Geneva [Switzerland], October 11 (ANI): India on Saturday rejected the concerns expressed by the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) over the reported detentions of protesters in New Delhi, calling the remarks "misplaced" and an "unwarranted interference" in the country's internal affairs.
In a post shared on X, India at UN, Geneva, said the right to peaceful assembly was guaranteed by the Constitution and safeguarded by democratic institutions, an independent judiciary and a free media.
"We have seen the OHCHR’s remarks about today’s events in New Delhi. India is the world’s largest democracy, where the right to peaceful assembly is guaranteed by our Constitution and safeguarded by robust institutions, an independent judiciary and a free media," the post read.
According to the statement, the exercise of the right to peaceful assembly was subject to reasonable restrictions in the interest of public order.
"The authorities, for their part, act in accordance with the law, and our courts remain available to all for redressal of any grievances," it said.
Rejecting the UN Human Rights Office's concerns, India said the remarks amounted to interference in its internal affairs and urged the office to give comparable attention to large-scale protests elsewhere.
"The OHCHR’s concerns are therefore misplaced and constitute an unwarranted interference in the internal affairs of India," the statement said.
"In this context, OHCHR would also do well to devote comparable attention to large-scale protests elsewhere, consistent with its mandate of impartiality and non-selectivity," it added.
The response came after the UN Human Rights Office on Saturday expressed concern over reports of mass detentions of demonstrators, protest leaders, civil society members, lawyers and journalists in the national capital after the Cockroach Janta Party (CJP) gave a call for protest at Jantar Mantar against Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) Gyanesh Kumar.
UN Human Rights spokesperson Thameen Al-Kheetan called on the Indian authorities to respect the right to peaceful assembly, exercise restraint in handling protesters and ensure that restrictions on demonstrations met strict tests of necessity and proportionality.
"We are concerned by reports of mass detentions in India of demonstrators, protest leaders, members of civil society organisations, lawyers and journalists, before and during today’s large-scale demonstrations in Delhi," the statement read.
"We call on the authorities to ensure that the right to peaceful assembly is fully respected and fulfilled. Restrictions on peaceful protests must meet strict tests of necessity and proportionality," the statement added, while calling for the protection of the fundamental rights of the protesters.
The UN Human Rights Office also called for the immediate and unconditional release of all those it described as arbitrarily detained and urged the authorities to engage in meaningful dialogue with protesters to address their concerns.
"The Indian authorities should also ensure law enforcement forces exercise utmost restraint in response to peaceful protesters, consistent with the country’s democratic traditions and human rights obligations. All those arbitrarily detained must be immediately and unconditionally released," it further said.
"We also urge the authorities to engage in meaningful dialogue to address the broadly held concerns expressed," it added.
New Delhi witnessed a day of heightened security and detentions on Saturday, when protesters attempted to march towards Jantar Mantar for a CJP-led demonstration demanding the resignation of CEC Gyanesh Kumar over alleged irregularities in the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls.
Over 1,000 people were detained across the national capital, including Opposition leaders Arvind Kejriwal, Pinarayi Vijayan and Mamata Banerjee. CJP members Abhijeet Dipke, Ashutosh Ranka and Saurav Das were also detained from an aircraft.
Gates at 45 metro stations in the national capital remained closed. (ANI)
India rejects OHCHR remarks on detentions in Delhi, calls concerns "misplaced"
