March 2024: Discriminatory Citizenship Amendment Act in force, elections announced, visas cancelled, HRD acquitted but other HRDs convicted

In this newsletter, we compile news updates from India from March 2024. The list is not exhaustive, but a selection of pertinent incidents – both hopeful and worrisome. Did you miss previous updates? You can see the archives here. 

Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA) 

• On March 11, the Indian government passed the rules to implement the controversial and discriminatory Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA). The CAA 2019 permits the granting of citizenship to Hindu, Sikh, Buddhist, Jain, Parsi and Christian “illegal immigrants” from Pakistan, Afghanistan and Bangladesh who entered India on or before December 31, 2014, but specifically excludes Muslims. India does not a have a refugee policy or law. Civil society actors have highlighted that the CAA violates Article 14 of India’s Constitution by denying equality and equal protection before the law. In addition, the CAA is very likely violating Articles 26 and 27 of the ICCPR, which guarantee equality and freedom of religion. Immediately after the announcement, Chief ministers of the governments of West Bengal, Tamil Nadu, Kerala released statements expressing their condemnation of the CAA. 
• On March 10, Assam’s Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma reportedly said that political parties may face deregistration if they organised anti-CAA protests. He added that such protests would be considered a violation of a Gauhati High Court order dated March 19, 2023, which said that protests are “illegal and unconstitutional”. This raises serious concerns regarding freedom of speech and freedom of assembly (Article 19 and 21 ICCPR). 
• On March 11, politicians, activists and students protested against the implementation of the CAA in the state of Assam. Congress workers, led by the opposition leader in Assam, burnt copies of the new law in protest, while The Asom Jatiyatabadi Yuba Chatra Parishad (AJYCP), a student-led political party in the state, torched effigies of Prime Minister Narendra Modi. The Assam Police issued notices to opposition parties, asking them to withdraw the hartal over the implementation of the CAA, and warned of "legal action”. Similar student-led protests also took place in the states of Meghalaya and Tripura. 
• On March 11, the police detained 55 student protesters from Delhi University as they were marching against the implementation of the CAA. The police claimed that the detentions were a preventative measure, but the police’s actions still raise serious concerns regarding the possible violation of Article 9 of the ICCPR, which prohibits arbitrary detention. Students in other regions including Assam also organised anti-CAA protests. 
• On March 12, the United Nations and the United States expressed worries about the discriminatory provisions of the new CAA. A spokesperson of the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights said that the office was worried that the Citizenship Amendment Act “is fundamentally discriminatory in nature and in breach of India's international human rights obligations”. The US State Department also said it was concerned about the notification of rules and is monitoring the act’s implementation. The Act has a strong likelihood of violating Articles 26 and 27 of the ICCPR, which guarantee equality and freedom of religion.  
• On March 13, the Uttar Pradesh police arrested two student activists affiliated with the All India Students’ Association (AISA) for organising a protest against the CAA. On March 15, the police arrested two more students in front of the Additional District Magistrate (ADM) office in Prayagraj, where they had gone to provide legal assistance to the jailed activists. According to AISA leaders, one of the two students arrested on March 15 had not even participated in the protests, and police reportedly arrested him because of his participation in previous protests. All four have since been sent to Naini Jail, raising serious concerns about the right to peaceful assembly and expression, the protection from arbitrary arrest and detention, and the right to a fair trial (Articles 9, 19, 21, ICCPR). 
• On March 14, Amnesty International called the operationalization of the CAA a “blow” to the Indian constitutional values of equality and religious non-discrimination. Amnesty also called out the CAA for violating India’s international human rights obligations referring to the ICCPR and the ICESCR. The CAA strongly contradicts equality and the freedom of religion (Articles 26 and 27 ICCPR) and the right of cultural participation (Article 15 ICESCR). 
• On March 15, police in Uttar Pradesh allegedly kept Sumaiyah Rana – the national spokesperson of the Samajwadi party and vice president of the women’s wing of the party – along with her younger sister Uroosa Rana under house arrest from morning to evening for leading protests in 2020 opposing the Citizenship Amendment Act. On March 21, Rana was kept under house arrest again on what she believes to be attempts to prevent her participation in an expected protest. These house arrests likely violate the right to peaceful assembly, the freedom of speech and the protection from arbitrary arrests (Articles 19, 21, 9 ICCPR). 
• On March 19, Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M K Stalin called the CAA “divisive” and declared that it will not be implemented in the state. He deplored the act for reportedly going against the Indian Constitution. 

