Centre For Human Rights Studies (CHRS) is an independent research Centre based within the Jindal Global Law School (JGLS) engaged in the study and intervention of human rights violations examined through the lens of international human rights law and practice. Research at the Centre is focused on evolving best practice strategies for human rights lawyering and research methodologies. The Centre is committed to creating a critical space for engagement and debate on human rights issues at Jindal Global University (JGU).
The work at the Centre is collaborative; aimed at nurturing partnerships and with academic institutions, human rights organizations, independent researchers, academics and practitioners engaged in innovative interdisciplinary research, education, and practice of human rights in critical areas. Scholarly research conducted at the Centre is communicated through publications, conferences, seminars and workshops. Additionally the Centre organizes regular conversations and lectures by experts on of human rights violations in specific areas.
CHRS works on THEMATIC RESEARCH CLUSTERS in the following areas:
Pinki Mathur Anurag
Associate Professor
Director, Centre for Human Rights Studies (CHRS)
Her middle name is passion! From feminism to gardening, human rights to travelling, Pinki is absolutely excited about everything. Her enthusiasm is infectious and fuels her work and the work of her team. Pinki has lived in three metros in India – Calcutta (before it was Kolkata), Delhi, Bombay (and Mumbai) and briefly in the UK and Singapore. She was a social worker and a lawyer in her previous life and absolutely loves her quiet, slow paced life as an academic in Sonipat.
Click Here to read Pinki Mathur Anurag’s Academic Profile.
Varsha Mohan
Assistant Director
Varsha is a child of immigrant parents, who has made many countries her home over the years, but now finds comfort and belonging in experimenting and cooking food from around the world. She loves spending time with nature and expresses herself through acrylic on canvas or digital art. She buys more books than she can read! She enjoys autobiographical graphic novels, historical non-fiction, and literary fiction. Recently, she has found her way back to music, and hopes to rekindle her love for Hindustani classical vocals.
Click Here to read Varsha Mohan’s Academic Profile.
Idris
Senior Research Associate
Idris is a culinary enthusiast with a penchant for history and law. He is passionate about business and human rights. He is an adventurous traveller, cinephile, Urdu poetry aficionado, and a dedicated fan of Sheldon Cooper.
Srinjoy Sarkar
Senior Research Associate
Apart from his time spent teaching, researching, and writing, Srinjoy is husband to a practising lawyer Neha, and works for his cat – T2. When free from his obligations, Srinjoy enjoys reading fantasy fiction, exploring maps, running medium distances, and the occasional long trek in the hills.
Click Here to read Prof. Srinjoy Sarkar’s academic profile.
Ishan Vijay Avadhanam
Research Associate
Ishan’s interest primarily includes child rights and queer theory, in the broad field of human rights. Away from research, his time is spent enjoying football, podcasts, and horror movies. He loves to explore, and start new TV Shows without ever completing them.
Click Here to read Ishan’s academic profile.
Age, Ageism and Human Rights Law
Globally, ageing constitutes one of the most significant demographic transformations of the 21st century. Research on the existing human rights standards under law and policy for the elderly must be examined through the lens of international human rights law. While considerable attention has been accorded to the human right for the elderly under the UN Mechanisms in the last decade or so; including, inter alia the appointment of the Independent Expert on the Enjoyment of All Human Rights by Older Persons, in the absence of a legally binding international law treaty addressing and articulating specific needs of the elderly and for setting international standards, states regularly violate and neglect the human rights of elderly.
Manual Scavenging as a Human Rights Violation
The practice of manual scavenging, grounded in the acceptance of the idea of the inevitability of caste-based labour is one of the most inhumane manifestations of caste based discrimination in India. In 1993, India enacted the Employment of Manual Scavengers and Dry Latrines (Prohibition) Act and in 2013 The Prohibition of Employment as Manual Scavengers and their Rehabilitation Act. Manual scavenging is recognised as ‘dehumanizing’ under these laws and yet the practice continues unabated. Implementation of the law remains the subject matter of pending litigations at several High Courts and the Supreme Court of India. CHRS in collaboration with civil society organizations, advocates and academics facilitates conversations to build momentum for the eradication of this practice through legal discourse and academic engagements.
Intimate Violence as a Human Rights Violation
Violence in private spaces within the context of the patriarchal structures and gendered power hierarchies in society that sustain private violence remains the focus are for research under this cluster. Despite the enactment of laws such as The Protection of Women from Domestic Violence Act (PWDVA), 2005, provisions for criminalization of cruelty and dowry death (Section 498A and Section 304B of the Indian Penal Code respectively), violence in intimate spaces is trivialized, normalized, and tolerated by the State and its institutions. Violence manifests and adversely impacts the right to bodily integrity, physical and mental health, and dignity of the survivors.
