CHR

About Human Rights

The Centre for Human Rights was established in the year 2017 with an objective to develop a holistic understanding of the nature and dynamics and the angularities of Human Rights and their violations and various modes of protecting these rights. The Centre aims to spread awareness among the masses about human rights violations and take active measures to protect them. The Centre focuses on conceptualizing several laws, policies, and processes that address or lead to violation of human rights. In this endeavour, the Centre has been instrumental in collaborating with various universities such as Edinboro University, USA, and conducting various activities such as providing legal aid to Rohingya Refugees in Hyderabad. It has also organized different competitions, bi-weekly discussions on contemporary legal issues concerning human rights, National Seminars and Conferences graced by eminent personalities to collate new ideas and contribute in the best possible manner to the global pool of knowledge on Human Rights. The Centre also aims to undertake research projects at both, theoretical and empirical levels with a holistic perspective of policy implications on various themes to develop a better understanding of the emerging issues in the global regime of Human Rights and formulate measures and policies to resolve the same.

Aims / Objectives of the Centre:

• To spread awareness and educate students and the general public about the Human Rights every person is entitled to and their violations.
• To create a platform for the stakeholders for collaboration, study and research on policy decisions which determine the Human Rights regime of the nation.
• To formulate research strategies towards better understanding of the emerging issues in the domain of Human Rights.
• To help and persuade the legislature and governments in order to enact suitable laws and policies for safeguarding human rights.
• To organize seminars, workshops, conferences, debates, awareness drives and counselling sessions through collaboration by various stakeholders, resource persons and policy makers.

Faculty-in-Charge

Mr. Ahmar Afaq, Assistant Professor, SLSH.

Email ID : ahmar.afaq@slsh.edu.in

Official Email-id of the Centre :

Email ID : chr@slsh.edu.in

List of Members for the Academic Year 2019-20

SNO	NAME	PRN	BATCH	EMAIL-ID
1	Meghna Saxena	16010324342	2016-21	meghna.saxena@slsh.edu.in
2	Sweta Mishra	16010324267	2016-21	sweta.mishra@slsh.edu.in
3	Tenzin Nordin	16010323068	2016-21	tenzin.nordin@slsh.edu.in
4	Bhavya Gaur	17010324085	2017-22	bhavya.gaur@student.slsh.edu.in
5	Mahee Vohra	17010323062	2017-22	mahee.vohra@student.slsh.edu.in
6	Manasvi Shukla	17010324023	2017-22	manasvi.shukla@student.slsh.edu.in
7	Mohd. Abdul Yousuf	17010324103	2017-22	abdul.mohd@student.slsh.edu.in
8	Rupal Chhaya	17010324119	2017-22	rupal.chhaya@student.slsh.edu.in
9	Bhavesh Goel	18010323038	2018-23	bhavesh_goel@student.slsh.edu.in
10	Koratla Sai Nikhil	18010323065	2018-23	koratla_venkat_sai_nikhil@student.slsh.edu.in
11	Mahek Agarwal	18010324073	2018-23	mahek_agarwal@student.slsh.edu.in
12	Mohd. Asrar Ahmed	18010323082	2018-23	mohammed_asrar_ahmed_maaz@student.slsh.edu.in
13	Shraddha Baitmangalkar	18010324131	2018-23	shraddha_baitmangalkar@student.slsh.edu.in
14	Vaibhav Suppal	18010323131	2018-23	vaibhav_suppal@student.slsh.edu.in
15	Aarushi Gupta	19010323001	2019-24	aarushi.gupta@student.slsh.edu.in
16	Diphali Sunil Jethani	19010323038	2019-24	diphali.sunil@slsh.edu.in
17	Palaaksha Kandhari	19010324105	2019-24	palaaksha.kandhari@student.slsh.edu.in
18	Shrishti Verma	19010323110	2019-24	shrishti.verma@student.slsh.edu.in
19	Srajan Kapil	19010323116	2019-24	srajan.kapil@student.slsh.edu.in
20	Sumedha Chattopadhyay	19010324137	2019-24	sumedha.chattopadhyay@student.slsh.edu.in
21	Trisha Bose	19010324141	2019-24	trisha.bose@student.slsh.edu.in

Activities conducted by the Cell / Centre

• Inauguration of the Centre

  

  Unveiling the Marble Shield –Centre for Human Rights

  The Centre for Human Rights was established in February 2018 and the formal inauguration ceremony of the Centre was held on 14th July 2018. The Chief Guest for the Inauguration Ceremony was Hon’ble Justice A Rajashekar Reddy, Judge, High Court of Judicature at Hyderabad. The ceremony was also graced by Ms. G Rosy, Founder, Sankalp Foundation. The inauguration of the Centre took place by unveiling the curtain of the marble shield by the dignitaries including Dr. Sukhvinder Singh Dari, Officiating Director, SLSH and Mr. Ahmar Afaq, Faculty In-charge, Centre for Human Rights.

