000-tobecategorised

In Human Interest https://forceindia.net/guest-column/in-human-interest-feb-2023/
Democracy is threatened when refugees are targeted by right wing political agenda
Nandita Haksar

The government of India has stopped giving residential permits to even those refugees recognised by the UNHCR, a majority of these refugees do not have residential permits or long-term visas. As a result, they cannot apply for Aadhaar cards, which means they cannot open a bank account. Many of those who received financial support from friends abroad now cannot receive any money. They cannot get their children admitted to schools or get work. ..

The stand of the government of India is that there are no refugees in India, only illegal migrants. The fear psychosis has been fuelled by the media, which says that India is being infiltrated by foreigners and that the refugees are a security threat to the country. Some Security Council resolutions on terrorism make express reference to refugees and talk about the need for states to ensure the asylum process does not accommodate terrorists...

In India the issue of migrants has taken centre stage with the controversies surrounding the National Register for Citizens and amendments to the Citizenship Act in 2019. In those controversies the issue of refugee protection got lost in the debates around illegal migration. It is also true that this legal distinction between the refugee and the migrant is not always clear. But that is not an argument to abolish the category of refugees, rather there is a need to rethink these definitions.

The National Human Rights Commission is at present engaged in drafting a law to protect refugees in India and Shashi Tharoor has introduced a private members bill in Parliament on the subject. It is essential that the refugee protection law passed in India protects all refugees irrespective of their religion or community.

When refugees become targets of right-wing political agenda there is a danger to democracy and democratic values. Refugee protection is rooted in the idea of human solidarity and it is central to human civilisation.

https://youtu.be/sRYfhx3-b1E?t=126  , Arun Shourie, who is also a former editor of the Indian Express and a highly regarded and prolific author, says that the recent comments made by the Law Minister, about judges and the Supreme Court collegium, and by the Vice President, about the primacy and supremacy of parliament over the constitution, do not simply reflect the difference of opinion over how judges are chosen but constitute “a concerted attack on the judiciary” which is “deliberate and well-thought through”. Mr. Shourie says this is not just an attack on judges but an attempt “to denigrate” the Supreme Court, a fundamental and critical part of our constitution. He says the aim is to lower the image and standing of the Supreme Court in the eyes of the Indian people.

https://youtu.be/sRYfhx3-b1E?t=404 Judges v/s elected officials. Judges dont get swayed by public opinion and the constitution makes them unelected..  Executive trying to dismiss and undervalue judges as being unelected!

Fellowship' of social workers, lawyers helps poor undertrials navigate legal maze, get bail https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/mumbai/fellowship-of-social-workers-lawyers-helps-poor-undertrials-navigate-legal-maze-get-bail/articleshow/97851565.cms
MOHUA DAS / TNN / Updated: Feb 13, 2023 

The legal fellows helped file legal aid applications at the earliest, assisted panel advocates during court hearings, and coordinated with prison, legal and civic authorities for bail compliance and release following a favourable order.  "It's surprising that we created institutions like National Legal Services Authority (NALSA), District Legal Services Authority (DLSA) and Legal Aid Clinics but they're unable to cater to these needs. It's a problem of governance," said Supreme Court judge PS Narasimha at the launch of a report last month of 9,570 undertrials across eight state prisons that the initiative had reached out to between 2018 to 2021.

The report revealed that only 7.91% of the undertrials had utilised the legal aid services they were entitled to between 2016 and 2019 while 20% seeking help were females. "That's high given that women comprise 4% of the prison population. This shows they're more vulnerable and in need of social support," said Raghavan adding that 15% of undertrials were below 20 years age and "should be taken out of the system before their criminalisation takes place" while 22% had no source of income which he felt was telling of "the level of marginalisation of undertrials."