notice while in hospital and was charged with “insulting religious feelings” with her academic book Collective Violence and Criminal Justice System (2011). Members of the Hindu supremacist ABVP, the student wing of the RSS to which Narendra Modi belongs, had alleged that Khan’s book contains objectionable content against Hindus and Hindu supremacist organizations. Khan is suffering from kidney ailment and needs dialysis on a regular basis.

Hate crimes against minorities

• The government recorded over 2,900 cases of communal or religious rioting in the country between 2017 and 2021.

• Christians were attacked ahead of Christmas. On one day, there were 20 coordinated attacks in the state of Chharrisgarh alone, with 200 people forced from their homes. On 20 December, a Hindu supremacist mob in Gujarat state attacked a man who was distributing chocolates while dressed as Santa Claus.

• On 1 December, the Hindu extremist group Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP), affiliated with the ruling BJP through a common parent entity, released a list of 400 alleged ‘love jihad cases’. Love Jihad is an islamophobic conspiracy theory purporting that Muslim men target Hindu women for forced religious conversion, and the release of the names puts the couples at risk.

• On 4 December, BJP leaders such as minister KC Narayana Gowda and district president Umesh joined a Hindu supremacist mob in an attempt to barge into a mosque in Karnataka and claim it as a Hindu temple. None of the BJP leaders complicit in the violent mob has faced any consequences or condemnation from party leadership.

• On 6 December, police in Uttar Pradesh state, which is ruled by the BJP, allegedly harassed and assaulted Muslims to stop them from casting their votes in the current elections. A number of videos went viral showing Muslim residents reporting about the police allegedly taking away their voter ID cards, and verbally abusing and beating them.

• The Hindu extremist group Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP) has announced that swords, knives, and sticks will be distributed freely to BJP members in Uttar Pradesh. Such groups are increasingly offering violent training sessions across India.

• On 14 December, Hindu extremist leader Pravin Togadia stated that India will become a Hindu Nation in which Muslims will have no constitutional rights.

• On 15 December, a video surfaced showing a bus passenger who was brutally assaulted in Southern India by RSS members, an organization to which Narendra Modi belongs. The bus conductor accused him of misbehaving with a woman when he offered to hold her bag and handed him over to the RSS members.

Judiciary 

• On 5 December, the Supreme Court heard a plea seeking directions against ‘forced religious conversion’ and noted that forced religious conversion is a “very serious issue”.

• On 8 December, the Supreme Court dismissed a petition filed by the organization ‘Roots in Kashmir’ seeking a probe into killings of Kashmiri Pandits in Jammu and Kashmir during 1989-90 and subsequent years.

• On 14 December, the Supreme Court agreed to hear a petition by a gay couple seeking legal recognition of their marriage in India after their requests have been refused repeatedly.

• On 17 December, the Supreme Court dismissed Bilkis Bano’s plea seeking a review of its May 2022 order which affirmed the early release of 11 convicts who gang-raped her and murdered 14 persons during the 2002 anti-Muslim pogrom in Gujarat.

• On 20 December, an order passed by the Uttarakhand High Court declared 4,365 houses in Haldwani, north of Delhi, “illegal” and ordered their demolition. This would forcibly evict over 50 000 people. In January, the Supreme Court stayed the order.

Executive

• On 7 December, the Rajya Sabha was informed that the government canceled the Foreign Contribution Regulation Act, 2010 (FCRA) registration of 6,677 NGOs between 2017 and 2021 for alleged violations of the law. Under the FCRA, Amnesty International was previously forced to cease its operations in 2020, leading several countries to recommend India amend the FCRA at the UN Universal Periodic Review.

• On 25 December, BJP MP Pragya Thakur delivered a speech urging attendees of a conference to “keep weapons sharpened” so they can be used if Muslims attack. “Just like how knives cut vegetables, it will also chop mouths and heads,” she said. While her speech was widely condemned, she has faced no consequences from the BJP. Thakur is the prime accused in the Malegaon terror attack in September 2008, was arrested in October that year, and has been out on bail since April 2017 on medical grounds.

• The Election Commission of India concluded that Home Minister Amit Shah’s remark during the Gujarat Assembly election campaign did not violate the model code of conduct. During his November 25 speech, Shah claimed the BJP has “taught a lesson” to rioters since communal violence 20 years ago.