  

  Ms. Rosy addressing the audience

  

  Justice Rajashekar Reddy addressing the students

  Justice Rahu addressed the audience and stressed upon the importance of Human Rights and its awareness, he also quoted few landmark judgements of the Supreme Court which shed light on the importance of Human Rights. The Guest of Honour – Ms. G Rosy shared her experiences and struggles in life and motivated the students to work for the betterment of society and protection of human rights. The Faculty In-charge of Centre for Human Rights – Mr. Ahmar Afaq then introduced the Centre and mentioned the aims and objectives of the Centre and introduced the members of the Centre and promised to try his best to live up to the expectations of the society and fulfilling the objectives of the centre for the greater good of all.

• One Day Lecture Series on “The Future Prospects Of Indian Law Graduates In UAE” – 14th July 2018

  A one day lecture was organized to give the budding lawyers an insight into the ongoing and future opportunities in the UAE along with the importance of commercial international arbitration. Mr P. K. Abdul Raheem (Partner- ARG Law Partners & Associate Mohamed Aleghfeli Advocates & Legal Consultants, United Arab Emirates) was the guest speaker for the day. He was an attorney in a corporate firm and also an associate attorney in Attorney’s Alliance Law Firm: High Court of Kerala and Kochi. He has also been working as a legal consultant in Legal Maxims Group, UAE.

  

  Felicitation of Mr P. K. Abdul Raheem

  He discussed the scope of Indian Law Graduates in UAE and stated that there is a dire need of lawyers in UAE since it is a hub for various industries like oil, natural gas, etc. His talk was followed by an interactive session with the students wherein he answered the questions relating to admissions in universities, job prospects, and higher education, etc. put forth by the students from across batches. The series involved a session on International Commercial Arbitration wherein the audience was given insights into certain new concepts like the arbitration center, arbitration seat, and laws related to arbitration.

• ROHINGYA REFUGEE VISIT in collaboration with Edinboro University, USA (15th August 2018)

  Refugee issues are one of the vital issues surrounding nations at an international level, however one needs to look into the real situations and conditions of those who suffer. To study the crisis being faced by Rohingya Refugees, a visit was planned to Bolapur, Hyderabad where more than 1000 refugees reside in adverse conditions. This visit was in collaboration with the Edinboro University, USA wherein Prof. George Richards accompanied Mr. Ahmar Afaq, Faculty In-charge, Centre for Huamn Rights along with student members, Ms. Monalisa Mukherjee, Ms. Prityanshee Piyush and Ms. Rupal Chhaya. This study was empirical in nature which mainly focussed on the conditions of the refugees staying in the camp. A detailed study was conducted as to the essentials, identity cards, their shelters, the rents, their livelihood etc. The visit was an eye opener as to the living conditions the people were surviving in with no gas cylinder, no medical facilities, no schooling in the 2km circumference etc.

  

  

  

• NILGIRI VISIT in collaboration with Centre for Criminal Justice

  The Centre for Human Rights in collaboration with the Centre for Criminal Law and Criminal Justice (CCCJ) planned a visit to the Nilgiri Hills in June 2018. The purpose of the visit was to conduct an empirical study of the 6 Niligiri tribes namely - Toda, Kotha, Irula, Kurumba, Paniyas and Kattanyakas. The students were divided into 4 groups to study the historical aspects, the Human Rights concerns, cultural aspects and other issues of the tribes. The study was conducted under the guidance of Dr. Stalin Rengaswamy, Mr. Ahmar Afaq and Dr. Pooja Rhine.

  

  Students interacting with the ladies of Kurumba Tribe

  

  Team CCCJ and Team CHR

• Two Day National Conference on Uniform Civil Code – (17th – 18th January 2020)

