06.03.2007 - Source: US Department of State

Demonstrations: Violence ("Country Report on Human Rights Practices 2006") [ID 19772]

"There were some instances of demonstrations where security forces either claimed harsh tactics were warranted or failed to protect demonstrators from violence."

Document(s): Open document

14.12.2006 - Source: BBC News

Strike called by the biggest trade unions shuts down 2 communist-ruled states ("Strike shuts down Indian states") [ID 18114]

Document(s): Open document

01.08.2005 - Source: Amnesty International

Haryana,Gurgaon: Around 250 people injured, several missing and at least 1 person killed after police used force against protesting factory workers; 500 people were arrested during protests; around 440 people were released and another 60 remain in jail under various criminal charges ("Excessive force used against protesting factory workers by police") [#34634],  [ID 6348]

Document(s): Open document

08.2005 - Source: Freedom House

Freedom of assembly and association ("Freedom in the World 2005") [#41316],  [ID 6347]

"[...]There are some restrictions on freedom of assembly and association. Section 144 of the criminal procedure code empowers state-level authorities to declare a state of emergency, restrict free assembly, and impose curfews. Officials occasionally use Section 144 to prevent demonstrations, and police sometimes use excessive force against demonstrators. Human rights groups say that police and hired thugs have occasionally beaten, arbitrarily detained, or otherwise harassed villagers and members of nongovernmental organizations who protest forced relocation from the sites of development projects.[...]"

Document(s): Open document

24.06.2005 - Source: South Asia Human Rights Documentation Centre

Article on the Right to Strike ("Right to Strike - Indispensable for worker's rights (HRF/121/05)") [#33563],  [ID 6349]

Document(s): Open document
Open document

19.05.2005 - Source: Amnesty International

Madhya Pradesh: Protesters, opposing failure of state government to provide clean drinking water, beaten and 7 arrested by police ("Protestors who want clean drinking water face excessive and unnecessary police force") [#32081],  [ID 6350]

"[...]Amnesty International is concerned about reports of excessive and unnecessary use of force against protesters by police in Bhopal, Madhya Pradesh on 17 May 2005. Amnesty International has received reports of police violence at approximately 12:30 on 17 May 2005 against some 300 protestors, including women and children. The protestors were opposing the failure of the Madhya Pradesh state government to provide clean drinking water to the communities affected by the ongoing contamination of the former Union Carbide plant in Bhopal. [...]"

Document(s): Open document

12.11.2004 - Source: BBC News

West Bengal: Supreme Court imposed a ban on the right of government employees to strike ("Indian parties to defy strike ban") [#26967],  [ID 6351]

Document(s): Open document

12.08.2004 - Source: BBC News

Manipur: a woman raped and killed by soldiers in the village of Bamon Kampu/ protesters demanding that killers be brought to justice ("Midnight knock and a killing too far") [#24698],  [ID 6352]

Document(s): Open document

11.08.2004 - Source: BBC News

Manipur: more than 25 people have been injured after police used force to break up a demonstration for withdrawal of an anti-terror law in Imphal ("Many injured in Manipur protest") [#24605],  [ID 6353]

Document(s): Open document

04.08.2004 - Source: BBC News

Lawyers at the High Court in Madras have begun an indefinite strike to press for the withdrawal of a new set of rules governing their conduct ("Madras lawyers go on strike") [#24516],  [ID 6354]

Document(s): Open document

08.06.2004 - Source: BBC News

Parliament closed after protests by the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)-led opposition demanding that the new government sack RJD ministers it deems unfit for office ("Protests close Indian parliament") [#23177],  [ID 6355]

Document(s): Open document

24.05.2004 - Source: US Committee for Refugees and Immigrants

Annual report on conditions affecting refugees and asylum seekers in 2003 ("World Refugee Survey 2004") [#22816],  [ID 6356]

"In November, Indian police used water cannons, electric batons, and canes to disperse about 500 Myanmarese refugees who were demonstrating outside of the UNHCR office in New Delhi in protest of cuts in their assistance. At least 25 were injured, some seriously including head and chest wounds, and several hundred were detained for the night. In addition, authorities jailed 24 on charges of rioting and obstructing the police."