Media and Technology

• In December, the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology invited feedback from the public on the draft of the Digital Personal Data Protection Bill, 2022 published in November. However, more than 70 notable citizens wrote to MPs, such as former Supreme Court judge Justice A.P. Shah and social activist Medha Patkar, expressing concern over the undemocratic manner of this consultation.

India in the World

• On November 10, India’s human rights record was assessed during the Universal Periodic Review at the United Nations Human Rights Council (UNHRC). 130 UN member states issued their recommendations and urged India to increase their efforts to combat gender-based violence, religious discrimination, and religious hatred, and stop the broad application of anti-terrorism legislation.

• Prime Minister Narendra Modi did not attend COP27 in Sharm El Sheikh, Egypt. Instead, the Indian delegation at COP27 was led by Union Environment Minister Bhupender Yadav, who strongly supported the decision for a climate fund for poorer nations. India, however, is expanding its fossil fuel infrastructure and increasing imports of coal.

• On November 8, External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar indicated that New Delhi would continue purchasing Russian oil as it benefits India’s access “on the most advantageous terms” during the current natural resource crisis.

• On November 14, India abstained from the vote in the UN General Assembly for a resolution that called on holding Russia accountable for its invasion of Ukraine. India has also previously abstained from resolutions related to the Russia-Ukraine war.

• On November 15 and 16, Modi attended the G20 Summit held in Bali, which reaffirmed collaboration on food security, international financial resilience, energy security, and other topics. India’s Presidency of the G20 starts on December 1 and will be grounded in the theme “Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam” – Hindi for “one earth, one family, one future”.

Human Rights Defenders

• On November 10, the Supreme Court allowed jailed human rights activist Gautam Navlakha to be placed under one-month house arrest due to his medical condition. Although the Court indicated it would process his release within 48 hours, Navlakha was still in prison until the evening of the 14th. Navlakha has been in custody since April 2020 on fabricated charges of supporting terrorism.

• On November 18, the Bombay High Court granted bail to Dalit rights activist and scholar Anand Teltumbde. Teltumdbe was arrested in 2020 for his alleged connection to the Bhima Koregaon violence of 2018, and has been repeatedly denied bail.

• On November 22, UN experts and several NGOs, including The London Story, called for the immediate and unconditional release of Kashmiri human rights defender Khurram Parvez. The day marked the 1-year anniversary of Parvez’s arbitrary arrest on terrorism charges. His detention has been prolonged five times by the NIA Special Court under the Unlawful Activities Prevention Act (UAPA).

Judiciary

• On October 31, a court rejected the bail plea of journalist Siddique Kappan. Kappan was arrested in 2020 when traveling to report on the rape of a Dalit girl and is held in pre-trial detention on terrorism charges. Although the Supreme Court granted him bail on September 9 in the Unlawful Activities Prevention Act case, he remains in jail.

• On November 9, Justice D.Y. Chandrachud was sworn in as the 50th Chief Justice of India. He will have a tenure for two years. Chandrachud is seen as progressive; in the past, his judgments have touched upon crucial issues of fundamental rights, privacy, rights of women, and LGBTQ+.

• On November 30, Bilkis Bano approached the Supreme Court challenging the premature release of the 11 convicts who gang-raped her and murdered members of her family during the 2002 riots in Gujarat.

Hate crime against minorities 

• On November 3, Hindu supremacists assaulted and publicly humiliated two Dalits for allegedly selling beef in Chhattisgarh. They beat the two with a belt and paraded them half-naked, while bystanders filmed the attack.

• On November 29, several men attempted to lynch a Muslim man, Adam Khan, in Maharashtra. Police arrested five men after videos of the assault went viral on social media. Khan has been hospitalized with head injuries and a fractured leg.

Religious freedoms

• On November 14, the Supreme Court termed “forced religious conversion” a serious issue in need of action. However, anti-conversion laws have been criticized for being routinely used to target religious minorities and arrest them on false charges of forced conversion. Hard data is missing on those alleged conversion cases.