  A two-day National Conference on the theme Uniform Civil Code on the 18th and 19th of January 2020 was organized by the Centre for Human Rights. This Conference saw the participation of professors, research scholars, legal luminaries and students from various universities across the country. The various sub-themes of the Conference included – UCC: Need and Importance; UCC and Human Rights; UCC vis-à-vis Personal Laws; UCC: Social Problem or a Political Agenda?; UCC and Indian Judiciary; Issues and Challenges; UCC and Plurality under Indian Constitution; and Uniform Civil Code vs. Common Code. The Inaugural ceremony was held on 18th January 2020 in the auditorium. Justice Iqbal Ahmed Ansari, Chairperson, Punjab State Human Rights Commission was the Chief Guest, while Prof. (Dr.) Iqbal Ali Khan, Former Dean & Chairman, Faculty of Law, Aligarh Muslim University and Dr. T.S.N. Sastry, Vice Chancellor, Tamil Nadu Dr Ambedkar Law University, Chennai, were the Guests of Honour in the presence of Prof. (Dr.) Sarfaraz Ahmed Khan, former Director, Symbiosis Law School, Hyderabad, Dr. Anuradha Binnuri, Deputy Director, SLSH and Mr. Ahmar Afaq, Faculty In-charge, Centre for Human Rights, SLSH, for the inaugural ceremony. The other guest speakers included – Prof. (Dr.) Nuzhat Parveen Khan, Former Dean, Faculty of Law, Jamia Millia Islamia, New Delhi; Prof. (Dr.) Rukmini Sen, School of Liberal Studies, Ambedkar University Delhi; Prof. (Dr.) Afroz Alam, Professor and Head, Department of Political Science at Maulana Azad National Urdu University (MANUU); Mr. Shameek Sen, Assistant Professor, School of Public Laws and Governance, National University of Juridical Sciences (NUJS); Adv. Zehra Rasheed Anwar and Adv. Prashant Padmanabhan, Advocate-on-Record, Supreme Court of India.

  

  

• CONVERSE’19 : TWO- DAY NATIONAL SEMINAR ON CONTEMPORARY WOMEN RIGHTS: ISSUES AND CHALLENGES (15th – 16th February 2019)

  The Two-Day National Seminar on Contemporary Women Right Issues & Challenges hosted a total of 130 participants from across the country. The conference was based on sub-themes like Women and Personal Law, Women & Cyberspace, Women & Media, Women & Constitution, Women & Criminal Justice System, Women & Trafficking, Women & Empowerment and Women & Reproductive Rights. The Inaugural Ceremony of the conference was held on 15th February 2019 and was graced with the presence of Prof. (Dr.). Nuzhat Parven Khan Dean, Faculty of Law, Jamia Millia Islamia; Prof. (Dr.) Sarfaraz Ahmed Khan, Associate Professor, Maharashtra National Law University; and Prof. (Dr.) Rekha Pande, Director of the Centre for Women's Studies and a Professor of History in the University of Hyderabad. Each of the sessions of the seminar was chaired by the experts in that field who gave vital inputs following a constructive discussion and insightful deliberation with the participants.

  
  
  

• Two Day National Conference on Business and Human Rights – (22nd – 23rd February 2020)

  The Centre hosted a two day National Conference on the theme Business and Human Rights on the 22nd and 23rd of February 2020. The various sub-themes of the Conference included wide areas such as – National Action Plans to implement UNGPs: Potential Pathways in India; Access to Justice for Human Rights Violations by Multi-National Corporations; Corporate Activism and Human Rights, Human Rights Due-Diligence and Business and compliance with Labour Rights and Standards; Business, Human Rights and Corporate Social Responsibility and Business and Environment Laws; Sexual Harassment and Gender Discrimination at workplace

  The Inaugural ceremony was graced by Dr. Dnyaneshwar Manohar Mulay, Member, National Human Rights Commission as the Chief Guest, Dr. Sukhvinder Singh Dari, Director, Symbiosis Law School, Nagpur; and Mr. M Venkateshwarlu, President, Telangana Chambers of Commerce and Industry as the Guests of Honour and Prof. (Dr.) Sarfaraz Ahmed Khan, then Director, Symbiosis Law School, Hyderabad, Dr. Anuradha Binnuri, Deputy Director, SLSH and Mr. Ahmar Afaq, Faculty In-charge, Centre for Human Rights, SLSH. Dr. Surya Deva, Associate Professor at the School of Law of City University of Hong Kong, addressed the gathering at the inaugural ceremony through Skype. The other guest speakers included – Prof. (Dr.) Afzal Wani, Professor and Dean, SoI; Prof. (Dr.) Manik Chakrobarty Former Director, UGC; Prof. Anand Kumar, Prof. Madhav Mallya, Prof. Geoffery Clement, Dr. Gaurav Varshney, Ms. Anee Khan, were the other guest speakers.

