International Conventions On Inhuman Acts: An Indian Perspective On Forced Labour, Human Trafficking, Racial Discrimination, And Torture
- IJLLR Journal
- 55 minutes ago
- 2 min read
Aditi Sah, B.B.A. LL.B., Bharati Vidyapeeth University
ABSTRACT
India's relationship with international conventions addressing inhuman conduct is best understood as one of selective engagement formal ratification in some areas, prolonged abstention in others, and a persistent reliance on judicial interpretation to bridge the gap between treaty obligation and domestic reality. This paper examines four instruments that collectively define the international community's minimum standards for human dignity: the International Labour Organisation's Forced Labour Convention, 1930 (No. 29), and Abolition of Forced Labour Convention, 1957 (No. 105); the Protocol to Prevent, Suppress and Punish Trafficking in Persons, Especially Women and Children (the Palermo Protocol); the International Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Racial Discrimination (ICERD); and the Convention against Torture and Other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment (CAT). For each instrument, the paper maps the content of the international obligation against the constitutional provisions, statutes, and judicial decisions through which the underlying norm has found or failed to find expression in Indian law. India has ratified the ILO forced labour conventions and ICERD, and acceded to the Palermo Protocol, yet has remained outside CAT for nearly three decades since signing it. Even where ratification exists, implementation is partial: caste discrimination remains a contested category under ICERD, comprehensive trafficking legislation has repeatedly lapsed in Parliament, and no standalone anti- torture statute has been enacted. The Supreme Court has compensated through purposive readings of Articles 21 and 23 of the Constitution, extending protections functionally equivalent to those the conventions require, but this judicial substitute carries structural limitations that treaty ratification and comprehensive legislation alone can overcome.
Keywords: Forced Labour; Human Trafficking; Racial Discrimination; Torture; India; International Human Rights Law
