India in the World
- On the 1st of September, a Hague-based International Tribunal ruled that India’s decision to suspend the Indus Waters Treaty was not legally permissible, and India has rejected this decision. India claims that the tribunal has no jurisdiction to pronounce on its sovereign decisions. The Court of Arbitration ordered interim measures restricting construction work, which India also rejected, claiming that it doesn’t recognise the Court and never participated in its proceedings.
- On the 3rd of September, External Affairs Minister Jaishankar asserted that India is ready to contribute to the efforts to end the Russia-Ukraine war in “any manner” possible. On the 11th of September PM Modi had a bilateral meeting with Putin Russian president, renewing India-Russia relations, discussing key regional and global developments. They agreed to work towards raising annual bilateral trade to $100 billion by 2030, from around $65 billion.
- On the 6th of September, the armies of India and China had their first Corps Commander-level meeting to expand military dialogue mechanisms amid the concerns over conflicting territorial claims and military buildup along the Line of Actual Control. Just before the BRICS Summit the parties signed an agreement establishing two additional Border Personnel Meeting Points and new hotlines fostering communication and mechanisms along the frontier.
- On the 9th of September, Rajnath Singh Defence Minister held a bilateral meeting with Anura Kumara Dissanayake Sri Lankan President. Mr. Singh said the meeting was “extremely fruitful” and added that “as civilizational cousins, close neighbors’ and maritime partners” the two states reaffirmed their commitment to working and developing together.
- On the 11th of September 2026, world leaders- including China, Russia, Brazil, South Africa and Iran – arrived in New Delhi for the 18th BRICS Summit, hosted by India on the 12th and 13th of September to discuss global governance, trade, health, technology, energy security and sustainable development. Reform of international institutions and greater representation for emerging and developing economies were also prominent on the agenda.
- On the 11th of September, the European Commission submitted the EU–India Free Trade Agreement to the Council for approval, bringing the agreement closer to signature following the conclusion of negotiations. The deal would reduce or eliminate tariffs on 96% of EU goods exports to India and establish new rules governing trade. The agreement still requires Council approval and the consent of the European Parliament before conclusion, while India must complete its own procedures.
- On the 14th of September, India and France stepped up their space cooperation, as companies from the two states signed three key agreements. They signed at the recent International Space Summit in Paris, regarding to satellite launches, space surveillance and microsatellite technology. In the third deal they agreed in a commercial cooperation to explore India’s microsatellite market as well as address the growing commercial and institutional demand.
Civil society, human rights defenders, and journalists
- On the 2nd of September the Allahabad High Court quashed the preventative detention of a university graduate under the National Security Act, who has been in jail for almost five months in connection to the Noida workers’ protest. The protest happened in April, when around 40.000-45.000 workers gathered demanding salary increase. Despite the Court’s decision, activist Chaudhary remains in prison as the Uttar Pradesh Police lodges 11 FIRs against her.
- On the 2nd of September, Delhi’s SIR showed the exclusion of 47,5 lakh voters from the draft electoral roll, while opaque categories and missing names raised questions over lakhs of voters left unaccounted for. In the Special Intensive Revisions (SIR), Delhi showed the highest exclusion rate: this number was highest in South East Delhi at 43.6%, which has a significant Muslim population as well as low-income neighbourhoods of migrant workers.
- On the 3rd of September 2026, Pune police arrested social activist and YouTuber Santosh Pandit at his home over allegedly defamatory and obscene remarks concerning Maharashtra Minister Chandrakant Patil and a municipal councilor. Pandit, whose videos frequently highlight civic problems, was charged with defamation, insult and transmitting allegedly obscene material. Pandit was subsequently granted bail on the 16th of September, with the court noting that further investigation did not require his continued detention.
- On the 8th of September, the police in Uttar Pradesh arrested a former journalist and political activist, Huda Zariwala, over a social media video where she called chief minister Adityanath for demolishing a pre-independence mosque in Saharanpur.
- On the 11th September 2026, journalist Divya Srivastava attempted to question Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath at a press conference in Lucknow about local infrastructure and education reforms. Srivastava alleged that she subsequently faced abuse from political supporters and an online campaign accusing her of working for opposition parties. She reported receiving threats and gendered abuse and said she became afraid to leave her home. Srivastava, said the experience raised concerns about journalists’ ability to question elected officials without intimidation.
- On the 11th of September, a Mumbai court granted bail to a former Tata Institute of Social Sciences (TISS) student, who was arrested for allegedly raising slogans in support of jailed activists Umar Khalid and Sharjeel Imam. Allegations of possessing downloaded books and other material, claimed as “reflecting Maoist ideology” were added. The court observed that his activity did not amount to activities against the country.
