India in the World
- On the 1st of June, Myanmar President Hlaing’s visited New Delhi to hold bilateral talks. During the talks, PM Modi confirmed India’s commitment to deepening security cooperation and indicated that India will cover training of Myanmar troops for United Nations peacekeeping. Press had not been allowed inside the event nor did the two leaders take questions from the press.
- On the 1st of June, India and Australia reaffirmed their commitment to strengthening defense and security cooperation across the Indo-Pacific during the second India-Australia Defence Minister’s Dialogue in New Delhi.
- On the 28th of June, India’s Ministry of External Affairs rejected Pakistan’s allegations of India’s involvement in a terrorist attack on a Pakistani military base the day prior. In a press statement, MEA spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal called the accusations ‘baseless’ and accused Pakistan of using terrorism “as an instrument of state policy.”
- One the 28th of June, PM Modi started his three-day visit to Seychelles in which the two countries expanded their bilateral cooperation across defence, development, healthcare, and agriculture, and India committed to support Seychelles maritime security capabilities through surveillance and defence capacity building.
Civil society, human rights defenders, and journalists
- On the 13th of June, Umar Khalid and Sharjeel Imam have filed new bail applications at the Delhi High Court, arguing that their continued detention without trial or formal charges violates their fundamental right to personal liberty. The two activists were arrested due to alleged links to the 2020 Delhi riots under the Unlawful Activities Prevention Act, and they have since spent nearly six years in custody without trial.
- Phase 3 of the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) has started in 4 states: Odisha, Mizoram, Sikkim and Manipur, which encompasses around 3.7 crore voters. Eligible electors will be included in the draft poll rolls published on July 5th, followed by a month-long window for claims and objections. The final poll rolls of all four states will be published on September 6th. The Supreme Court has recently upheld the SIR exercises and the related procedures; the Election Commission thus has the authority to examine a person’s citizenship for the limited purpose of voting eligibility.
- Human Rights groups warn that E. Abubacker, founding chairman of the now-banned Popular Front of India, could risk death in custody due to his continued incarceration and custodial neglect. Abubacker, who has severe health conditions, has spent 3,5 years in Tihar Jail under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act without trial. Jail authorities have submitted an acknowledgement to the Delhi High Court that they can only provide limited medical assistance, while his family sought permission to have him treated at a private hospital, a transfer which the court refused.
- On the 10th of June, the Delhi High Court granted bail to Kashmiri human rights activist Khurram Parves who has been incarcerated without trial since 2021. Parvez was arrested under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act under alleged links to a Pakistani-terrorist organization. The appeal argued that Parvez was a ‘factual stranger’ to the conspiracy alleged by the National Investigation Agency as there has been no digital evidence that Parvez was in contact with the organization nor with the co-accused.
- On the 20th of June, a 25-year-old resident in Rajasthan was taken into ‘preventative custody’ for posting a video on Instagram critical of the RSS, featuring children on a playground who were allegedly engaged in an RSS exercise. The resident, who had accused RSS of teaching the children “the seed of religion and hate”, allegedly received threat calls from members of RSS and the police to delete the video. He further alleges that later that day, he was abducted and beaten by the police without any pretext of arrest. Kotwali Jhunjhunu police station stated that they took Rajasthan under ‘preventative custody’ to prevent the ‘disruption of peace.’
Hate Crimes and Hate Speech against Minorities
- On the 6th of June, while speaking at a BJP training program, West-Bengal Chief Minister Adhikari claimed that 4800 undocumented Bangladeshi immigrants have been deported from the state in the past month and that another 836 ‘illegal infiltrators’ are awaiting deportations.
- On the 7th of June, during a press conference, BJP leader Nazia Elahi Khan urged Hindus to boycott Muslims “everywhere” but notably in government and private sector employment. She claimed that India was under attack by people with a ‘Pakistan-mentality’ and questioned the patriotism of Muslims whom she accused placed ‘Islam first’.
- On the 27th of June, a BJP leader assaulted a Muslim school principal at a private school in Telangana over the teaching of Urdu, the state’s second official language. A group of 10 to 15 men allegedly entered the high school and accused the principal of forcing Hindu students to embrace Islam. The school board, led by Hindu members, denied the allegations and stated that the language class contained only 25 students. The police registered a case against the local BJP’s leader on charges of trespassing, and a case against the school’s principal for promoting enmity between groups.