  

  Felicitation of Dr. Dnyaneshwar Mulay

  

  Lighting of Lamp by the dignitaries– CONVERSE’20

• LAUNCH OF THE CONFERENCE PROCEEDINGS OF CONVERSE’19

  The Centre for Human Rights had also launched its first ever publication of conference proceedings of CONVERSE’19 – the annual flagship seminar of the Centre, at the inaugural ceremony

  

• Bi-weekly Discussions on Contemporary Legal Issues:

  “Freedom has multiple dimensions to it, one of it being the right to assemble, organize and debate on an open platform.” With this thought in mind, the Centre for Human Rights has taken the initiative of conducting bi-weekly discussions on contemporary legal issues which reflect human rights violations across the country and also at the global level. This initiative was undertaken to provide a platform for the students to come together, discuss, deliberate and express their views on various laws and other legal issues and developments that are taking place. By this way, students get an opportunity to widen their horizons in terms of gaining knowledge about various issues, imbibe public speaking skills and have an interaction with luminaries from the legal field. The Centre has successfully conducted the discussions on the following issues in the academic year 2019-20.

  

  

  

  

  

  

  

  

  
  1. The Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Amendment Bill, 2019 on 6th August 2019
  2. The Prevention of Children from Sexual Offences Act, 2019 on 22nd August 2019
  3. National Register of Citizens (NRC) on 3rd September 2019
  4. The Transgender Persons (Protection of Rights) Bill, 2019 on 26th September 2019
  5. The Jogini System on 23rd January 2020 (Dr. Gogu Shyamala, one of the foremost contemporary Dalit voices in India and an inventive writer, author and poet in Telugu - Guest speaker)
  6. Human Trafficking – The Ground Reality on 13th February 2020 (Ms. Suneetha Krishnan, Co-Founder of PRAJWALA and one of the topmost Human Rights Activist in the country who had successfully rescued 23,000 girls from the trap of human trafficking – Guest Speaker)
  7. Human Right Concern Post Kerala Floods on 15th February 2020 (Advocate Jacob Alex, Advocate, High Court of Kerala – Guest Speaker)

• Summer Virtual Internship by Centre for Human Rights (May – June 2020)

  The Centre for Human Rights at Symbiosis Law School, Hyderabad conducted its first Online Internship Programme in view of the ongoing pandemic COVID-19. This Online Internship Programme served as an opportunity for students and research scholars in terms of developing their research skills and understanding the practical aspects relating to violation of Human rights especially during the lockdown period due to the COVID-19 pandemic. The Internship Programme commenced on the 11th of May 2020 and concluded on 11th June 2020. As part of the programme, on 22nd May 2020, an online webinar session on the Fundamentals of Research was taken by Dr. Rengasamy Stalin, Assistant Professor, MNLU, Nagpur. The online session was a very informative and lively wherein not only the fundamentals of the research were duly discussed through interesting activities, but also addressed the tips and techniques to write an effective research paper in order to provide clarity to the quality of the work. The interns were selected based on their CV and a sample of the article authored by them. The papers submitted by the interns would be published in the form of an edited book by the Centre

  

• Lecture - Discussion on "Practical Aspects of Public Interest Litigation" and "Insights into Anti-Defection Law"

  A lecture was held on 22nd August 2020 by Adv. Sunil Fernandes, Advocate on Record at Supreme Court of India and the High Court of Delhi.

  

  

• (10) Other Events/Achievements:

  1. A National Essay Writing Competition on the theme “Contemporary Human Rights Issues in India” was conducted in the month of January, 2018. An overwhelming response of 300 essays was received from across the country. The best essays were duly acknowledged and the authors were awarded with cash prizes.
  2. To embark World Day Against Trafficking in Persons, the Centre for Human Rights in collaboration with Centre for Gender Studies organized an article writing competition on the topic "India's Anti-Trafficking Bill turning a blind eye to socio-economic reality of Trafficked Persons” on 6th August 2019. The best articles were duly awarded with cash prizes and certificates of appreciation.
  3. A webinar on the topic, “COVID-19 and Human Rights violation with special reference to Migrant Labourers,” was organized on 13th May 2020. The speakers of the session were – Mr. Shamindra Nath Roy (Senior Researcher, Centre for Policy Research, New Delhi) and Mr. Manish (Research Associate, Centre for Policy Research, New Delhi) while Mr. Ahmar Afaq, Faculty In-charge, Centre for Human Rights moderated the session. The problems and human rights violation of migrant labourers were discussed at length and probable solutions were suggested by the attendees.
  4. The Centre for Human Rights in collaboration with the Legal Aid Centre organised a webinar on the topic, “Child Labour: Exploring Contemporary Narrative” to mark the World Day against Child Labour on 12th June 2020. The guest speakers of the webinar were - Dr. M. Murali Krishna (Child Protection Officer, UNICEF) and Prof. (Dr.) Sarfaraz Ahmed Khan, then Director, SLS-H who gave us some insights into the Child and Adolescent (Regulation and Prohibition) Act, 1986.
  
  5. The Centre for Human Rights was adjudged as the Most Active Centre at Symbiosis Law School, Hyderabad for the academic year 2019-20.