What the Commissions Have in Common, and Where They All Stop
Chapter One Hundred Twelve
Syllabus topic 3, "Enforcement of Human Rights"
Pages 546 to 550 of 760
In one line
What the commissions have in common is a five part design: a statutory or constitutional base, an appointed membership, a function to inquire and to advise, the powers of a civil court while inquiring, and an annual report laid before a legislature; and where they all stop is that the outcome is a recommendation.
The nine bodies studied in this module
| Body | Base | Complaint jurisdiction | Civil court powers | Where it stops |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| National Human Rights Commission | Protection of Human Rights Act 1993, s.3 | s.12(a) | s.13 | s.18 recommends |
| State Human Rights Commissions | 1993 Act, s.21 | s.12 applied by s.21(1) | s.13 applied | recommends |
| National Commission for Minorities | 1992 Act, s.3 | s.9(1)(f) | s.9(4) | s.9(1) look into and recommend |
| National Commission for Women | 1990 Act, s.3 | s.10(1)(f) | s.10(4) | s.10 recommend and report |
| Commission for Scheduled Castes | Article 338 | art.338(5)(b) | art.338(8) | art.338(5)(e) recommend |
| Commission for Scheduled Tribes | Article 338A | art.338A(5)(b) | art.338A(8) | recommend |
| Commissions for child rights | 2005 Act, s.3 and s.17 | s.13(1)(j) | s.14 | s.15 recommends |
| Chief Commissioner for Persons with Disabilities | 2016 Act, s.74 | s.75(1)(b) | s.75(2) | s.75(3) recommends |
| National Council for Transgender Persons | 2019 Act, s.16 | none | none | s.17 advises |
Two bodies on the paper are not in that table, and it matters that they are not.
The HIV and AIDS Ombudsman under sections 23 to 30 of the 2017 Act passes an order, within thirty days, with reasons, after hearing both parties, and the civil authorities must assist in execution.
The Maintenance Tribunal under sections 5 to 11 of the 2007 Act passes an order for a monthly allowance, enforced as a fine is levied, with imprisonment behind it.
So the correct statement is not that Indian enforcement machinery always recommends. It is that every COMMISSION recommends and the two bodies that decide are not commissions. That distinction is what turns a repeated criticism into an argument.
The five features they share
A base that is statutory or constitutional, not administrative. Every one is created by an Act or by an article. That gives permanence and a defined mandate, and it means abolition needs a legislature.
An appointed membership, from a small pool, with a fixed term. Chairpersons are retired judges or retired officials; terms are three or five years; the appointing authority is the Government, sometimes on the advice of a committee. The pool is the point of the criticism: a body whose members are appointed by the Government it must criticise is structurally cautious.
A function to inquire and to advise. The verbs recur across all nine: inquire, look into, investigate, review, evaluate, study, recommend, advise, monitor. Not one of them is order, direct, enforce or award.
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