Religious Freedoms and Minority Rights
- On the 1st of June, Jammu and Kashmir Police arrested People Democratic Party (PDP) leader and tribal rights activist Talib Hussain for alleged attempted murder, assault of a public servant and rioting with deadly weapons. The Tribal activist was protesting a demolition drive in Bandi village on May 19th in which 30 structures were demolished and residents were evicted at 4 am without any notice. Around 150 people had gathered near the site to protest, including Hussain, who was arrested and accused of attacking the police. According to his lawyer, the protest was peaceful and Hussain had merely demanded the constitutional rights of tribal communities.
- Around 40 Adivasi farmer families staged a 9-day protest in a village in Madya Pradesh requesting their missing land ownership to be added to digital land records. The protest was initiated after the District Trade Industry Centre requested their lands, classified as state property, for commercial use. In response to the protests, the administration halted the proposed industrial project and promised to conduct a demarcation exercise.
- On the 21st of June, opposition leaders condemned the Rajasthan government for targeting and demolishing Muslim religious sites in border districts under the guise of anti-encroachment measures. The critique arises after Muslim Mirror reported that 23 mosques and madrasas were demolished in the last 45 days, all in BJP-ruled states. According to Human Rights organisations the Rajasthan administration issued 24-hour eviction notices to several Muslim religious sites if they could not provide formal documentations, including centuries old religious shrines. Congress district president Amardeen Fakir called the notices unrealistic as many religious sites pre-date the maintenance of formal land documentation.
Internet and Technology
- On the 3rd of June the Supreme Court’s artificial intelligence committee published a preliminary draft of the Regulations for Use of AI in Court 2026, which include a complete ban on using AI to decide judicial outcomes. The draft outlines restrictions on AI tools to predict or profile parties and witnesses and further prohibits undisclosed or unexplainable AI systems that perpetuate bias on any ground prohibited in the Constitution.
- The Internet Freedom Foundation (IFF) has criticised the Union government’s decision to restrict access to Telegram for Indian users until June 22nd and disable the platform’s message-editing feature until the 30th. The Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology invoked the restriction in response to exam papers being leaked on the platform. According to the digital rights organisation, the measures are ineffective, disproportionate and intrusive as the National Testing Agency already implemented effective targeted actions.
Police and authorities
- On the 6th of June, Youth Congress workers staged a demonstration in Haryana’s Kurukshetra which was met with police barricades and water cannons. The protesters, led by Congress member Deepender Hooda, demanded the resignation of Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan over the NEET paper leak and alleged irregularities in examinations.
- On the 8th of June, the Allahabad High Court issued guidelines against illegal preventative detention which hold officials personally liable. The bench expressed concern over the widespread practise of police officers and magistrates detaining individuals for several days under the apprehension of ‘a breach of peace’. Under the new guidelines, preventive detention will be more strictly governed and officials responsible of detention without lawful justification will face disciplinary proceedings for dereliction of duty.
Judiciary
- The Narmadapuram Court has convicted seven men to life imprisonment in connection to a 2022 mob lynching incident which killed one man and injured several. The seven men were part of a cow vigilantes group which had accused the victims of cow smuggling. The judge observed that the accused had armed themselves with deadly weapons and beat the victims with extreme brutality, which resulted in the death of one man.
- On the 23rd of June, the Supreme court refused to hear an urgent plea on the decision of BJP-led Bengali Government to link welfare benefits to the Special Intensive Revision. An exclusion from electoral rolls after the SIR also means a loss of benefits, which could lead to 60 lakh ration cards becoming inactive. The bench requested the petitioners to approach the Calcutta High Court as it did not view the matter as national importance. The petitioners argued that neighboring states would likely follow Bengal’s lead, as is the case for Bihar according to its BJP Chief Minister Choudhary
- On the 29th of June, the West Bengal Assembly passed the Public Safety and Control of Anti-Social Activities Bill, allowing year-long ‘preventive detention’ for ‘anti-social’ activities. Every detention case will be reviewed by an advisory board headed by a serving or former High Court Judge, detainees will not have a lawyer representing them before the panel. The Bill additionally expanded the definition of ‘anti-social’ activities which now include disturbance of public order and acts that create fear or insecurity among the public, it will also be illegal to assist those against whom a detention order has been issued.
Business & economy
- Over a 150 houses have been demolished to widen a road in Delhi, following a Supreme Court’s judgement on a decades-old land acquisition claim. The houses belonged to predominantly low-income labourers who state they are now homeless as they weren’t given alternative housing or compensation for the loss of their life savings. Residents further state that they weren’t allowed to retrieve their belongings and that they have either been destroyed or taken. Advocates state that the land had been in use by the residents for 50 years and that the government had previously recognized their settlement rights through documentation. Activists and lawyers have raised concerns over the violations of rights and due process.
Compilation by: Diaspora in Action for Human Rights and Democracy.
