The National Human Rights Commission has : 1. a Chairperson who has

The National Human Rights Commission has :

  • 1. a Chairperson who has been a Chief Justice of Supreme Court or a High Court of India
  • 2. one Member who is or has been a Judge of Supreme Court
  • 3. one Member who is, or has been the Chief Justice of a High Court
  • 4. two Members to be appointed from amongst persons having knowledge of or practical experience in matters relating to human rights

Select the correct answer using the code given below :

1, 2, 3 and 4
1, 2 and 3 only
1 and 4 only
2, 3 and 4 only
This question was previously asked in
UPSC CAPF – 2015
The correct option is D.
As per the Protection of Human Rights Act, 1993 (and amendments prior to 2019), the National Human Rights Commission’s composition included: a Chairperson who *must* be a former Chief Justice of the Supreme Court (not a High Court CJ or an SC Judge, as the sole eligibility criterion for the Chairperson was former CJI status) – making statement 1 incorrect. It included one member who is or has been a Judge of the Supreme Court (Statement 2 – Correct), one member who is or has been the Chief Justice of a High Court (Statement 3 – Correct), and two members with knowledge or practical experience in human rights matters (Statement 4 – Correct, as per the pre-2019 Act). Therefore, statements 2, 3, and 4 accurately describe the composition during a significant period of the NHRC’s existence.
The Protection of Human Rights (Amendment) Act, 2019, changed the composition criteria: the Chairperson can now be a former Chief Justice of the Supreme Court or a former Judge of the Supreme Court. The number of members with human rights knowledge/experience was increased from two to three. However, statement 1 as written remains incorrect even after the 2019 amendment because a High Court Chief Justice is still not eligible for the Chairperson role. Given the options, the question likely refers to the structure before the 2019 amendment concerning the number of expert members.