Should India ratify the UN Convention against Torture? Discuss in light of constitutional safeguards and recent instances of alleged custodial abuse.

India signed the UN Convention against Torture (UNCAT) on 14 October 1997 but has still not ratified it [1]. It also has no separate law that makes torture a crime. Constitutional safeguards are strong on paper but weak in enforcement, so India should ratify the Convention and pass a domestic law to support it.

Constitutional safeguards and their limits

• Article 21 protects life and dignity. Article 22 requires that a detainee be told the grounds of arrest and be produced before a magistrate within 24 hours. Article 32 allows a person to approach the Supreme Court directly [2].
• The D.K. Basu (1997) guidelines require name tags and arrest memos. Nilabati Behera allowed public-law compensation for custodial wrongs. Yet in 2024 the Supreme Court said it was "forced to restate" the D.K. Basu directions [3]. Guidelines made by courts do not deter the police on their own.

Recent instances of alleged custodial abuse

• NHRC recorded 155 deaths in police custody and 2,152 in judicial custody in 2021-22 (till 28 February) [4]. These figures do not count non-fatal abuse.
• In October 2026, Rajya Sabha MP A.A. Rahim petitioned the Supreme Court. He alleged that DYFI activists were held in a sealed, five-cell police van, never taken to a police station, and beaten by personnel who wore no name badges [5]. This shows how station-based safeguards can be bypassed.

Case for ratification

• Legal: UNCAT requires countries to make torture a crime. Law Commission Report No. 273 (2017) recommended ratification and drafted the Prevention of Torture Bill, 2017 [6].
• Diplomatic: Ratification would strengthen India's position in extradition requests and UN human-rights reviews.
• Ethical: It would make the State's commitment to human dignity binding, not optional.

Concerns

• Sovereignty: Some fear international scrutiny. However, the inquiry and individual-complaint procedures are optional, and India has not accepted them [1].
• Policing: There are fears of frivolous complaints and lower police morale. UNCAT's non-refoulement clause, which bars sending a person to a country where they may face torture, could also affect refugee policy.

India should ratify UNCAT and, at the same time, pass a torture-prevention law based on the Law Commission's draft [6]. This should be backed by independent investigation of complaints, CCTV in all detention spaces including vehicles, and Police Complaints Authorities. Ratification would turn Article 21's promise of dignity into a guarantee that can be enforced, and it would advance SDG 16 (peace, justice and strong institutions).