Human rights in India

Human rights in India is an issue complicated by the country's large size & population, widespread poverty, lack of proper education & its diverse culture, even though being the world's largest sovereign, secular, democratic republic. The Constitution of India provides for Fundamental rights, which include freedom of religion. Clauses also provide for freedom of speech, as well as separation of executive and judiciary and freedom of movement within the country and abroad. The country also has an independent judiciary and well as bodies to look into issues of human rights.

The 2016 report of Human Rights Watch accepts the above-mentioned faculties but goes to state that India has "serious human rights concerns. Civil society groups face harassment and government critics face intimidation and lawsuits. Free speech has come under attack both from the state and by interest groups. Muslim and Christian minorities accuse authorities of not doing enough to protect their rights.But in the recent years , more emphasis is given to minority rights & freedom of speech.The government is yet to repeal laws that grant public officials and security forces immunity from prosecution for abuses."

The Asian Centre for Human Rights estimated that from 2002 to 2008, over four people per day died while in police custody, with "hundreds" of those deaths being due to police use of torture. According to a report written by the Institute of Correctional Administration in Punjab, up to 50% of police officers in the country have used physical or mental abuse on prisoners. Instances of torture, such as through a lack of sanitation, space, or water have been documented in West Bengal as well.

India is home to the largest number of sexually abused children in the world. About 53% of children have been subjected to some form of sexual abuse. In 2012, India introduced the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences Act (POCSO) to deal with cases of child sexual abuse. However, it took two years to record the first cases under the law and there are huge gaps in its implementation with the conviction rate under the act being only 2.4%. It is argued that the prevalence is driven by reluctance to expose relatives, who are often the abusers. As a result, more than 50% of adults who were abused surveyed wanted the matter to stay within the family and only 17% wanted harsh punishments for offenders.

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