In a major embarrassment for India’s human rights image, the National Human Rights Commission has been denied ‘A’ status accreditation for a second year in a row. The Geneva-based, United Nations-linked Global Alliance of National Human Rights Institutions (GANHRI) took the decision to defer it again during a meeting of the Sub-Committee on Accreditation (SCA) earlier this month.The NHRC was set up under the Protection of Human Rights Act, 1993, and it had enjoyed ‘A’ Status accreditation since the beginning of the accreditation process in 1999, which it retained in 2006, 2011 and in 2017 also, after a deferment.So, what are the reasons for the deferment of accreditation for India’s top human rights institution? What are the implications of not possessing this accreditation? And what does India have to do get the accreditation back?

Guest: Henri Tiphagne, Executive Director, People’s Watch, a non-profit that works in the field of human rights.Host: G. Sampath, Social Affairs Editor, The Hindu.Edited by Sharmada Venkatasubramanian.