Union Cabinet approves amendments to Protection of Human Rights Bill

The Union Cabinet on Wednesday approved amendments to the human rights protection bill for "better protection and promotion of human rights in the country", a statement said.

The Protection of Human Rights (Amendments) Bill, 2018, was cleared in a Cabinet meeting chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

The statement said the amendment bill "proposes to enlarge the scope of eligibility and scope of selection of chairperson of National Human Rights Commission as well as the State Human Rights Commissions".

It also aims at to incorporate a mechanism to look after the cases of human rights violation in the union territories.

The bill "proposes to amend the terms of office of chairperson and members of National Human Rights Commission and State Human Rights Commissions to make (them) in consonance with the terms of chairperson and members of other commissions".

The statement claimed that the amendment would "strengthen" the human rights institutions "for effective discharge of their mandates, roles and responsibilities".

It would also bring India's human rights law "in perfect sync with the agreed global standards and benchmarks towards ensuring the rights relating to life, liberty, equality and dignity of the individual in the country".