How to file a complaint with the NHRC or State Human Rights Commission
What the Human Rights Commissions can do, which complaints they take, the one-year limit, how to file free (hrcnet.nic.in, 14433), and what relief to expect.
In short
- The NHRC and State Human Rights Commissions inquire into violations of life, liberty, equality and dignity by public servants, or their failure to prevent one (Sec 12, PHRA).
- Complain free, in any Eighth Schedule language, online at hrcnet.nic.in, by post, or through the helpline 14433. No lawyer needed.
- File within one year of the incident (Sec 36(2)). Do not file the same matter in both the NHRC and the SHRC, or while a court is hearing it.
- The Commission can recommend compensation, prosecution, disciplinary action and interim relief; the government must report back within a month (Sec 18).
- Someone in danger right now? Call 112. For illegal detention, a habeas corpus petition in the High Court is faster.
Sometimes the people meant to protect you are the ones who harm you: a person beaten in a lock-up, a bonded labourer whom officials ignore, a family whose complaint nobody will register. For such situations India has independent bodies whose only job is to defend human rights. Approaching them costs nothing and needs no lawyer.
What the law says
The Protection of Human Rights Act, 1993 (PHRA) set up the National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) in New Delhi. Under Sec 21, states set up State Human Rights Commissions (SHRCs); most states now have one. "Human rights" are defined in Sec 2(1)(d) as the rights to life, liberty, equality and dignity guaranteed by the Constitution or by international covenants and enforceable by Indian courts.
Under Sec 12, a Commission can inquire into a complaint by a victim or anyone on their behalf, or act on its own (for example, on a news report); intervene in court cases involving human rights; visit jails, shelter homes and mental health institutions; review laws and safeguards; and promote awareness. While inquiring it has the powers of a civil court (Sec 13): it can summon officials, call for records and examine witnesses on oath.
Which complaints are taken, and which are not
Typical complaints: custodial death or torture, illegal detention, police refusal to register or act on an FIR, bonded and child labour, atrocities against Dalits and Adivasis, denial of treatment in a government hospital, and conditions in prisons, shelter homes and mental health institutions. The common thread is a public servant who violated a right or negligently failed to prevent a violation.
A Commission will ordinarily not take up:
- matters more than one year old (Sec 36(2));
- matters pending before a court or another Commission (Sec 36(1));
- purely private disputes, such as a property quarrel or a family matter, where no public authority is involved;
- service matters of government employees, and matters covered by the RTI process;
- anonymous, pseudonymous, vague or illegible complaints.
Against the armed forces, the NHRC's powers are limited by Sec 19: it can seek a report from the Central Government and make recommendations, on which the government must report within three months. State police are fully covered.
Choose one forum. For a police, hospital or jail matter in your own state, the SHRC is usually closer and quicker; the NHRC handles central agencies and inter-state matters, and anything an SHRC cannot. If the NHRC has already taken up a matter, the SHRC will not.
Step by step: filing a complaint
- Write it simply, in English, Hindi or any Eighth Schedule language: who you are, who the victim is, what happened, the date and place, which officials or department were involved, and what you want (inquiry, medical care, release, protection, compensation).
- Attach copies, never originals: FIR or the refused complaint, medical reports, photographs, letters to officials, news reports.
- File it. Online at hrcnet.nic.in (which serves both the NHRC and participating SHRCs), by post to the NHRC at Manav Adhikar Bhawan, Block C, GPO Complex, INA, New Delhi 110023, by hand, or through a Common Service Centre. You can also call 14433 for help with filing. SHRCs have their own addresses and many accept email.
- Note the diary or case number and track it online. The Commission may call for a report from the authority concerned and may send its own team to investigate. If you are sent the authority's report for comments, reply within the time given, pointing out what is false or missing.
- Ask for interim relief if the victim needs urgent medical care, protection or release; the Commission can recommend it before the inquiry ends (Sec 18(c)).
What the Commission can do for you
After inquiry, under Sec 18 the Commission can recommend that the government pay compensation to the victim or family; prosecute or discipline the officials responsible; grant immediate interim relief; and take other steps, such as changing a procedure in a jail or hospital. It can also approach the Supreme Court or High Court for directions. The government must report within one month what it has done, and the Commission publishes both.
These are recommendations, not decrees, and this is the most criticised feature of the system. In practice governments usually pay the compensation recommended, and a reasoned finding by a Commission is strong evidence in a later writ petition. Sessions courts designated as Human Rights Courts under Sec 30 exist in many districts for speedy trial of such offences.
Sunita's brother Dinesh, a migrant worker in Surat, is picked up by the police on suspicion of theft and held for three days without being produced before a Magistrate. He comes home with bruises and no arrest memo. Within a week Sunita gets him examined at the civil hospital, photographs the injuries, writes a two-page complaint naming the police station and dates, and files it on hrcnet.nic.in with the medical report. The SHRC calls for a report from the Police Commissioner within four weeks, sends its investigation team, finds illegal detention and assault, and recommends compensation and departmental action against two constables. The report later supports Dinesh's writ petition in the High Court.
Keep these ready
- A clear, dated written account with names, places, dates and the officials involved
- Copies of the FIR, or your complaint and proof that police refused to register it
- Medical reports, photographs of injuries, post-mortem papers in a death case
- Copies of letters or applications already sent to officials, with receipts
- Your contact details and the victim's
The one-year limit is strict and the Commission counts from the date of the violation, not from when you lost hope in the police. File early, even if the police complaint is still pending, and keep the matter out of court until you decide which forum you want; a case pending in court usually closes the door at the Commission.
Where to go
- Emergency or someone in danger now: 112; women 181; children 1098
- State Human Rights Commission for matters in your state; NHRC for central agencies, inter-state matters or where the SHRC does not act: hrcnet.nic.in, helpline 14433, nhrc.nic.in
- Specialised bodies: Commissions for Women, Scheduled Castes, Scheduled Tribes, Child Rights and Minorities
- Urgent release from illegal detention: habeas corpus petition in the High Court (Art 226)
- Free lawyer for drafting or a court petition: 15100 (NALSA), District Legal Services Authority
Common questions
Is there any fee for an NHRC complaint, and do I need a lawyer?
No fee, and no lawyer. You can write in Hindi, English or any language in the Eighth Schedule, online at hrcnet.nic.in, by post, by hand or through a Common Service Centre, and the helpline 14433 can guide you. Free legal aid through 15100 is available if you want help drafting.
What is the time limit for complaining to a Human Rights Commission?
One year from the date of the violation, under Sec 36(2) of the Protection of Human Rights Act. The Commission treats this strictly, so complain as soon as possible while medical records, witnesses and CCTV footage still exist. A continuing violation, such as ongoing illegal detention, can be complained of while it continues.
Can the NHRC punish a police officer or order compensation?
It cannot punish directly or pass a binding decree. It can recommend compensation, prosecution and disciplinary action, and the government must report within a month what it has done. Governments usually pay the compensation recommended, and if they do not, the Commission or the victim can approach the High Court or Supreme Court, where the Commission's findings carry weight.
Should I go to the NHRC or my State Human Rights Commission?
For a matter within your state, such as the state police, a government hospital or a jail, the SHRC is usually the right forum and often quicker. The NHRC is the option against central agencies, or where the state has no functioning Commission. Do not file the same complaint in both.
Can I complain about a private company or a neighbour?
Normally no. The Commissions deal with violations by public servants, or a public servant's failure to prevent a violation by others. If the police refuse to act on your complaint against a private person, that refusal is what you complain about.
This article is general information for awareness, not legal advice. For your situation, consult an advocate or call free legal aid at 15100.
