Congress Charges Centre of Norm Disregard in NHRC Selections
Congress leader Rahul Gandhi Image credit X.com @INCindia
NHRC Chairman & Members Selections without Consultations: Congress
By Raisina Correspondent
New Delhi, December 24: The Congress alleged on Tuesday that the selections for the posts of the chairperson and members of the National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) were done without consultations. The Congress on Tuesday released the dissent note signed by leaders of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha and the Rajya Sabha Rahul Gandhi and Mallikarjuna Kharge respectively.
In a joint dissent note, the Congress leaders said that the process for selection was flawed. The meeting for the selection was held in parliament on December 18. “It was a predetermined exercise that ignored the tradition of consultation and consensus,” stated the dissent note issued by the two Congress leaders.
Former Supreme Court judge V Ramasubramanian is the new chairperson of the NHRC. The post had been lying vacant since June this year after Justice Arun Kumar Mishra completed his term.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi chaired a high-powered committee meeting on December 18. Both Kharge and Gandhi are members of the high-powered committee along with Union ministers.
The Congress leaders alleged that the meeting was just a routine to approve a pre-decided list of names on the basis of the numerical strength of the ruling political alliance at the Centre. The Congress leaders had proposed the name of Justice Rohinton Fali Nariman for the post of the chairperson of the NHRC.
In the dissent note, the two Congress leaders argued that the NHRC is mandated to protect the rights of the marginalised and the oppressed sections of the society. The note stated that Nariman’s Parsi background and his illustrious judicial career would have brought prestige to the office of the NHRC. Besides, Nariman’s appointment would have asserted India’s pluralistic society.
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For the posts of the members, the Congress had proposed the names of Justice S. Muralidhar and Justice Akil Abdulhamid Qureshi. The NHRC office bearers are drawn from the retired Supreme Court judges.
Justice Ramasubramanian, who has been appointed the chairperson of the NHRC, is also a former judge of the Supreme Court. The Congress leaders also alleged that the high-powered committee through numerical strength also neglected the principle of maintaining regional and religious balance.
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