Document(s): Open document

04.2004 - Source: UK Home Office

Freedom of Assembly and Association ("Country Report - April 2004") [#22427],  [ID 6357]

"6.141 [...] According to Freedom House Survey report 2003, Section 144 of the Criminal Procedure Code empowers state-level authorities to declare a state of emergency, restrict free assembly, and impose curfews.[43]"

Document(s): Open document

04.2004 - Source: UK Home Office

Trade unions ("Country Report - April 2004") [#22427],  [ID 6358]

"6.142 The US Department of State report 2003, notes that “The Constitution provides for the right of association and the Government generally respected this right in practice. Workers may establish and join unions of their own choosing without prior authorisation. More than 400 million persons made up the country's active work force and some 30 million of these workers are employed in the formal sector. The rest overwhelmingly were agricultural workers and, to a lesser extent, urban nonindustrial labourers. While some trade unions represented agricultural workers and informal sector workers, most of the country's estimated 13 to 15 million union members were part of the 30-million-member formal sector. Of these 13 to 15 million unionised workers, some 80 percent, were members of unions affiliated with 1 of the 5 major trade union centrals. All major trade union centrals are affiliated to a greater or lesser extent with particular political parties” [2c](p32)
6.143 BBC news reported on 24 February 2004, more than a million government employees took part in a one-day strike in India, affecting many government banks, offices and state-owned firms. Unions called the walk-out in protest at the Supreme Courts ban on the government’s ban on the right to strike because of the disruption caused. [32 cr]"

Document(s): Open document

25.02.2004 - Source: US Department of State

Freedom of assembly ("Country Reports on Human Rights Practices - 2003") [#19765],  [ID 6359]

"Police frequently used excessive force indiscriminately against demonstrators, killing citizens (see Section 2.b.). [...]

The Constitution provides for freedom of assembly and association, and the Government generally respected this right in practice. The authorities sometimes required permits and notification prior to holding parades or demonstrations, but local governments ordinarily respected the right to protest peacefully, except in Jammu and Kashmir, where separatist parties routinely were denied permits for public gatherings. During periods of civil tension, the authorities may ban public assemblies or impose a curfew under the Criminal Procedure Code.

Unlike in previous years, there were no reports of banning of religious processions in Gujarat. Unlike in previous years, the Jammu and Kashmir government allowed a procession of separatist groups to march on the anniversary of the Birth of the Prophet.

In May, Jharkhand police fired upon a demonstration, and 12 persons were injured. The persons were protesting the admission of "outsiders" to take examinations for teaching positions. In June, police fired upon a demonstration in Shopian, Jammu and Kashmir, and four students were injured. The students were protesting an alleged molestation of some women students by security forces; however, the Government alleged that police fired only in self-defense.

No action was taken against security forces who forcibly dispersed demonstrations or meetings during the year or in 2002 or 2001.

NGOs must secure the prior approval of the Ministry of Home Affairs before organizing international conferences. Human rights groups contended that this provides the Government with substantial political control over the work of NGOs and their freedom of assembly and association."

Document(s): Open document

25.02.2004 - Source: US Department of State

USDOS: The Right of Association & Trade unions ("Country Reports on Human Rights Practices - 2003") [#19765],  [ID 6360]

"The Constitution provides for the right of association, and the Government generally respected this right in practice. Workers may establish and join unions of their own choosing without prior authorization. More than 400 million persons made up the country's active work force, and some 30 million of these workers were employed in the formal sector. The rest overwhelmingly were agricultural workers and, to a lesser extent, urban non-industrial laborers. While some trade unions represented agricultural workers and informal sector workers, most of the country's estimated 13 to 15 million union members were part of the 30-million-member formal sector. Of these, 13 to 15 million unionized workers, some 80 percent, were members of unions affiliated with 1 of the 5 major trade union centrals. All major trade union centrals were affiliated to a greater or lesser extent with particular political parties. Central unions stressed their independence, and in some cases were attempting to sever previously tight party control. In practice, legal protections of worker rights were effective only for the organized industrial sector. Outside the modern industrial sector, laws were difficult to enforce. Union membership was rare in the informal sector.
The authorities generally prosecuted and punished those persons responsible for intimidation or suppression of legitimate trade union activities, when the victims were members of nationally organized unions. Unaffiliated unions were not able, in all instances, to secure for themselves the protections and rights provided by law.

The Trade Union Act prohibits discrimination against union members and organizers, and employers are penalized if they discriminate against employees engaged in union activities.

Unions are free to affiliate with international trade union organizations. The Indian National Trade Union Congress and the Hind Mazdoor Sabha were affiliated with the International Confederation of Free Trade Unions (ICFTU), and the All India Trade Union Congress was affiliated with the World Federation of Trade Unions."