India in the world 

• On March 7, several United Nations Special Rapporteurs sounded the alarm over reports of attacks on minorities, media and civil society in India and called for urgent action in the runup to the country’s elections. The joint statement asked the Indian government to prohibit advocacy of religious hatred, including incitement to discrimination, hostility or violence, and protect the religious freedom of minorities by repealing anti-conversion and anti-blasphemy laws. UN human rights experts criticised the Indian Government for its low response to UN communications on the issue. Out of the 78 communications sent by UN human rights experts over the past five years, the Indian government only gave 18 replies that could be made public. 
• On March 7, the Sweden-based Varieties of Democracy Institute (V-Dem) in its new report called India one of the “worst autocratisers” in the world in recent years. According to the report, India remained an “electoral autocracy” at the end of 2023 after first being categorised as one in 2018. V-Dem highlighted the Indian government’s continued suppression of religious freedoms, and intimidation of political opposition and dissent as key aspects behind their assessment. 
• On March 13, civil society group CIVICUS published their 2024 State of Civil Society Report, where it denounced Modi’s BJP government of supressing civil society while India held the 2023 Annual G20 summit, restricting environmental activism and failing to tackle LGBTQ+ domestic issues. This raises concerns about the freedom of speech (Article 19 ICCPR). 

• On March 21, Al Jazeera reported that the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) allegedly approached the Observer Research Foundation (ORF), a major Indian think tank, to develop a homegrown democracy ratings index. Inside sources have confirmed that the index will be published before India’s elections. This announcement came after numerous prominent think tanks such as Freedom House, the V-Dem Institute, and the Economist Intelligence Unit downgraded India in their democracy indexes.  
• On March 21, Member of the European Parliament Bert-Jan Ruissen submitted a written question to the European External Action Service, asking for updates on what it has done to urge the Government of India to stop violence in Manipur. The question comes after the European Parliament passed a resolution in July 2023 on the situation in Manipur, which urged the Indian government to take all necessary measures to stop the conflict, allow unhindered humanitarian access to the populations affected, and allow an international investigating into the violence. 
• On March 22, Germany’s Foreign Ministry announced that it has taken note of the arrest of New Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal, India’s longstanding face in India’s anti-corruption movement. Germany’s Foreign Ministry said that it expected “standards regarding the independence of the judiciary and basic democratic principles” to apply in Kejriwal’s arrest. With the investigation into Kejriwal being led by a central government agency widely believed to be under the influence of the Bharatiya Janata party (BJP), Kejriwal’s arrest likely violates the right from arbitrary arrest (Article 9 ICCPR).  
• On March 25, Savera – an interfaith, multiracial, anti-caste coalition of Indian American and partner civil rights groups – released a declaration, sounding the alarm on the rise of Hindu supremacism in the US, and warned that Hindu supremacism “now finds itself in a deepening alliance with various facets of the American far-right”. Over 100 signed onto the declaration, which vows to take action to combat its spread in the US.  
• On March 28, Reporters Without Borders and Guernica 37 Chambers called on the EU to request member states to sanction Delhi Police officers responsible for the arbitrary raids against 46 journalists from NewsClick, an independent online media outlet. The Delhi Police arrested the founder and the human resources director of NewsClick, Prabir Purkayastha and Amit Chakravarty, who remain in custody. The incident raises serious concerns regarding the freedom from arbitrary arrest and detention (Articles 9 ICCPR). 
• On March 31, United States Ambassador to India Eric Garcetti said that involvement of a foreign government or its employees in an attempted assassination of a citizen of another country is a “red line” that should not be crossed. Garcetti was referring to an alledged plot in November 2023 under investigation to assassinate Gurpatwant Singh Pannun, a Sikh separatist, in the United States. The killing may violate the right to life (Article 6 ICCPR).  