• A false report made by a Hindu supremacist on November 21 led to six Christians being charged for alleged forced conversions in Uttar Pradesh state. Several Christians have now sought action against misuse of the state’s recently enacted anti-conversion law to harass and persecute religious minorities.

• The upcoming Bollywood movie “The Kerala Story” has been condemned for circulating the false claim that over 30,000 Hindu women were converted to Islam and forced to join the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS). The wide circulation of the trailer resulted in outrage over the film’s mobilization of anti-Muslim propaganda. Several movies in recent months circulate propaganda against Muslims.

Places of worship

• On November 9, a Karnataka court ruled in favor of the Hindu supremacist group Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP) demanding to probe an 800-year-old mosque in Mangaluru city. The VHP falsely claims that remnants of a Hindu temple are located in the mosque. Although the management of the mosque had filed a plea to protect the place of worship, it had been rejected in court.

• On November 14, a Varanasi court indicated that it will rule on the validity of a petition that seeks a ban on entry of Muslims to the Gyanvapi Mosque. The petition was filed by Vishwa Vaidik Sanatan Sangh, who also seek permission to worship the “Shivling” (symbol of Hindu God Shiv) claimed to be inside.

State actors who advocate hatred

• On November 14, BJP politician Pratap Simha threatened that he would demolish a bus stand because it resembles a mosque. In response to the threat, the local government changed the appearance of the bus stop. This threat comes against a backdrop of BJP leaders calling for and inciting the destruction of Muslim properties, including places of worship.

• On November 20, supporters of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) welcomed Uttar Pradesh’s openly extremist Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath with bulldozers and the Hindu religious chant “Jai Shree Ram” as he arrived in Gujarat state for his election campaign.

Executive

• In the beginning of November, the Gujarat state Ministry of Home Affairs announced an anti-Muslim citizenship policy. The policy provides Hindu, Sikh, Parsi, Christian, and Jain communities from Pakistan, Afghanistan, and Bangladesh with citizenship certificates, but denies them to Muslims. Critics have called this out as a move to subject Muslims fleeing danger to further persecution and discrimination.

• Home Minister Amit Shah ordered intelligence officials to identify 100 refugees (“infiltrators”) in each state and deport them. Shah indicated that this should be continued even if the countries do not accept the refugees back. India has not signed the Refugee Convention and continues to deport Rohingya to Myanmar. Amit Shah has a consistently hostile approach to refugees, as is visible when he in 2019 referred to Rohingya as being “termites”.

Media and Technology

• On November 17, Meta appointed Sandhya Devanathan as the new upcoming head and vice president of Meta India. Meta also appointed Shivnath Thukral as its new director for public policy in India. Investigations reported that when Thukral was the India and South Asia public policy director at Facebook from 2017 to 2020, he ignored hate speech violations by BJP leaders and had close ties to the BJP.

• On November 22, the Adani Group, a conglomerate run by Asia’s richest man Gautam Adani, initiated the process of acquiring a majority stake within the popular media firm NDTV, intending to take it over fully. Experts stated that Adani moving closer to acquire the platform poses a serious threat to independent media because of his strong ties to the BJP government.

India in the World

• The UN appointed Indian Dalit Ashwini K.P as the UN Special Rapporteur for Racism, Racial Discrimination, Xenophobia, and Related Intolerance. Dalits in India face increasingly severe violence. Caste discrimination is formally recognized as discrimination around the world and is especially of concern among the Indian diaspora.

• The EU and India met for the second round of trade negotiations in Brussels. India was skeptical towards the EU’s proposed ‘trade and sustainable development’ chapter, which includes the possibility of resorting to commercial sanctions for non-compliance with core labour standards and with Paris Agreement commitments.

• During his official visit to India from 18-20 October, UN Secretary-General Guterres reminded India of the power of diversity and emphasized the importance of a strong domestic commitment to inclusivity and human rights.

• On 28-29 October, India hosted a UN Security Council’s Counter-Terrorism Committee (CTC) special meeting on countering the use of new technologies for terrorist purposes. The resulting ‘Delhi Declaration’ calls for respect for human rights while countering terrorism. Conversely, the UN has previously condemned India’s approach to counter-terrorism for violating human rights law, including the right to a fair trial.

