Amended NHRC Act to come into force from Friday

A law that does away with the current requirement that only a retired chief justice of India will head the National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) and provides for any retired apex court judge assuming that position will come into force from Friday.

The law also provides for reduction in the tenure of the chairpersons of the national and state human rights bodies to three years from the current five years.

"In exercise of the powers conferred by Sub-section (2) of Section 1 of the Protection of Human Rights (Amendment) Act, 2019 (19 of 2019), the Central Government hereby appoints the 2nd day of August, 2019 as the date on which the provisions of the said Act shall come into force," a government notification said.

The law also stipulates that besides a former chief justice of India, as is the current requirement, a former Supreme Court judge can also become the NHRC chairperson.

Similarly, a former high court judge can also become a state human rights commission chairperson, besides a retired chief justice of a high court, according to the Act.