Human rights defenders, press and civil society 

• On March 5, the Bombay High Court acquitted professor and human rights defender G.N. Saibaba and five other co-accused, who were arrested under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act for alleged Maoist links. Nagpur Central Jail released Saibaba on March 7 after he suffered 10 years in prison, experienced the custodial death of his co-accused Father Stan Swamy, and suffered numerous health-related setbacks. Saibaba’s incarceration likely violated the right against arbitrary arrest and the right to a fair trial (Articles 9 ICCPR).  
• On March 16, Muslim activist and community leader Javed Mohammed walked out of Uttar Pradesh’s Deoria Jail after 1 year, 9 months and 5 days of incarceration, after getting bail in multiple cases against him over 2022 Prayagraj Violence. The police had arrested him on June 11, 2022, accusing him of organizing protests that turned violent against comments made by the then-active Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leaders insulting Prophet Muhammad and Islam.  
• On March 17, Human Rights Watch reported that Indian authorities are revoking visa privileges to overseas critics of Indian origin who have spoken out against the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)-led government’s policies. The Indian government has primarily targeted Indian-origin academics, activists, and journalists who have been vocal critics of the BJP’s Hindu majoritarian ideology, by removing their Overseas Citizens of India (OCI) status. OCI status grants residency and visa bypassing rights to foreign citizens of Indian origin and spouses of Indian nationals. The targeted cancellation of OCI statuses raises concerns about the right for all to be equal in front of the law (Article 26 ICCPR).  
• On March 20, the civil society group CIVICUS, along with Amnesty International, Human Rights Watch, and others called for the immediate and unconditional release of Kashmiri journalist and human rights defender Irfan Mehraj, who remains detained since March 20 of last year. In June 2023, United Nations experts expressed serious concerns regarding the charges against and arrest of Mehraj, where they accused the ongoing detention to be an attempt to “delegitimize their human rights work and obstruct monitoring of the human rights situation in Indian-administered Jammu and Kashmir”. Mehraj’s detention likely violates the right against arbitrary arrest and incarceration (Articles 9 ICCPR). 
• On March 21, Carnegie Endowment for International Peace released a new report documenting women’s mobilisation around the world fighting for democracy. It documents how women-led movements led to several democratic victories in 2023, including India’s Parliament passing a law reserving one-third of legislative seats for women, women-led protests compelling the state government to finally address the conflict in Manipur in July, and women wrestlers protested sexual abuse by the president of the Wrestling Federation of India sparking solidarity from opposition parties and civil society groups. 
• On March 22, the Kilimanoor police arrested a Dalit (“untouchable”) man for peacefully protesting with 11 other Dalits for more accessible roads for motor vehicles. Due to the lack of a motorable road, ambulances refuse to come to the residence of one of the 11 Dalit men who remains disabled sustaining injuries from a casteist attack in 2005. The police filed an investigation report, stating that the protesters were disrupting official duties. The arrested Dalit man has reported these allegations to be false. The above raises serious concerns regarding the right of peaceful assembly, the protection from arbitrary arrests and detention, the freedom from discrimination, and the right to health (Articles 21, 26, 9 ICCPR and Article 12 ICESCR). 
• On March 28, a sessions court in Gujarat sentenced ex-police officer and human rights defender Sanjiv Bhatt to 20 years of prison in a second fabricated case dating back to 1996. Bhatt has been in jail since 2018 on reportedly fabricated charges after he blew whistle on the alleged involvement of Prime Minister Narendra Modi in the 2002 Gujarat riots. Already sentenced to life in jail, the court pronounced Bhatt’s conviction, as the human rights defender was not even allowed to testify or call witnesses. The case raises serious concerns regarding the upholding of rights from arbitrary arrest and detention, and the right to a fair trial (Article 9 and 14 ICCPR).  
• On March 30, the Delhi Police Special Cell filed an Unlawful Activities Prevention Act case against NewsClick founder and editor Prabir Puryakayastha, who has been in judicial custody since November. Puryakayastha’s Newsclick has been accused of allegedly receiving funds from China “with the intention of undermining India’s sovereignty and territorial integrity” - but there appears to be no evidence to back this. The case raises serious concerns regarding the upholding of rights from arbitrary arrest and detention, and the right to a fair trial (Article 9 and 14 ICCPR). 

