Close X
Saturday, November 30, 2024
ADVT 
International

US Report Highlights 'Widespread Corruption' In India

IANS, 25 Jun, 2015 12:47 PM
    Even as it praised India for holding "the largest democratic elections in history", the US on Thursday highlighted "police and security force abuses" and "widespread corruption" among its "most significant human rights problems".
     
    "India's parliamentary contest in April 2014 was one of the largest elections in history," Secretary of State John Kerry said in his preface to the annual Human Rights Reports speaking of "stifling of free and open media" from China to Saudi Arabia.
     
    "Governments in China, Egypt, Eritrea, Ethiopia, Iran, Russia, and Saudi Arabia, among others, continued to stifle free and open media and the development of civil society through the imprisonment of journalists, bloggers, and non-violent critics," he said.
     
    "For far too many people, 2014 was defined by suffering and abuse perpetrated by terrorist groups exploiting religious discourse and divisions to advance their totalitarian ideology," said Kerry who later presented the report at a State Department briefing.
     
    Taking note of the Narendra Modi-led National Democratic Alliance's victory in the May 2014 elections in India, the report said: "These elections, the largest democratic elections in history, were considered free and fair, despite isolated instances of violence."
     
    "Authorities maintained effective control over the security forces," it said.
     
    In India, "the most significant human rights problems were police and security force abuses, including extrajudicial killings, torture, and rape", as also "societal violence based on gender, religious affiliation, and caste or tribe," the report said.
     
    "Widespread corruption (that) contributed to ineffective responses to crime, including those against women and members of scheduled castes or tribes," it added.
     
    Other human rights problems included disappearances, hazardous prison conditions, arbitrary arrest and detention, and lengthy pre-trial detention, the report said.
     
    "A lack of accountability for misconduct at all levels of government persisted," it suggested.
     
    "Investigations and prosecutions of individual cases took place, but lax enforcement, a shortage of trained police officers, and an overburdened and under-resourced court system contributed to infrequent convictions."
     
    "The judiciary remained backlogged, leading to lengthy delays and the denial of due process. There were instances of infringement of privacy rights," it said.
     
    Noting that "the law in some states restricts religious conversion", the report said, "there were reports of arrests but no reports of convictions under those laws".
     
    "Some limits on the freedom of movement continued," the report said.
     
    "Rape, domestic violence, dowry-related deaths, honour killings, sexual harassment, and discrimination against women remained serious societal problems."

    MORE International ARTICLES

    Family Says Alberta Couple Missing Since Nepal Earthquake Are Dead

    Family Says Alberta Couple Missing Since Nepal Earthquake Are Dead
    EDMONTON — Family of a Canadian husband and wife who have been missing since a massive earthquake in Nepal say the couple are dead.

    Family Says Alberta Couple Missing Since Nepal Earthquake Are Dead

    Two Billionaire NRIs Offer To Build 1,200 Houses In Nepal

    Two Billionaire NRIs Offer To Build 1,200 Houses In Nepal
    Two billionaire NRIs have offered to build 1,200 earthquake-resistant houses in quake-affected villages of Nepal immediately, Nepal's embassy in London has said.

    Two Billionaire NRIs Offer To Build 1,200 Houses In Nepal

    Yoga On Capitol Hill

    Yoga On Capitol Hill
    In a curtain-raiser event for the First International Day of Yoga on June 21, the newly founded Congressional Yogi Association organized the first-ever "Yoga on the Hill" at Capitol Hill, the seat of US parliament.

    Yoga On Capitol Hill

    A Week After, Nepal Quake Toll Hits 7,040

    A Week After, Nepal Quake Toll Hits 7,040
    As search and rescue operations continued for the seventh day, the toll due to the massive earthquake that hit Nepal on April 25 rose to 7,040 on Saturday, officials said.

    A Week After, Nepal Quake Toll Hits 7,040

    A Week After, Nepal Quake Toll Hits 7,040

    A Week After, Nepal Quake Toll Hits 7,040
    As search and rescue operations continued for the seventh day, the toll due to the massive earthquake that hit Nepal on April 25 rose to 7,040 on Saturday, officials said.

    A Week After, Nepal Quake Toll Hits 7,040

    Kate Middleton Makes First Public Appearance With Newborn Baby Daughter Looking Immaculate

    Kate Middleton Makes First Public Appearance With Newborn Baby Daughter Looking Immaculate
     The newborn British princess on Saturday evening made her first public appearance, along with her parents, the Duke and the Duchess of Cambridge, outside St. Mary's Hospital where she was born.

    Kate Middleton Makes First Public Appearance With Newborn Baby Daughter Looking Immaculate