- On the 22nd of September, journalist Ravi Nair is to remain in jail, as the Gujarat High Court adjourned his petition seeking release from the judicial custody, in a criminal defamation case filed by Adani Enterprises Limited regarding social media posts on X. The Court gave Adani more time to respond to Nair’s plea and have posted the matter for another day.
- On the 30th of September, after over six years without trial, the Delhi High Court denied bail to Umar Khalid and Sharjeel Imam. The bench claimed that it cannot modify the Supreme Court ruling in Gulfisha Fatima case as conditions were imposed on Khalid Imam to seek bail, as the “court is bound by judicial discipline”. The court added that circumstances were different in Fatima and Imam’s case.
Hate Crimes and Hate Speech against Minorities
- On the 1st of September, a 15-year-old girl from Noida, who went viral for criticising PM Modi during a protest, denounced being victim of an online and offline hate campaign that reportedly included death, rape, and acid-attack threats, doxxing, and gendered abuse.
- On the 1st September, a 40-year-old tribal woman was allegedly stripped, beaten, paraded barefoot and tonsured by her husband and relatives in Rajasthan’s Banswara district after being accused of an affair. Police arrested seven people and registered a case covering assault, disrobing, unlawful assembly and other offences.
- On the 3rd of September, a 46-year-old Muslim cattle trader was reportedly beaten to death by a mob in Tripura, northeastern India, after being accused of cattle theft. His family denied the allegation, saying Rahman had purchased the two cattle from a local farmer and was collecting them before travelling to the market. Allegedly, his wife and father-in-law were also assaulted when they attempted to help him.
- On the 5th of September, MASUM human rights group signed a complaint seeking independent investigation on alleged illegal detention, custodial ill-treatment and disputed identification as a Bangladeshi national of Akhtar, Muslim worker from West Bengal. As the group alleges, the police attempted to push him across the border, even though Akhtar has a voter ID and ration card, appears in electoral records and had voted in the 2026 state election.
- On the 14th of September, Scroll reported that West Bengal police had detained at least nine Muslim men and two children since June on suspicion of being Bangladeshi nationals. Families alleged they were not given an opportunity to prove citizenship, while several detainees reportedly possessed Indian documents or had recently undergone electoral-roll scrutiny.
- On the 15th of September, the transfer of Muslim IPS officer Dr Bushra Bano in West Bengal sparked backlash as Hindutva groups targeted her for using Islamic phrases such as “InshaAllah”. A website lodged a complaint against her with the Home Secretary of Bengal, and she was transferred the next day.
- On the 17th of September, during Ganesh immersion procession in Karnataka’s Bhatkal, stones were pelted at a mosque. A local resident and members of the local Muslim community called for the arrest of those responsible. The incident allegedly took place days after tensions arose when BJP leaders and supporters protested a police warning against bursting crackers in front of a mosque.
Religious Freedom and Minority Rights
- On the 7th September, authorities demolished homes across five villages in Assam’s Goalpara district, leaving 73 Muslim families homeless after residents were given around 24 hours to leave. Authorities said the homes were unlawfully built on agricultural land and affected drainage, while residents disputed these claims. The Gauhati High Court questioned whether the procedure complied with principles of natural justice and asked the Assam government to respond.
- On the 11th of September, the Gauhati High Court found that authorities acted unlawfully when they demolished homes belonging to 73 Bengali Muslim families in Goalpara. The Court said residents were not given an adequate opportunity to respond to eviction notices and found no evidence of the imminent danger authorities cited to justify the demolitions.
- On the 14th of September, a Bhopal court acquitted a Muslim man in a conversion case, after the wife rejected the police’s allegations that the man used a false identity to marry a Hindu woman and pressure her to convert to Islam. A Muslim man’s case was registered under the Madhya Pradesh Freedom of Religion Act after the prosecution failed to substantiate allegations of forced religious conversion.
- On the 18th of September, 19 migrant workers from West Bengal were released in Chhattisgarh after official checks verified their Indian citizenship. They were among 23 workers detained as suspected Bangladeshi nationals. Their families had maintained that they were Indian citizens and provided voter cards, Aadhaar cards and other documents. Four remained in custody pending verification.
Internet and Technology
- On the 2nd of September, retired civil servant Ashish Joshi was questioned for around 10 hours by Delhi Police’s Special Cell over his social media activity. Joshi said officers questioned him about his contacts and calls, including through Signal and WhatsApp. Police had registered a case concerning one of his posts about the West Bengal elections.