Hate Crimes and Hate Speech against Minorities 

• On March 12, a court in Uttar Pradesh found ten persons guilty in the 2018 Hapur lynching case relating to the murder of 45-year-old Qasim. The court gave the culprits life sentences in prison.  
• On March 16, a group of Hindu supremacists reportedly attacked four foreign Muslim students and ransacked student dormitories at a Gujarat University student hostel. On March 17, India’s Ministry of External Affairs pledged to take “strict actions against the perpetrators” and announced that the local police had begun an investigation into the attack. 
• Between March 23 and 25, numerous groups of Hindu supremacist men celebrating Holi engaged in multiple incidents of molestation, violence, and harassment against Muslims, particularly women. In Uttar Pradesh, a mob of Hindu supremacist men reportedly harassed a Muslim man along with his sister and mother, returning from a doctor’s visit on March 23. Stand-by police reportedly did not intervene. In Gujarat, a group of Hindu supremacists reportedly assaulted, beat and forcefully coloured a rickshaw driver on March 25. The Hindu supremacists reportedly set his auto-rickshaw on fire while shouting Islamophobic slurs. In Uttar Pradesh, a group of teenagers shouting Hindu religious slogans surrounded a Muslim man and two Muslim women riding a bike, drenched the women in water and forcefully applied colour to the faces of the man and one of the women. In Jharkhand, a gang of 10 to 15 men celebrating Holi forcibly smeared mud on Muhammad Gulzar, a Muslim journalist, while he was on his way to a funeral. 
• On March 26, unidentified individuals reportedly threw a bomb outside Sadar Mosque in the state of Odisha after Maghrib prayer, injuring three Muslim men. The individuals appear to be Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) supporters, as the bomb was in a box that allegedly bore the name of an Instagram handle “sbp mafia gang” with a bio that reads “Jay Shree Ram, Jay BJP.” 
• On March 28, an official reported that a case has been opened against Madhya Pradesh Congress MLA Veer Singh Bhuria for allegedly violating the model code of conduct. On March 26, the MLA incited people to “cut of the hands” of people from JAYS – a tribal organisation with pockets of influence in tribal dominated areas – and anyone trying to split the vote during the upcoming general elections. The MLA’s comments likely violate article 20 of the ICCPR, which prohibits incitement to discrimination and violence. 
• On March 30, Maktoob media reported that the Kerala Police found 770 kg explosives from the residences of a local RSS leader and his relative. The RSS is India’s leading Hindu supremacist organisation. According to the police, preliminary investigations indicate that the explosives were intended for illegal distribution.  
• On March 30, a man from an upper caste allegedly brutally beat an 8-year-old Dalit (“untouchable”) boy for touching a water bucket. The child’s father filed a complaint to the police after the culprit refused to apologise and shouted casteist slurs instead. 

Religious Freedoms and Minority Rights 

• On March 25, the Maharashtra Police filed a first information report after the words “Shri Ram” were found written on the wall of a mosque. The police acted after the local Muslim community had congregated outside the local police station seeking action.  
• The Legal Rights Protection Forum (LRPF), said to be ideologically close to the RSS – one of the leading Hindu supremacist groups – reportedly wrote to the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) seeking cancellation of FCRA registration of two prominent NGOs — Caritas India, based in Delhi and Rural Development Trust based in Anantpur, Andhra Pradesh. LRPF alleged that both are involved in religious conversions to Christianity, a common allegation seeking to undermine India’s freedom of religion. 

Internet and Technology 

• On March 1, the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY) published its updated AI Advisory. The tech industry has criticized the advisory for being too vague, as it aims to regulate “AI model(s)/LLM/Generative AI, software(s) or algorithm(s)” without processes for compliance. In addition, the advisory asked tech firms to seek government approval before launching new AI tools, which incited concerns from critics saying that such a requirement could curb innovation and free speech. While the advisory is not legally binding, it does indicate the future of AI regulations in India. On March 12, India updated the advisory and removed the controversial government approval requirement.  