Human Rights Defenders

• The Peace Research Institute Oslo shortlisted Indians Mohammed Zubair, Pratik Sinha, and Harsh Mander for the Nobel Peace Prize 2022. Zubair and Sinha are the co-founders of the fact-check site AltNews. Earlier this year, Zubair was arrested for one month as part of a crackdown on independent journalism, which MEPs publicly condemned. Mander launched a campaign to support victims of hate crimes, but the Indian government has raided his home and the orphanages he founded.

• On 10 October, Kashmiri political prisoner Altaf Shah passed away in custody. Shah, a Kashmiri leader, was convicted in 2018 for alleged terrorism. He was diagnosed with cancer but did not receive medical attention nor bail on health grounds. Human rights organizations are concerned about human rights in Kashmir, such as over 60 instances of crackdowns on journalists and human rights defenders since August 2019.

• On 15 October, Kashmiri photojournalist and Pulitzer prize winner Sanna Irshad Mattoo was arbitrarily banned from traveling to the US by immigration authorities at Delhi airport, despite having a valid visa and ticket. She was given no official reason. The government has imposed travel bans on at least 22 journalists, several of whom have faced raids, threats, and detention.

• On 15 October, the Supreme Court suspended the order which previously acquitted Human Rights Defender Prof. G.N. Saibaba. In 2014, Saibaba was arrested for his alleged involvement in terrorism, which the initial acquittal order concluded was “bad in law and invalid”. Saibaba is wheelchair-bound and considered 90% disabled. One of Saibaba’s co-accused, Father Stan Swamy, died in custody, which MEPs publicly condemned.

• On 18 October, the Delhi High Court again dismissed the bail application of student activist Umar Khalid. Despite a lack of evidence, Khalid has been in custody for over two years for his alleged conspiracy to incite violence in the February 2020 riots in New Delhi. Earlier this year, MEPs expressed deep concern and demanded Khalid’s immediate release.

Hate crime against minorities

• On 4 October, police officers tied nine Muslim men to a pole and publicly flogged them in Gujarat for allegedly throwing stones at a Hindu celebration. Videos of the incident went viral on social media platforms, showing that a civilian crowd cheered on the police.

• On 12 October, a Hindu extremist mob attacked Muslims offering prayers in a mosque near Delhi. Surendra Jain, the leader of the VHP, a Hindu supremacist group affiliated with the ruling BJP through a common parent entity, publicly congratulated the mob and said that the extremists “taught the Muslims a lesson”.

• On 25 October, a man shot and killed a Dalit man and his parents in Madya Pradesh for allegedly stalking the perpetrator’s wife.

• On 29 October, several men tied two minors to a vehicle and dragged them on a road in Madhya Pradesh after they allegedly stole from a local market. The boys, aged 13 and 17, have been treated in a hospital and police filed a case against the perpetrators.

• Hindu extremists of the Bajrang Dal group dragged a Muslim man to the police falsely claiming that he lured a Hindu woman into a hotel room.

State actors endorse hate

• On 19 October, BJP lawmaker Ranbir Gangwa and party leaders from Haryana state attended an online event of rape-and-murder convict and religious cult leader Ram Rahim Singh.

• On 23 October, BJP leader Radheshyam Mishra and others assaulted a Dalit man, blackened his face, and shaved his head after accusing him of theft. Two people have been arrested but Mishra remains on the run.

• India’s Home Minister Amit Shah confirmed the early release of 11 Hindu extremists. The men were previously convicted for gang-raping a Muslim woman and murdering 14 persons during the 2002 anti-Muslim pogrom in Gujarat.

Abuses by executive

• On 14 October, a tribunal recovered damages from people who allegedly caused destruction during riots in Khargone in April 2022. A new law authorizes the government to do so through quasi-judicial tribunals, which use principles of ‘natural justice’ and do not have the safeguards of a criminal trial. Among those on trial is a 12-year-old boy.

• On 26 October, police detained three activists who were opening a museum in the North Eastern state of Assam for their alleged association with terror outfits.

Judiciary

• On 21 October, the Supreme Court called anti-Muslim hate speech in India a “very serious issue” and directed the police to take action in hate speech cases, irrespective of religion of the speaker, and without waiting for a formal complaint to be registered. Hateful anti-minority rhetoric has become commonplace in India. NGOs draw attention to how stakeholders have failed to address hate content and hateful actors targeting religious minorities in India.

