Context
- Former Supreme Court judge V. Ramasubramanian has recently been appointed as the new Chairperson of the National Human Rights Commission (NHRC).
More on News
- Opposition leaders in the Rajya Sabha expressed their disagreement, arguing that the process followed was “fundamentally flawed” and a “pre-determined” exercise claiming it relied on numerical majority to finalize the names, thereby disregarding the established tradition of mutual consultation and consensus.
About NHRC
- The National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) of India was established on 12 October, 1993 as a statutory body.
- It is in conformity with the Paris Principles, adopted at the first international workshop on national institutions for the promotion and protection of human rights held in Paris in October 1991.
- Section 2(1)(d) of the PHRA defines Human Rights as the rights relating to life, liberty, equality and dignity of the individual guaranteed by the Constitution or embodied in the International Covenants and enforceable by courts in India.
NHRC Composition
- The Commission consists of a chairperson, five full-time Members and seven deemed Members.
- A Chairperson who has been a Chief Justice of the Supreme Court;
- One Member who is or has been a Judge of the Supreme Court;
- One Member who is or has been the Chief Justice of a High Court;
- Two Members to be appointed from amongst persons having knowledge of, or practical experience in matters relating to Human Rights.
- The Chairperson of the National Commission for Minorities, National Commission for the Scheduled Castes, National Commission for the Scheduled Tribes and National Commission for Women are deemed Members of the Commission.
- There is a Secretary General who is the Chief Executive Officer of the Commission and exercises such powers and discharges such functions, as rights commissions all over the world.
Appointment and Selection committee members
- The President appoints the chairperson and members based on the recommendations of a six-member committee.
- The committee includes the Prime Minister as its head, the Speaker of the Lok Sabha, the Deputy Chairman of the Rajya Sabha, the Leaders of the Opposition in both Houses of Parliament, and the Union Home Minister.
Tenure
- The Chairperson and members of the NHRC serve for a term of three years or until they reach the age of seventy, whichever comes first. Both the Chairperson and members are eligible for reappointment.