• On March 2, Meta revealed that it took down over 22.6 million pieces of actionable content in its compliance report in India. Of the other 8,488 reports through Meta’s India grievance mechanism where specialised review was needed, Meta acted on 4,632 complaints. 
• On March 8, Al Jazeera reported that the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) posted an AI-generated campaign video of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, after hiring audio forensic experts to test the clip. The video features an AI-generated soundtrack of music icon Mahendra Kapoor singing an old patriotic Hindi song, with lyrics were modified to highlight Modi’s political ‘achievements’. The post follows another AI-generated post by India’s opposition party, the Indian National Congress (INC) party, mocking Modi. Both posts did not explicitly disclose that the political content was fabricated using AI, which goes against Meta’s political advertisement policy and raises accountability concerns regarding disinformation ahead of the elections.  
• On March 11, the Bombay High Court refused to block the government from implementing a fact checking unit responsible for obliging platforms to take down “false”, “fake” or “misleading” information about the Indian government. India’s Government can now implement fully state-controlled fact checking units and hold companies liable for not cooperating with the government’s request, which poses serious concerns regarding the freedom of speech (Article 19 ICCPR). On March 21, the Supreme Court stayed the decision, which is scheduled to last as long as the Bombay High Court takes to decide the challenges to the IT Rules amendment 2023.   
• On March 15, Indians with a mobile phone, including diaspora, received a WhatsApp message from the government with an attached personal letter from Prime Minister Modi addressed to “My dear family member.” Opposition parties have criticised the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) the message for being political propaganda disguised as citizen feedback request, while many recipients are also concerned over the perceived breach of their data privacy. The message targeting may violate India’s rules on data privacy, and Article 17 of the ICCPR on privacy.  
• On March 19, Meta announced its platform policy in preparation for India’s General Elections, which outlines how it aims to limit misinformation, block voter interference and increase transparency and accountability. The policy claims that content targeted as fabricated or manipulated will appear lower on Facebook feeds and be filtered out on Instagram. However, the new measures have been criticised for being vague, flexible and insufficient to handle rampant hate speech and disinformation during India’s elections. Meta noted that it will work closely with the Election Commission of India to flag unlawful content.  
• On March 28, opposition party Indian National Congress filed a complaint over a piece of fake news that circulated on March 27 by R Kannada news channel. The footage shared showed Chief Minister Siddaramaiah’s convoy blocking traffic and obstructing an ambulance. However, at the time, the Chief Minister was actually in Mysuru and had not travelled towards Bengaluru. The police have since filed a case against Republic TV chief editor Arnab Goswami for allegedly spreading fake news about the Karnataka chief minister and attempting to incite hatred. 
• On March 28, Software Freedom Law Centre India (SFLC.in), an NGO focused on digital policy, reported that it sent letters to the Election Commission of India (EC) and X, Facebook, Open AI, and Google to add stringent measures regarding generative AI and manipulated media. SFLC.in expressed concern that political parties’ IT cells, misinformation Campaigns, deep fakes, and AI-driven manipulation will threaten to shape the outcomes of the April-June elections in India. 
• MemeXpress, a pro-BJP Facebook page which has invested Rs 1 crore (USD 120,000) in political advertising, published four ads featuring the murder of Atiq Ahmed, one of India’s most dreaded gangster-politicians. The caption was “just one bulldozer is needed in Bengal; all the stubborn Shahjahans will fall in line”. Two versions of the ad ran interrupted between March 8 to March 15, raising concerns about Meta’s ability to effectively enforce its policies that prohibit content glorifying violence. 