• On 27 October, the Supreme Court dismissed Amnesty International’s plea to unfreeze their bank accounts, which previously forced the organization to shut down their operations in the country.

• On 29 October, the Supreme Court issued notice to the central government regarding a petition to allow women under 35 to have a prenatal diagnostic test. Preventing this, the petition argues, is a restriction on the reproductive rights of women. The case is one of many on women’s rights in recent weeks, such as one on increasing access to abortion. Women’s rights remain dire in India, and the Global Gender Gap Report 2021 ranks India at 140 of 156 countries.

Surveillance and Technology

• On 28 October, the Indian government announced its new Information Technology Amendment Rules 2022, which effectively grants the government control over content moderation decisions of social media platforms. The amended rules provide for the creation of a government panel to hear complaints from social media users. Critics are concerned that this law may open the door to a censorship body, thereby incentivizing platforms to remove content that does not suit the government’s political agenda.

Harassment of journalists and HRDs

• Despite being granted bail by the Supreme Court, journalist Siddique Kappan remains in prison as a case by the government’s Enforcement Directorate against him is “still pending.” Kappan was arrested in 2020 when travelling to report on the rape of a Dalit girl and held in pre-trial detention on terrorism charges.

• Police in Gujarat are continuing the judicial harassment of HRD Teesta Setalvad by filing fresh charges against her. She had been arrested in June and accused of fabricating evidence in a petition to the Supreme Court seeking to investigate Prime Minister Modi’s role in the 2002 Gujarat riots. More than 2.200 writers, activists and other parts of civil society worldwide signed an open letter demanding her release, and MEPs and UN Special Rapporteurs came out in her support.

• Gujarat police arrested four people on September 26 before their march in solidarity with Bilkis Bano, a Muslim woman who was gang-raped and left for dead in a pogrom in 2002. Her convicted attackers had been granted remission in August. After public outcry, the police released one of the marchers, social activist Sandeep Pandey. The V-Dem institute’s data on peaceful assembly shows that India often arbitrarily denies citizens the right to assemble peacefully.

Foreign policy

• On August 24, India for the first time voted against Russia during a procedural vote at the UN Security Council. India had previously abstained in all votes because of its historical and contemporary ties. India has sharply increased its imports of oil, coal and fertiliser from Russia, while India rarely bought Russian oil before the Ukraine war.

• Indian negotiators reportedly visited Brussels for trade negotiations with the EU. Experts note that many of India’s priorities do not align with those of the EU.

Diaspora

• International media reported on Indian diaspora mobs in the UK mobilising to “defend the community” in patterns they describe as reminiscent of mob violence in India.

Judiciary

• After a delay of nearly three years, the Supreme Court announced it would begin hearing the over 200 petitions challenging the constitutional validity of the Citizenship (Amendment) Act (CAA) 2020. Protests against the act had erupted across the country, as its provisions add a religious criterion to citizenship.

• Indian Christian leaders filed a petition with the Supreme Court of India for protection of Christians citing 300 attacks in the first six months of 2022. The Supreme Court then in a welcome move directed eight states to investigate and verify these claims.

• After 10 days of hearing, the Supreme Court on Thursday reserved its judgment on petitions to lift a recent ban on hijab in schools in the state of Karnataka, which de facto prevents Muslims girls from attending school. The choice of clothing falls under the fundamental right to freedom of expression, which can under the Indian Constitution and international human rights law only be infringed upon on grounds of public order.

Violence against minorities

• On September 7, an upper-caste social science teacher assaulted his 10th grade student, a Dalit, for reportedly writing the wrong answers on a test. The boy died soon after. Despite constitutional protections against caste discrimination, discriminatory treatment and violence remains endemic.

• Following communal violence in Bihar state, police arrested dozens of Muslim men from a local mosque for allegedly inciting violence, including an 8-year-old boy. The family of the boy reported that police demanded money in exchange for his release. He was kept in custody for several days and finally granted bail. He sustained injuries.