Rights – Camera – Action – The CHRS Film Club
CHRS conducts a series of discussions around the representation of human rights in cinema. The CHRS Film Club- Camera, Rights, Action curates fortnightly screenings of movies and documentaries around diverse human rights themes on campus. Screening of the films/documentaries is followed by open-house discussions around the critical human rights issues that emerge. On occasions, filmmakers, directors, producers, and cinematographers are invited to share their experiences in engaging with subjects of human rights violations during the ‘making’ of the film.
The Film Club was started with the objective of encouraging students and faculty-led discussions around representations and conversations on human rights through cinema. The informal discussions on critical issues around human rights and their depiction encourages research-oriented critical perspectives around mainstream conversations on human rights on the JGU campus.
Panel Discussion: 13th April 2023, 12 pm – 1.30 pm (IN PERSON EVENT at T2-T40, Global Conference Room, O.P.Jindal Global University, Sonipat)
The Decade of Healthy Ageing (2021-2030): The Potential and pitfalls of the Human Rights Approach
The Decade of Healthy Ageing (2021-2030) is a global endeavour to encourage multi-stakeholder engagement with policy and practice centered around older persons. The Decade will adopt a human rights approach to achieve its intended outcomes.
This panel discussion brought together experts in the field of ageing and elderly rights to deliberate over the relevance the Decade’s goals at the global and local levels; the use of the human rights approach in envisioning and implementing the goals; the nature of the state’s and other stakeholders’ obligations; and the inequities in healthy ageing. The panel contributed to discourse about the implications and shortcomings of the Decade’s goals for the lived realities of older persons and offered valuable perspectives.
Panelists:
Moderator:
Dr. Deblina Dey, Associate Professor of Sociology, JGLS
Director, CHRS invited as a panelist at the Presentation of National Findings from the Research Report ‘Women & Ageing: Invisible or Empowered?’ On the occasion of: World Elder Abuse Awareness Day
On the occasion of World Elder Abuse Awareness Day
Organizers: HelpAge India
14th June 2023 10 am -1 pm at Main Auditorium, India International Centre, Delhi
Panel Discussion: Women and Ageing: Path to Empowerment
Consultation: 18 May 2024, 9:00 am-2:00 pm on Gendered Ageism and Health Inequalities
Dr Aashita Dawer and Prof Pinki Mathur are embarking on an empirical research study to explore the gendered nature of health inequalities. The study aims to understand the gendered nature of ageism and the consequent health inequalities and the ways in which ageing impacts the physical and mental well-being of women post-reproductive age, to spotlight the intersectionality of gender and age and the consequent marginalized location of older women under domestic health policies.
At the stage of conceptualization the research study, CHRS organised a Consultation with medical practitioners, policymakers, academics, activists, and civil society workers in health, gender, and ageing to identify and explore broad themes such as medical, social, economic and health policy perspectives that impact the health of women as they age.
The keynote was delivered by Prof. Dr. Stephen P Marks, Professor and Dean, Jindal School of Public Health.
PANELISTS:
Introductory remarks and concluding observations:
Moderators
Misinformation and Disinformation in Elections: Right to Freedom of Expression and Voting Behavior
(ONLINE PROGRAMME)
4th May 2023, 7.30- 9pm on Microsoft Teams
Speaker: Professor Anthony Fargo – Associate Professor, Indiana University Bloomington – The Media School, Director of Centre for International Media Law and Policy Studies
Moderator: Dr Eka Nugraha Putra – Assistant Professor, JGLS, Fellow, CHRS
Freedom of expression encompassing the right to seek, receive and impart information is a core human right under international law that forms the bedrock of democracy, particularly in the context of elections.
General Comment No. 25 on Article 25 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR) states that free expression of the will of the voters and their freedom to hold independent opinions without any coercion, distortion and inhibition is an integral element of the right to vote. Misinformation and disinformation such as fake news, false and misleading information, propaganda, and conspiracy theories distort public opinion and undermine the legitimacy of the electoral process.
The conversation with Dr Fargo interrogated the ethical and human rights implications of such misinformation and disinformation and the role of governments, civil society, and technology companies in combatting it, particularly in the context of protecting the right to free expression of the voters’ will by promoting accurate information and informed decision-making with the context of India and the United States of America.
Human Rights Conversation Series on ‘Right to Work, Livelihood and Human Rights of Rural Women Labourers in post-COVID India’ on 9th October 2023.
The guest speaker was Ms. Anuradha Talwar who is a trade union activist who works with rural labour. She has served as the West Bengal Advisor to the Supreme Court Commissioner from 2002 to 2017 in the Right to Food Case. Her work centres around issues of labour rights, gender justice, land rights/right to shelter, right to food, participatory democracy. This conversation was moderated by Adwitia Maity, Research Assistant, CHRS
This conversation explored the gender disparities in the workplace. It emphasized the fact that women’s participation in the workforce is far less than men and those who participate are more likely to suffer loss of work, inadequate payment and consequent poverty. Social expectations, family and care responsibilities further exacerbate women’s predicament in the job market. This conversation explored the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on rural job markets from the perspective of women labour force.