Political Parties and Election Monitoring 

• The Independent Panel for Monitoring Indian Elections – a group of academic experts from Europe, Bangladesh and India – released its first “pre-election” baseline report in March 2024. The report recalls the exclusion of millions of Muslim, Dalit and Christian voters from electoral rolls in 2019; the BJP’s targeting of Opposition parties; religious polarisation as an electoral tactic; the lack of review of concerns regarding electronic voting machines; the mainstream media’s open affinity with the BJP; and an ineffective Election Commission.  
• On March 9, Arun Goel resigned from the Election Commission (EC) after Anup Pandey retired on February 15, leaving the 3-member election commission down to the chief election commissioner Rajiv Kumar. Goel gave no reason for his resignation. The timing of this resignation alongside the ongoing electoral bonds case raises questions. 
• On March 9, Bharatiya Janata Party’s (BJP) Karnataka MP Anant Kumar Hegde said that the party was planning to win 400+ seats in the 2024 legislative elections to give the party a 2/3 majority in Parliament to amend the Constitution. He stated that the BJP could overturn rules that allegedly oppress Hindus. 
• On March 16, Chief Election Commissioner Rajiv Kumar announced the dates for the upcoming Lok Sabha legislative elections. Voting will be held in 7 phases, beginning from April 19 and ending on June 1, with results being declared on June 4. 
• On March 17, the Election Commission published a list of electoral bond buyers. Agence France-Presse found that 17 companies facing criminal investigations donated at least USD 94 million to political parties . Opposition lawmakers are claiming that the list shows that firms were donating to Modi's ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) in the hopes of influencing the outcome of criminal probes. 
• On March 18, MP Saket Gokhale announced that he filed a complaint to the Election Commission (EC) against Prime Minister Narendra Modi for violating the EC code of conduct during a visit to the southern state of Andhra Pradesh on March 17. Modi had used an Indian Air Force helicopter to attend an election rally held in the state, explicitly prohibited by EC rules which ban the use of state machinery for campaigning. 
• On March 21, Delhi’s chief minister Arvind Kejriwal was arrested on charges of corruption by officers from the enforcement directorate (ED), an investigating agency under central government control. Kejriwal is the leader of the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP), a smaller opposition party which currently holds government in the capital region Delhi. All major opposition parties condemned Kejriwal’s arrest, including the former leader of the main opposition Congress Party, Rahul Gandhi, who likened Prime Minister Narendra Modi to a “dictator”. 
• On March 22, the former secretary to the Government of India E.A.S. Sarma made a complaint to the Election Commission (EC) about a speech Prime Minister Narendra Modi had made in Tamil Nadu earlier that week. Sarma complained that some of his remarks made on the opposition INDIA alliance violated the EC’s mode of conduct, saying that “invoking the religious sentiments by a political leader during elections brazenly violates the model code of conduct”. Sarma has also sent a letter to President Droupadi Murmu, raising concerns about Goel’s resignation being due to his possible dissent against the political executive. 
• On March 22, the Guardian reported that a near dozen new films promoting Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his government’s Hindu supremacism have been released or will come out at cinemas ahead of the elections tabled to begin in April. Film critics and analysts have warned of several films pushing Islamophobic narratives and debunked anti-Muslim conspiracy theories. Association for Protection of Civil Rights (APCR) filed a public interest litigation case against one of the films produced by a BJP MP, “Razakar: The Silent Genocide of Hyderabad” for promoting inflammatory and divisive content. These releases spark concerns of growing advocacy of national or religious that constitutes incitement to discrimination, prohibited by Article 20 of the ICCPR.  
• On March 24, the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) released its fifth list of 111 candidates for Lok Sabha elections, which features Bollywood actress Kangana Ranaut. The actress is an adamant supporter of the Modi government, and has posted numerous hateful comments on social media, including the labelling of protesting farmers as terrorists, the making of genocidal remarks against Sikhs, and the propagating of Islamophobia.  
• The Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) called to encircle Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s residence in protest of the arrest of their leader, Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal in a suspicious liquor corruption case by a central enforcement agency. In response, the police ramped up security measures at the residence and in other parts of Delhi. The opposition coalition block, INDIA, of which the AAP is a part of, held a rally on March 31 at Delhi’s Ramleela Maidan to protest the arrest.  