Document(s): Open document

25.02.2004 - Source: US Department of State

USDOS: The right to organize and bargain collectively ("Country Reports on Human Rights Practices - 2003") [#19765],  [ID 6361]

"The law provides for the right to organize and bargain collectively. Collective bargaining is the normal means of setting wages and settling disputes in unionized plants in the organized industrial sector. Trade unions vigorously defended worker interests in this process. Although a system of specialized labor courts adjudicates labor disputes, there were long delays and a backlog of unresolved cases. When the parties are unable to agree on equitable wages, the Government may establish boards of union, management, and government representatives to determine them. The legislation makes a clear distinction between civil servants and other workers. Public service employees have very limited organizing and collective bargaining rights.
Trade unions often exercised the right to strike, but public sector unions were required to give at least 14 days' notice prior to striking. Some states have laws requiring workers in certain nonpublic sector industries to give notice of a planned strike.

The Essential Services Maintenance Act allows the Government to ban strikes in government-owned enterprises and requires conciliation or arbitration in specified "essential" industries. Legal mechanisms exist for challenging the assertion that a given dispute falls within the scope of this act; however, essential services never have been defined in law. The act thus is subject to varying interpretations from state to state. State and local authorities occasionally use their power to declare strikes "illegal" and force adjudication. The Industrial Disputes Act prohibits retribution by employers against employees involved in legal strike actions, and this prohibition was observed in practice.

The Kerala High Court declared in 2002 that all general strikes (bandhs) were illegal and that all organizers of protests would be liable for losses caused by shutdowns. The Supreme Court upheld the verdict, drawing attention to the difference between a complete closedown of all activities (bandh) and a general strike (hartal). While it is likely that the ruling was introduced in relation to political strikes, unions stated that it remained a potential threat to their activities. Other court rulings also declared strikes illegal and made striking workers pay damages because consumers and the public suffered during strikes. In August, the Supreme Court declared all strikes by government employees to be illegal; however, in practice this has not been enforced.


According to Ministry of Labor statistics, between January and September there were 321 strikes and lockouts throughout the country, involving 381,000 workers. In all, 1.4 million person-days were lost due to strikes, and 50,154 person-days were lost due to lockouts during this period. In May, more than 30 million workers throughout the country went on a 1 day strike to protest government planned economic reform policies. The proposed changes would have made it easier to fire workers. The Industrial Disputes Act prohibits retaliation against strikers, provided that the strike is legal.
There were seven Export Processing Zones (EPZs). Entry into the EPZs ordinarily was limited to employees, and such entry restrictions applied to union organizers. While workers in the EPZs have the right to organize and to bargain collectively, union activity was rare. In addition, unions did not pursue vigorously efforts to organize private-sector employees in the years since EPZs were established. Women constituted the majority of the work force in the EPZs. The ICFTU reported that overtime was compulsory in the EPZs, that workers often were employed on temporary contracts with fictitious contractors rather than directly by the company, and that workers feared that complaints about substandard working conditions would result in their being fired."

Document(s): Open document

24.02.2004 - Source: BBC News

More than a million government employees have begun a one-day strike to demand higher wages, and to protest against an apex court decision banning their right to strike ("Indians strike over walk-out ban") [#19647],  [ID 6362]

Document(s): Open document

08.12.2003 - Source: BBC News

Andhra Pradesh: India's ruling Bharatiya Janata Party has called a strike in the city of Hyderabad to protest at the deaths of five people in Hindu-Muslim clashes/ police have imposed a curfew in eight areas of the city ("Hyderabad deaths spur strike call") [#18114],  [ID 6363]

Document(s): Open document

04.12.2003 - Source: BBC News

Kashmir: separatist leader Syed Ali Shah Geelani called for a strike to protest at the government decision to stop his supporters from marching in the state's summer capital, Srinagar ("Kashmir separatist rally denied") [#18002],  [ID 6364]

Document(s): Open document

04.12.2003 - Source: BBC News

Mizoram: new state government has taken the oath of office, despite violent protests by opposition supporters ("Violence at Mizoram swearing-in") [#18003],  [ID 6365]

Document(s): Open document

09.11.2003 - Source: BBC News

Journalists across India have rallied and hundreds of reporters are on day-long hunger-strike, protesting against the imprisonment of 5 senior staff of one of the country's most respected newspapers, The Hindu ("India leaders attack 'media gag'") [#17488],  [ID 6366]

Document(s): Open document

13.10.2003 - Source: BBC News

The High Court in Calcutta issued a stay order on a proposed law that would have banned street protests from being held on weekdays ("Ban on Calcutta protests delayed") [#16710],  [ID 6367]

Document(s): Open document

20.11.2001 - Source: Human Rights Watch

Prevention of Terrorism Ordinance (POTO), currently being debated in the parliament, gives to police forces sweeping powers of arrest and detention/ Hindu nationalism, religious intolerance and caste descrimination documented ("India Human Rights Press Backgrounder/ Anti-Terrorism Legislation") [#4860],  [ID 6368]

Document(s): Open document