- On the 9th of September, India’s child rights commission summoned senior Meta India officials over allegations that advertisements linked to child sexual exploitation and abuse material appeared on Instagram. The inquiry is examining how the advertisements passed the platform’s systems and Meta’s role in their circulation. Meta denied knowingly targeting users with such advertisements.
Political Parties
- On the 7th of September, a BJP booth-level agent was arrested in Godda district, Jharkhand, for allegedly submitting around 200 Form 7 applications seeking voter deletions, all targeting Muslim voters. A complaint alleged those named were genuine voters. Mandal was booked under forgery and electoral-law provisions but released on bail hours later. He said the forms were given to him by a BJP block president. The incident comes amid wider concerns about voter deletions during India’s Special Intensive Revision of electoral rolls.
- Trinamool Congress MP Mahua Moitra alleged that BJP workers threw eggs at her during a meeting in Krishnanagar, despite police presence, sharing a video showing eggshells in her hair. The Calcutta High Court had recently ordered police protection for her during constituency visits and instructed authorities to tackle egg-pelting and other harassment firmly.
- Actor and activist Prakash Raj alleged that Form 7 applications were used during Karnataka’s Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls to target around 21,000 Muslim voters for deletion. Raj claimed the forms were linked to local BJP figures. His team is collecting complaints and evidence across Karnataka, with plans to compile findings into an investigation report for publication and submission to state leaders.
Police and Authorities
- On the 2nd and 3rd September, India’s National Human Rights Commission examined 45 cases involving alleged human-rights violations in Gujarat, including police conduct, custodial abuse and administrative failures. The Commission identified shortcomings in individual cases and recommended compensation, while stating that the evidence did not establish systemic failures across Gujarat’s police force.
- On the 5th of September, Supreme Court Justice Ujjal Bhuyan publicly expressed concern over police officers assaulting protesters during recent student demonstrations. Justice Bhuyan described footage of young police officers personally assaulting demonstrators as “very, very distressing,” raising concerns about the conduct of law-enforcement personnel during public protests.
- On the 9th of September, Uttar Pradesh Police arrested journalist and activist Huda Zariwala after she protested the demolition of a 150-year-old mosque in Saharanpur and criticised Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath. Police accused her of making inflammatory remarks, while an FIR alleged that her comments could disturb communal harmony and public order.
- On the 18th September, organisers accused Mumbai Police of pressuring venues to cancel a private documentary screening held in solidarity with jailed activists including Umar Khalid and Sharjeel Imam. Organisers also alleged that plainclothes personnel questioned venue staff and appeared to possess information from private communications. Police had not provided a response in the report.
Judiciary
- On the 7th of September, the Gauhati High Court ordered the state of Assam to pay a compensation to a Bengali-origin Muslim woman who was expelled to Bangladesh after being declared a foreigner. The court found that authorities prevented her from challenging the tribunal’s decision, violating deportation procedures, criticised the Nagaon foreigners tribunal for not considering all the elements submitted by the woman, and ordered an inquiry.
- On the 10th of September, India’s Supreme Court clarified that a high-powered committee examining alleged violence during July’s youth protests cannot order the registration of criminal cases, as this authority remains with the Court. The committee can publicise its proceedings, receive submissions and establish a helpline for vulnerable witnesses. The Court also rejected calls to change the committee’s composition, which currently has no civil society representative.
- On the 14th September, former Supreme Court Justice Deepak Gupta criticised prolonged pre-trial detention and what he described as growing “judicial majoritarianism.” Citing activist Umar Khalid’s incarceration and the Elgar Parishad cases, Gupta argued that lengthy proceedings can themselves become a form of punishment when trials do not begin promptly. He also called for courts to decide matters involving personal liberty quickly and raised concerns about unequal treatment in bail cases.
- On the 17th of September, the Allahabad High Court granted bail to Mubarak Ali, who spent almost two-and-a-half years in custody over allegations of an email containing derogatory remarks against the Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister. The court noting his prolonged incarceration and the slow pace of the trial observed that he cannot be kept in custody merely due to his criminal antecedents, especially given that his criminal history was explained.
Business & Economy
- On the 6th of September, the BBC examined concerns among economists about the reliability of India’s economic data despite strong reported GDP growth. Critics have questioned how growth is calculated and whether official figures fully capture economic conditions. Indian officials have defended the methodology while acknowledging ongoing efforts to improve the country’s statistical system.
- On the 20th of September, Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma laid the foundation for an Adani power project on land where 1,400 Bengali-origin Muslim families were evicted in 2025. Adani told environmental authorities the site involved no rehabilitation claims, while displaced residents alleged they had not been adequately compensated or resettled.
Compiled by Diaspora in Action for Human Rights and Democracy.
