UN experts urge India to investigate protest crackdown over voter list revision

WASHINGTON — UN experts on Tuesday called for an independent investigation into how Indian authorities handled a recent crackdown on protests over voter lists, which protesters say disproportionately affect Muslims in India, according to Arab News.

The experts said demonstrators had sustained injuries and that some had reported ill-treatment, Arab News reported. The outlet said the statement came from two dozen experts.

What the experts said

"Despite the non-violent nature of the assemblies, law enforcement agencies have reportedly deployed force against unarmed students, including lathi charges, and have prevented thousands from joining the protests," the experts said in the statement, according to Arab News. Arab News explained that lathi charges refer to the use of batons to break up crowds.

The experts also made a series of demands. "We call on the authorities to immediately cease the use of excessive force, rescind blanket assembly bans, and refrain from the misuse of digital surveillance, including through biometrics, and Internet disruptions," they said, as quoted by Arab News.

Response

Arab News said the Indian embassy in Washington did not immediately respond to a request for comment on the statement.

The outlet reported that India has repeatedly dismissed such criticism and described it as interference in the country's internal affairs. According to Arab News, it did so earlier this month when the UN human rights office raised concerns about mass detentions linked to the latest protests.

Arab News also reported that human rights groups, including Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch, have condemned the crackdown.

Background

According to Arab News, opposition political parties and student organizations have held protests in India this month. They are demanding the resignation of Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar over a revision of voter lists. The protesters say the revision favors Prime Minister Narendra Modi's Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP).

Arab News reported that the protesting groups say 130 million names were removed from voter lists. They say this left eligible voters disenfranchised. They say poor and homeless people were disproportionately affected, as were ethnic minorities including Muslims, who the groups say are unlikely to vote for the Hindu nationalist BJP.

The BJP and India's Election Commission deny the claim, Arab News reported. The Election Commission says it removed duplicate, deceased, shifted and otherwise ineligible voters. It says anyone excluded in error can pursue appeals, according to the outlet.

Arab News described UN experts as individuals appointed by the UN Human Rights Council to monitor and document specific human rights crises. It said they are independent of the United Nations organization itself.

The Arab News report did not say whether Indian authorities had announced any inquiry into the conduct of law enforcement during the protests. It also did not give figures for the number of people injured or detained. The claims about the scale of the voter list removals and their effect on particular communities come from the protesting groups and are disputed by the BJP and the Election Commission.