• A new report by the Indian government’s National Crime Records Bureau shows that Muslims make up almost 30% of all detainees in Indian prisons in 2021, despite the minority group having a demographic percentage of only 14.2%. In Assam state, 61% of inmates on death row and 49% of those awaiting trial were Muslims.

• A former member of the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) disclosed that RSS members “carried out many bomb blasts across the country and with the help of biased police and one-sided media blamed them on Muslims. That helped them in 2014 Loksabha [Parliamentary] elections.” Senior members of the Indian government, including Prime Minister Narendra Modi, are members of the RSS.

• Hate speech and calls to violence against religious minorities continues. Yati Narsinghanand called for the Aligarh Muslim University to be “bombarded”, and for “students associated with these institutions should be lodged in detention centres.” He is a Hindu supremacist leader known for organising Dharam Sansads “religious congregations” where attendees pledged to exterminate Islam in December 2021.

• Mob violence against religious minorities continues. A Hindu extremist mob attacked a Muslim family travelling through Madhya Pradesh state and filmed the incident. Hindu extremists in Uttar Pradesh attacked a group of Muslim men for praying by the side of the road. Police did not take any action against them, saying only that praying by the road was “not allowed”, which is legally incorrect.

• Over the summer, xenophobic violence and discrimination continued to erode Indian civil society, with news of discrimination, mob violence, Islamophobic assaults, plunderings, killings, lynchings and illegal detentions.

• In June, India signed the “Joint Statement of G7 and Partner Countries (2022 Resilient Democracies Statement)”, committing itself to defend democracy and to enable open and pluralistic debates. Ironically, this statement was signed on the same day that the HRD Zubair was arrested (see below). India had already fallen eight ranks in the World Press Freedom Index this year and ranks 150 of 180 countries.

• In June, HRD Mohammed Zubair was arrested for a tweet dating back to 2018 which “insulted Hindu religious beliefs”. He is the co-founder of Alt News, an Indian non-profit fact checking website. Alt News monitors viral social media posts and news to expose manipulations, lies and misinformation used to promote right-wing and Islamophobic narratives, often exposing the government itself. By adding new charges to the original reason for arrest, authorities were able to keep Zubair detained until the Supreme Court finally granted his application for bail in July.

• In June, Indian civil rights activist and journalist Teesta Setalvad was arrested. She was accused of fabricating evidence in a petition to the Supreme Court seeking to investigate Prime Minister Modi’s role in the 2002 Gujarat riots. Amnesty India and Human Rights Watch called this is an attack on civil society and HRDs and demanded her release. More than 2.200 writers, activists and other parts of civil society worldwide signed an open letter demanding her release.

• Several BJP-led states in India are demolishing Muslim homes with bulldozers as reprisals for protests without due process. This is backed by BJP politicians, either directly stating that this is a reprisal for participants of the protests, or claiming these demolitions are carried out in efforts against illegal constructions.

• On July 15, the 10th EU-India Human Rights Dialogue took place. Both parties reiterated their commitment to protecting and promoting all human rights and exchanged views about  civil and political rights and their importance in civil society. Meanwhile, critical journalists are prosecuted or kept from travelling abroad and activists are detained under fabricated charges. The human rights organizations FORUM-ASIA, CIVICUS, Front Line Defenders, OMCT and FIDH expressed their disappointment at the failure of the EU to speak up about the continuous attacks on HRDs.

• Droupadi Murmu, a member of the right-wing Hindu supremacist BJP, is the first person from a tribal community to become President of India. This has been criticized as mere tokenism by the BJP to deflect from its policies such as the discriminatory citizenship laws and attempts at implementing draconian forest laws which endanger the livelihood of tribals. While many hope that she can move beyond symbolism and bring attention to the vulnerable position and economic, social and cultural injustices tribes face in Indian society, the role of the Indian President is mainly ceremonial and therefore restricts her potential for bringing about change.

• On the 15th of August, India celebrated 75 years of Independence. Their vision of India was multiethnic and secular, but many fear that this picture of India is increasingly being attacked and replaced by the ideologists of a Hindu nation, which leaves little space for minorities to live freely. Since Modi’s government took power in 2014, legislative, institutional and societal changes have put India on the path towards an autocratic Hindu supremacist state.

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