Executive 

• On March 7, The Union Cabinet approved the India Artificial Intelligence Mission for the next five years. The plan aims to make 10,000 graphics processing units (GPUs) available to start-ups. In addition, Research and Development facilities, alongside universities and other academic institutions are meant to benefit from the plan. The Minister of state for electronics and IT Rajeev Chandrasekhar said that AI will be the cornerstone of India’s digital economy.  
• On March 13, the President of India Droupadi Murmu approved the Uttarakhand Uniform Civil Code (UCC) Bill, 2024, making Uttarakhand the first state in India to pass the controversial bill. The bill imposes the mandatory registration of live-in relationships, with a prison sentence of up to 5 months or a fine of Rs 25,000 in cases of non-compliance, and has sparked concerns from civil society groups for imposing a uniform set of laws upon domestic relationships that potentially infringes upon the rights of religious and cultural minorities to practice their personal laws. This could violate cultural and religious freedoms (Article 26 ICCPR).  
• On March 17, Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma said that 700,000 Muslims were left out of the National Register of Citizens (NRC) for the state. The NRC is a register that is meant to identify and deport “illegal” immigrants by listing residents that proved that their ancestors has entered Assam before March 24, 1971. But a total of 1,900,000 people who had applied to be on the list were left out of the final list. Sarma said that some of those excluded from NRC could apply for citizenship under the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA). However, as the CAA does not allow Muslims the right to fast-track citizenship, and India has no refugee policy, this would not apply for the 700,000 Muslims omitted. 
• On March 27, security forces reportedly killed six alleged Maoists in Chhattisgarh. Since the beginning of 2024, 37 Maoists, 17 civilians and six security personnel have been killed in Chhattisgarh, raising concerns about an escalation of violence and violations of the right to life of uninvolved civilians.  

Judiciary 

• On March 4, the Delhi High Court adjourned all cases related to the compensation of victims during the 2020 Northeast Delhi violence. The courts discharged the 11 accused persons in the 2020 Delhi riots, stating that there was no specific evidence to show existence of criminal conspiracy among the accused persons. The communal violence reportedly began after Kapil Mishra, now allied to the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), incited his followers to clear anti-Citizenship Amendment Act protesters. The call led to some of the worst recent Hindu-Muslim violence in India, which saw 53 deaths.  
• The Supreme Court ordered the State Bank of India (SBI) to submit all the details of electoral bonds, including the unique codes linking donors to political parties by March 6, which was later extended to March 12. Until now, the election funding system, called electoral bonds, allowed people and companies in India to anonymously donate money to political parties. On February 15, the Supreme Court had ruled that the electoral bonds scheme was unconstitutional, violating the right to information.  
• On March 21, the Supreme Court refused to stay the order to stop blocking the Chief Election Commissioner and Other Election Commissioners Act, 2023. The Act removes the Chief Justice of India from the selection panel appointing election commissioners, and replaces the Chief Justice with a Union Cabinet Minister nominated by the Prime Minister, which raises concerns around the executive influence in the election commission’s activities. The centre government of India rejected claims of possible executive influence and overreach. 
• On March 22, the Supreme Court quashed a bail condition imposed by the Orissa High Court on Siba Shankar Das, a former Mayor of Berhampur Municipal Corporation. The High Court had ordered that Das could be released on bail upon the condition that he “not be involved in any political activities, directly or indirectly”. The Supreme Court renounced the order, stating that such conditions would breach fundamental rights.  
• On March 22, the Allahabad High Court in Uttar Pradesh banned Islamic schools by striking down a law governing madrasas. The court ruled that the Madrasa Act of 2004 was unconstitutional and ordered the state government to move students enrolled in the Islamic system into mainstream schools. This raises concerns about the freedom of religion (article 18 ICCPR) and the right to education (Article 13 ICESCR). 

• On March 30, a court in Kerala acquitted all three RSS – one of the leading Hindu supremacist groups – workers who were accused in the 2017 Riyas Moulavi murder case. Justifying the decision to acquit the RSS activists, judge K K Balakrishnan said, “it can be safely concluded that the investigation is not up to the standard and one sided. So, the accused are entitled to benefit of doubt.”  
• On March 30, Prime Minister Narendra Modi shared an open letter on social media by a group of over 600 lawyers. The letter, addressed Chief Justice of India DY Chandrachud, alleged that a “vested interest group” is trying to put pressure on the judiciary and undermine public faith in the courts. Most of the prominent signatories to the letter are lawyers associated with the Bharatiya Janata Party, and multiple activists have criticised Modi’s posting of the letter as political interference into judicial matters. 

