UN rights office seeks release of Delhi protest detainees; India calls concerns misplaced

The Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) on Saturday expressed concern over reports of mass detentions in Delhi during protests against Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar, and urged the release of those held arbitrarily. The Union government rejected the statement, describing it as an attempt at "unwarranted interference in the internal affairs of India".

In a statement issued from Geneva, where the UN body is based, OHCHR spokesperson Thameen Al-Kheetan said the office was concerned by reports of mass detentions of demonstrators, protest leaders, members of civil society organisations, lawyers and journalists "before and during today's large-scale demonstrations in Delhi".

The spokesperson said any restrictions on peaceful protest must meet the test of "necessity and proportionality" — an apparent reference to the heavy security deployment in central Delhi, the suspension of internet services, and the cancellation of trains to the city.

The UN office also urged the Indian authorities to ensure that law enforcement personnel "exercise utmost restraint in response to peaceful protesters, consistent with the country's democratic traditions and human rights obligations". It called on the government to "engage in meaningful dialogue to address the broadly held concerns expressed".

The government's response came a few hours later. India's Permanent Mission in Geneva said the country is the "world's largest democracy" and cited the Constitution and the country's "robust institutions" to argue that the right to assembly is protected.

"As in every democracy, Indian citizens exercise this right subject to reasonable restrictions in the interest of public order. The authorities, for their part, act in accordance with the law, and our courts remain available to all for redressal of any grievances," the Mission said. It added that the OHCHR's concerns were "misplaced and constitute an unwarranted interference in the internal affairs of India".

The right to assemble peacefully and without arms is guaranteed under Article 19(1)(b) of the Constitution. Article 19(3) allows the State to impose reasonable restrictions on that right in the interests of the sovereignty and integrity of India or public order. India is also a party to the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, whose Article 21 protects peaceful assembly.

Measures reported during the protests included the suspension of mobile internet services, permitted under the Temporary Suspension of Telecom Services (Public Emergency or Public Safety) Rules, 2017, barricades across central parts of the Capital, and the cancellation of trains into Delhi.

Official figures for the number of people detained were not immediately available, and the government did not provide a count in its response. The OHCHR statement did not cite specific numbers either.

The OHCHR regularly publishes reports on human rights and its experts comment frequently on developments in member states. Direct calls to a government to release detainees and enter into dialogue are less common, which is why Saturday's statement drew attention.

India has in the past rejected comments by UN human rights bodies on domestic developments, maintaining that such remarks amount to interference in its internal affairs. Successive governments have pointed to constitutional remedies, including the writ jurisdiction of the High Courts and the Supreme Court, as the appropriate route for any grievance.

Under international practice, peaceful assembly is understood to cover gatherings that are not violent, and restrictions on such gatherings are expected to be lawful, necessary and proportionate to a specific and legitimate aim. The balance between the right to protest and the duty to maintain public order is ordinarily decided by domestic courts, which have, in several judgments, held that restrictions cannot be imposed merely because a protest is inconvenient or unpopular.

The exchange between Geneva and New Delhi is the latest instance of international scrutiny of an Indian domestic development, and both sides have so far held to their stated positions.