A/HRC/57/60
corruption and impunity in the country and expressing concern about the cases included in
the report. The Government provided a number of factual corrections regarding ongoing legal
proceedings concerning the cases described above that were incorporated in the report.
14.
India
107. The situation of the staff and associates of the Jammu and Kashmir Coalition of
Civil Society (JKCCS), a union of various non-profit organizations based in Srinagar, has
been included since 2017 in the reports111 of the Secretary-General on allegations of travel
bans, ill treatment, and arbitrary detention as a result of counter-terrorism charges in relation
with their cooperation with United Nations entities and mechanisms.
108. The case of Mr. Khurram Parvez, Chair of the JKCCS, and his last arrest in
November 2021 on terrorism charges has been addressed on several occasions by mandate
holders, 112 to which the Government has responded. 113 The case of Mr. Irfan Mehraj,
JKCCS associate and journalist, was included in the 2023 report of the Secretary-General on
allegations of arbitrary arrest in March 2023 in the same case as Mr. Parvez, under the
Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act, 1967.
109. On 28 March 2023, the Working Group on Arbitrary Detention deemed Mr. Parvez’s
detention in 2021 arbitrary and called for his release (A/HRC/WGAD/23/8). In June 2023, a
group of mandate holders addressed once more the situation of Mr. Parvez and Mr. Mehraj
and expressed concern at the reported judicial harassment against them, noting that, in their
view, the legal situation of Mr. Parvez and Mr. Mehraj would appear to gravely conflate their
legitimate human rights work with terrorism (IND 4/2023).
110. Reportedly, the judicial detention of Mr. Parvez and Mr. Mehraj has been extended
during the period to allow more time for the National Investigation Unit to complete the
investigation. In September 2023, the National Investigation Agency reportedly filed a
chargesheet claiming that the concerned NGOs and individuals had been collecting funds
domestically and from various foreign countries and directing them to sustain and promote
terrorist and secessionist activities. At the time of writing, they remain detained at the Rohini
Jail Complex and, if convicted, could face up to 14 years of imprisonment or even the death
penalty.
111. The situation of Mr. Henri Tiphagne, Executive Director of the Centre for
Promotion of Social Concerns (CPSC, also known as People’s Watch), has been included
in the reports of the Secretary-General114 since 2020 and, prior to that, in 2018. Reportedly,
the postponement and non-renewal of CPSC’s license under the Foreign Contribution
(Regulation) Act of 2010 (FCRA) was a reprisal for the organization’s human rights work,
including its continuous cooperation with the United Nations in the field of human rights
over the years.115 According to information received by OHCHR, in relation to CPSC license
renewal under the FCRA, in June and July 2023 the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI)
requested the CPSC to provide details about the rent paid for various office buildings.
Reportedly, the CBI also enquired about the vehicles the CPSC owned between 2006 and
2013 and requested photographs of the speedometers and logbooks as well as clarification
regarding their rental agreement. At the time of writing, the renewal of CPS’s licence was
still pending in the Delhi High Court.
111
112
113
114
115
54
A/HRC/36/31, Annex I paras. 39–42; A/HRC/42/30, Annex II, para. 59; A/HRC/48/28, Annex II
paras. 62–64; A/HRC/51/47, Annex II paras. 82–83; A/HRC/54/61, Annex II, paras. 76–77.
IND 7/2016; IND 9/2016; IND 2/2020; IND 19/2021.
See government replies at:
https://spcommreports.ohchr.org/TMResultsBase/DownLoadFile?gId=35607;
https://spcommreports.ohchr.org/TMResultsBase/DownLoadFile?gId=35606;
https://spcommreports.ohchr.org/TMResultsBase/DownLoadFile?gId=2113;
https://spcommreports.ohchr.org/TMResultsBase/DownLoadFile?gId=36734.
A/HRC/39/41, para. 50, and Annex I, paras. 61–62; A/HRC/42/30, para. 58 and Annex II, para. 58;
A/HRC/48/28, Annex II para. 65; A/HRC/51/47, Annex II paras. 84–85.
IND 14/2018; OTH 27/2017.
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