Business and Economy 

• On March 6, Scroll released an investigation into Foxconn, a contract manufacturer producing iPhones. The findings show that Foxconn factories are keeping women workers isolated, as they are housed in hotels that restricts their movement. Activists claim this is to keep a lid on their working conditions.  
• On March 10, India and Switzerland, Norway, Liechtenstein and Iceland signed a Free Trade Agreement. Beyond lowering trade tariffs and facilitating customs for trade, the new trade deal will see investments in India of $100bn according to India’s trade minister, particularly in the pharmaceuticals, machinery and manufacturing industries. While the agreement includes a Trade and Sustainable Development Section, the agreement denotes a low level of ambition and lack of binding commitments in relation to environmental, labour and gender issues. 
• On March 22, the BBC reported that India applied for two more deep-sea exploration licenses to access valuable minerals crucial to a cleaner future. India already has two existing licences in the Indian Ocean, and the International Seabed Authority (ISA) is convening in Jamaica between March 18-24 to discuss regulations on mining licences. If the ISA approved India’s new requests, India will have as many licenses as Russia and one behind China to access deep ocean deposits of critical minerals like cobalt, nickel, and copper. 
• On March 23, the Forum Against Corporatization and Militarization (FACAM) organised an assembly in Delhi against the corporate exploitation of forests and natural reserves in Chhattisgarh. FACAM released demands ahead of the assembly, which included calls to stop the “genocide” against tribal peoples in the form of “fake encounters, aerial bombings, bogus arrests, forced fake surrenders, sexual violence etc.”; stop the forceful grabbing of adivasi lands and displacement of adivasi peasants; and stop “massive militarization” of mineral-rich regions through hundreds of paramilitary camps in a bid to intensify corporate “loot”. 
• On March 26, the International Labour Organisation, along with India’s Institute for Human Development, released the India Employment Report 2024. Based on data from 2000-2022, the report examines the serious challenges of youth employment. In 2022, young people made up 83% of India’s total unemployed; women accounted for 95% of youth “not in education, employment or training”. Many highly-educated young people would rather remain without work than take on the low-paying jobs that are available. The report shows a rise in contractualisation and informalisation of the workforce, as well as a reverse movement to agriculture in recent years. In all cases the situation was much worse for Scheduled Caste and Scheduled Tribe categories, especially women. 

Armed Conflict in Manipur 

Since May 3, 2023, there has been an ongoing armed conflict in Manipur, North-Eastern India, after longstanding ethnic conflict between the Kuki (mostly Christian) and the Meitei (mostly Hindu, but also Christian and Muslim). 

• On March 4, the United National Liberation Front (UNLF) – the first paramilitary group to sign a ceasefire in Manipur’s 59 years of insurgency –  apprehended three persons at Langol with weapons and ammunition on the charge that they were causing “trouble and fear” among the public. 
• On March 5, Mizoram Excise and Narcotics Minister Lalnghinglova Hmar said that the smuggling of drugs in Mizoram has increased due to the ethnic violence in neighbouring Manipur. The Mizoram Excise and Narcotics Department allegedly seized 15 kg of heroin, 96.5 kg of methamphetamine tablets and 238.6 kg of marijuana since January this year. Hmar revealed that 10 people have died due to drug abuse since January. 
• On March 8, an army officer was abducted from his home in Manipur by unidentified individuals. Hours later, the army rescued the officer, and the police opened an investigation into the case.  
• On March 11, the Supreme Court sought reports from the Manipur government, the National Intelligence Agency (NIA), and the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) on the status of the probe into incidents of ethnic violence in Manipur. The Supreme Court additionally requested answers on whether chargesheets had been filed in any case.  
• On March 13, India’s National Intelligence Agency arrested top leaders from the United National Liberation Front (UNLF). The Federation of Civil Society Organization, an umbrella of over 10 civil bodies of the valley, declared a 48-hour strike starting March 14 against the arrests.  
• On March 24, the Indigenous Tribal Leaders’ Forum urged members of the Kuki-Zo community in Manipur not to contest the Lok Sabha elections and encouraged them to vote. MLAs from the Kuki-Zomi-Hmar community urged the Election Commission to allow voters who had been displaced in the state to cast their ballots on the basis of their Aadhaar cards or other valid identifying documents, as many of them are likely to have lost their voter IDs.