Letter to NHRC,India on right to privacy of PVCHR

Date: 17th March, 2009

To
The Chairperson
National Human Right Commission
New Delhi

Subject: in relation to non-receipt of letter by PVCHR.

Respected Sir

We would feel highly obliged to you if you kindly draw your kind attention on the problem faced by People’s Vigilance Committee on Human Rights (PVCHR) due to non-receipt of its official letters. As your letter dated 27/11/2008 case no. 39217/24/2005-2006 and 30/10/2008 case no. 39214/24/2005-2006, you had submitted that the complainant had not preferred to send his comment and the complainant appears to be satisfied with report. So case is closed. However the truth is that the complainant had not received the letter along with report for comments. Apart from these many official letters can not reach to the official address. It is known that the Intelligence Bureau is screening and banning the incoming and outgoing letters of PVCHR, so the letters could not reach to the destination, due to which no proper communication can be made, and it adversely affects the act of organization. The Supreme Court of India upheld in People’s Union for civil liberty Vs Union of India that Right to Privacy is included under right to life and personal liberty guaranteed in Art 21 of the Indian Constitution. Screening letters without reasonable cause is direct violation of right to privacy; the state can interfere in this right when it is necessary for emergency and national security. However the irony is that Intelligence Bureau is violating this right without any reasonable cause. PVCHR is a human right organization and working to ensure the basic right of the most vulnerable class of the society i.e. women, children, dalit, deprived, and marginalized class. It also tries to eliminate situations, which give rise to exploitation of vulnerable and marginalized groups and to start a movement for a people friendly society (Jan Mitra Samaj) through an inter-institutional approach. With view to achieve the objectives of the organization it advocates the matter related to human right violation through letters to various authority and institutions and receives the letter to follow-up the case. If its letters are screened and banned, how can it work in the direction to achieve its objectives?
In view of the abovementioned circumstances it is most respectfully submitted that kindly persuade the appropriate authority to stop the banning of official letters, so that the organization can works up to full extent and the people may be benefited with organization work.

Yours faithfully



Dr. Lenin
(Convener)