Human Rights Bodies Must Reach Those Who Cannot Make Themselves Heard: CJI Surya Kant

Addressing the 33rd Foundation Day function of the National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) at Vigyan Bhawan in New Delhi, the CJI stressed that constitutional guarantees of dignity, equality, liberty and justice must translate into everyday realities, particularly for vulnerable and marginalised sections of society.

Describing the NHRC’s evolution over 33 years, he said the Commission had grown from a new idea into a trusted institution for people seeking justice.

“Institutions, like people, are best understood on their birthdays. We look back at where they began, we look around at where they stand, and we look ahead at what they owe the people they serve,” he said.

Highlighting the Commission’s record, Surya Kant said it had registered more than 24 lakh cases and disposed of over 23 lakh, achieving a disposal rate exceeding 98 per cent. He said these figures represented instances in which serious human rights violations had been brought to public attention.

“If the Constitution is the promise, the Commission is one of its keepers. It listens to those who cannot easily speak, and it can act on its own without waiting to be asked,” he said.

The CJI emphasised that protecting human rights must go beyond identifying violations to ensuring accountability, providing meaningful relief to victims and introducing changes to prevent similar incidents from recurring.

Referring to the NHRC’s interventions in cases involving custodial torture and deaths, bonded labour, industrial exposure to silicosis and the rights of marginalised communities, he highlighted the importance of institutional action in addressing both individual grievances and systemic failures.

“A right that works for the powerful but fails the powerless cannot be regarded as a right in its true sense. It is a privilege with better branding,” he remarked.

He identified undertrial prisoners who had never met their advocates, migrant workers without documents, elderly people abandoned by their families, persons with disabilities facing barriers and women whose concerns remained overlooked as groups requiring greater institutional attention.

Surya Kant also underlined the importance of State Human Rights Commissions, saying their proximity to local communities often enabled them to respond more effectively to complaints and understand the circumstances surrounding violations.

“In a country as large and diverse as India, the experience of rights is often determined not in the capital, but in a remote village, a particular neighbourhood or even in the household,” he said.

While the National Commission can establish standards and highlight broader patterns, he noted that State Commissions are often better positioned to hear complaints in local languages and reach affected communities.

The CJI also outlined the complementary roles of courts and human rights commissions, saying courts must intervene when constitutional rights are violated, while commissions should investigate complaints, identify systemic shortcomings and bring neglected concerns to institutional attention.

The NHRC marked its Foundation Day with a national conference on the theme, “Water as the Elixir of Life: Advancing Human Dignity through the Right to Water”.

Commending the focus on water, Surya Kant said human rights were closely connected with everyday needs rather than being merely abstract principles.

“They are as concrete as a glass of clean water in the hands of a child and as urgent as the thirst that child feels,” he said.

The conference featured discussions on protecting and restoring water bodies and safeguarding drinking water sources to ensure safe and sustainable access to water for all.

NHRC Chairperson Justice V. Ramasubramanian, Members Justice (Dr.) Bidyut Ranjan Sarangi, Vijaya Bharathi Sayani and Priyank Kanoongo, Secretary General Piyush Goyal, senior officers and other dignitaries attended the function.