UN human rights body expresses concern over Delhi detentions, urges immediate release

The Office of the United Nations Human Rights Commissioner (OHCHR) on Saturday (October 10, 2026) said it was “concerned” by reports of “mass detentions” at the Delhi protests against the Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar, a statement that the government rejected. The UN body said that Indian authorities should ensure that the right to peaceful protest is respected and that all those detained “arbitrarily” must be immediately and unconditionally released.  The government responded sharply, calling the concerns “misplaced” and calling the OHCHR’s statement “unwarranted interference in the internal affairs of India”. 

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“We are concerned by reports of mass detentions in India of demonstrators, protest leaders, members of civil society organisations, lawyers and journalists, before and during today’s large-scale demonstrations in Delhi,” UN Human Rights spokesperson Thameen Al-Kheetan said in the statement, adding that any restrictions on the peaceful protests should meet the test of “necessity and proportionality”, in a possible reference to the large security presence in the Capital with barricades across central areas, the suspension of the internet, and the cancellation of trains to the city.

Unusually direct statement

“The Indian authorities should also ensure law enforcement forces exercise utmost restraint in response to peaceful protesters, consistent with the country’s democratic traditions and human rights obligations,” Mr. Al-Kheetan said. 

In a statement a few hours later, India’s Permanent Mission in Geneva, where the UN body is based, said that India is the “world’s largest democracy” and cited the constitution and India’s “robust institutions” to say the right to assembly is protected.

“As in every democracy, Indian citizens exercise this right subject to reasonable restrictions in the interest of public order. The authorities, for their part, act in accordance with the law, and our courts remain available to all for redressal of any grievances,” said the statement by the Indian Mission.

“The OHCHR’s concerns are therefore misplaced and constitute an unwarranted interference in the internal affairs of India,” it added. The UN body, based in Geneva, regularly publishes reports on human rights, and UN experts comment frequently on developments, but the statement is unusual, given the direct call to the government to “engage in meaningful dialogue to address the broadly held concerns expressed”.