Justice (retired) Prafulla Chandra Pant (PC Pant), a Former Supreme Court Judge had been appointed as Acting Chairperson of National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) with effect from April 25, 2021.He Succeeds Justice H.L. Dattu, whose tenure ended on December 2, 2020.
- His appointment was authorized by President of India, Ram Nath Kovind.
- The term of office of the NHRC Chairperson and members of the NHRC is for five years or till the age of 70 years, whichever is earlier.
About PC Pant:
i. He hails from Pithoragarh, Uttarakhand & served as the first Secretary, Law, and Justice of the Uttarakhand.
ii.He has written books on various subjects of law such as ‘Marriage, Divorce and other matrimonial disputes’, ‘Commentary on Code of Civil Procedure’, ‘Relief of Injunctions and Sundar Nirnay Kaise Likhen’ (in Hindi).
iii.He was appointed as member of NHRC in April, 2019.
iv.Previous Roles:
- He served as Judge of the Supreme Court from 13th August, 2014 – 29th August, 2017.
- Chief Justice of Meghalaya High Court, Shillong – 20th September, 2013 – 12th August, 2014.
Gist About Appointment:
i.NHRC Chairperson should be Chief Justice of India or a Judge of the Supreme Court.
ii.Section 2 Sections 3 and 4 of The Protection Of Human Rights (Amendment) Act (TPHRA) lay down the rules for appointment to the NHRC. The Chairperson and members of the NHRC are appointed by the President of India, on the recommendation of a committee consisting of:
- The Prime Minister (Chairperson), The Home Minister, The Leader of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha (Lower House), The Leader of the Opposition in the Rajya Sabha (Upper House), The Speaker of the Lok Sabha (Lower House), The Deputy Chairman of the Rajya Sabha (Upper House).
National Human Rights Commission (NHRC)
- It is a Statutory body which was established on 12 October, 1993.
- It was established under the Protection of Human Rights Act (PHRA), 1993 as amended by Protection of Human Rights (Amendment) Act, 2006.
- NHRC was established in conformity with the Paris Principles.
Recent Related News:
i.On July 06, 2020, NHRC set up an 11-member expert committee headed by Dr K S Reddy, president of Public Health Foundation of India to study impact of coronavirus (Covid-19) on human rights of individuals.
About National Human Rights Commission (NHRC)
Secretary General (CEO of Commission) – Bimbadhar Pradhan, IAS
Headquarters – New Delhi
