Cabinet Okays Law against Torture


New Delhi, April 8 (IANS) Thirteen years after India signed an international treaty against torture, the union cabinet Thursday approved a proposal to introduce a legislation against torture.

"It is an affirmative positive action to prevent cruelty and degradation of human life," Information and Broadcasting Minister Ambika Soni told reporters.

The Prevention of Torture Bill, 2010, will be a step towards ratification of 1975 UN Convention against torture and other cruel, Inhuman and Degrading treatment or punishment, she said.

India had inked the convention in 1997 October, but it had not yet ratified the convention, as it required bringing in a domestic legislation.

"Although some provisions exist in the Indian Penal Code (IPC), they neither define 'torture' as clearly as in Article 1 of the convention nor make it criminal as called for by Article 4," said a government press release.

Earlier, the government had tried to modify the IPC, which would have been a complicated procedure.

"The matter was examined at length in consultation with the Law Commission of India and the then attorney general of India," said the release.

Further, state governments were also consulted as the matter fell into the concurrent list of the constitution.

"After a lot of deliberation on the issue, it was decided to bring a piece of 'stand alone' legislation so that the convention could be ratified. Accordingly, Prevention of Torture Bill, 2009, was drafted," it added.

  

Top Stories


Leave a Comment

Title: Cabinet Okays Law against Torture



You have 2000 characters left.

Disclaimer:

Please write your correct name and email address. Kindly do not post any personal, abusive, defamatory, infringing, obscene, indecent, discriminatory or unlawful or similar comments. Daijiworld.com will not be responsible for any defamatory message posted under this article.

Please note that sending false messages to insult, defame, intimidate, mislead or deceive people or to intentionally cause public disorder is punishable under law. It is obligatory on Daijiworld to provide the IP address and other details of senders of such comments, to the authority concerned upon request.

Hence, sending offensive comments using daijiworld will be purely at your own risk, and in no way will Daijiworld.com be held responsible.