Common man's voice should be reflected in budget: NHRC

NHRC Chairman Justice K G Balakrishnan says for a successful democracy, the voice of common man should be reflected in policy formulation

National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) Chairman Justice K G Balakrishnan today said the voice of common man should find place in the ensuing general budget and policy making in order to make democracy more vibrant.

"People cast their votes and keep themselves away from governance. But people should have a right to say in every aspect of administration. For a successful democracy, the voice of common man should be reflected in budget and policy formulation," Justice Balakrishnan said addressing a national seminar on "Democracy and Tradition: An Evaluation" here.Read our full coverage on Union Budget

NHRC organised the seminar in collaboration with Post Graduate Department of Law, Utkal University with an aim to learn and discuss various issues linked to the contemporary legal matters keeping in view human values, customs and rights under democratic and institutional structures.

Emphasising on the protection of individual dignity, the former Supreme Court Chief Justice said, "Democracy would be an illusion and hallow if rights of individual are not recognised and issues like inequality, illegality and social injustices are not properly addressed."

"Social injustice cannot be ignored. Nobody is there to raise the voice of people living in the outer periphery of the society. If we don't value their voices and concerns, the democracy itself would be an illusion," he said.

Balakrishnan indicated that NHRC is in the process of changing certain laws in order to upkeep the individual dignity and protection of human rights. He also praised the 73rd and 74th amendment (panchayati raj institution) of the Indian Constitution which has empowered the people, especially women, to be part of the governance.

Nand Kishore Acharya, professor of the International Institute of Information Technology, Hyderabad, stressed on protecting human rights with respect to the different customs and taboos.