U.N. committee expresses “grave concern” over rights violations against SCs, STs, Rohingya refugees

The U.N. Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination (UNCERD) said there had been an increase in incidents targeting Bengali-speaking Muslims. The U.N. Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination (UNCERD) has said it is “gravely concerned” about reports of human rights violations against a vast segment of people in India, including scheduled tribes, scheduled castes, Dalits and Rohingya refugees.In a press note that called for urgent action to address “hate speech” and “hate crime” in India, the committee said there had been an increase in incidents targeting Bengali-speaking Muslims and called on the Government of India to “ensure accountability” for these violations.“The committee was gravely concerned about reports of large-scale violations perpetrated by law enforcement officials against ethnic and ethno-religious groups, indigenous and tribal people, including Scheduled Tribes, Scheduled Castes, particularly Dalits, and non-citizens,” it said.The panel said these communities had been subjected to “racially motivated violence, excessive use of force, extrajudicial killings, arbitrary and prolonged detention without due process, torture, ill-treatment and sexual violence”.“The committee called on India to conduct prompt, thorough and impartial investigations into all such allegations and ensure accountability for those responsible,” the press note said.The U.N. panel further noted that there had been an increase in law enforcement operations targeting “Rohingya, Bengali-speaking Muslims, migrants and asylum-seekers, particularly following the 2017 Ministry of Home Affairs order and the April 2025 Pahalgam terror attack in Kashmir”.It said that police check posts had resorted to racial profiling that led to “arbitrary arrest and detention without due process”.The committee also called on India to refrain from “collective expulsions” and ensure access to international protection in line with the principle of non-refoulement. Published - August 25, 2026 05:32 pm IST