Human Rights Conversation Series on ‘Manual Scavenging as a human rights violation’ on 11th October 2023. The guest speaker was Mr. Sanjeev Khudshah
The guest speaker is a well-known Dalit writer and poet. He is the Chief Editor of the You Tube Channel DMAindia Online. He has won several awards including the Chhattisgarh Hindi Sahitya Sammelan Essay Award in 2017. His book “Safai Kamgar Samuday” on Caste and Manual Scavenging has been translated into Marathi and Punjabi.
This conversation was moderated by Pinki Mathur Anurag, Director, CHRS. The conversation focused on the practice of Manual Scavenging as one of the most serious human rights violations within the context of caste and labour in India.
It highlighted how manual scavenging is grounded in the acceptance of the idea of the inevitability of caste-based labour. Sanjeev Khudshah has lived with persons engaged in manual scavenging to understand and feel the compulsions that force them to accept manual scavenging as their fate. The conversation attempted to understand the history of caste, untouchability, and manual scavenging from the author’s extensive research, writing and activism on this critical issue.
Human Rights Conversation Series on ‘Human Rights in the workplace – Addressing bullying to ensure equal treatment and dignity at work’ on 9th November 2023. The speaker was Ms. Agita Pasaribu, Founder and Executive Director, Bullyid Indonesia.
The conversation was moderated by Eka Nugraha Putra, Fellow, CHRS.
Bullyid Indonesia is an organization that focuses on preventing online gender-based violence and empowering survivors and victims of harassment in Indonesia. Through her organization, Agita has developed the ‘Bullyid App’ which provides survivors and victims access to psychological and legal support in case of bullying. Agita shared her expertise and experience in addressing bullying at the workplace and ways to ensure equal treatment and dignity at work. The conversation explored the various dimensions of bullying at the workplace – physical violence, psychological harassment and sexual harassment and the hurdles faced by local and global human rights campaigns to address it.
Prof. Pinki Mathur Anurag (Director, CHRS) was invited as a panelist to speak on ‘International Convention on Disability and its usefulness for Elderly’ at a webinar titled, ‘Intersectionality of Longevity and Disability’ organized by HelpAge India on 1st December 2023.
Human Rights conversations series on Environment and Human Rights
Green Evictions: The Environmental Shield to Human Rights Violations on 17 April 2024. The speakers were Prof. Prakhar Pandey- Assistant Director Environmental Law Clinic, Jindal Global Law School and Anuj Behal- Researcher and Journalist, Housing and Land Rights Network, New Delhi . The session was moderated by Ishan Vijay, Research Assistant, CHRS. The panel focussed on questions related to environmental protection and human rights, especially on right to housing and livelihood.
The Human Rights Conversation Series on Green Warfare: ICC’s Preparedness For Environmental Crimes In Armed Conflicts on 26 April 2024.
The speaker was Prof. Dr. Paulo Borba Casella – —Professor of Public International Law at São Paulo University Law School and the session was moderated by Alex Silvia, Senior Research Associate, CHRS. It was a very enriching session where professor Casella discussed the practical challenges related to investigating and persecuting environmental crimes in ICC.
Publication of the volume: “Violence in Intimate Spaces: Law and Beyond” to be published by Springer Nature Singapore
Editors: Pinki Mathur Anurag, Santwana Dwivedy
Publication date: August 2024
Book announced on: https://link.springer.com/book/9789819726561
Overview
Part of the book series: Sustainable Development Goals Series (SDGS)
About this book:
This book provides a textured understanding of intimate violence across the unlimited stretch of human relationships, institutions, and social structures. The volume has been conceptualized with the overarching objective to provide the reader with a collection of thoughtfully selected chapters that critically examine existing literature for an in-depth analysis of institutions through the lens of violence, beyond disciplinary and topical boundaries, from a range of methodologies. The book encourages reflections on the complexities of society, its institutions and gendered norms that enmesh violence and intimate relationships. It further examines the socio-normative contexts within which violence operates as a tool for maintaining inequalities in society. The chapters in this volume attempt to address questions such as: What are the complexities in the relationship between the perpetrator and the victim which sustain and legitimize violence? What are the diverse dimensions of violence in intimate relationships? What role does violence in intimate spaces play in preserving status quo and the pervasive gendered hierarchies within society and its institutions? Who is vulnerable to violence and why? The book covers conversations on intimate space violence and relationships that have not been explored hitherto in mainstream academic debates. The volume pivots violence fundamentally as a product of ‘entitlements’ based on gendered social hierarchies and critical intersectionalities to examine its manifestations in a variety of intimate situations and relationships beyond socio-cultural, religious and geographical boundaries. The book provides invaluable learnings for academics, researchers, students, lawyers, sociologists, social workers, health professionals and policymakers.
chrs@jgu.edu.in