Thousands of political prisoners, including prisoners of conscience, were detained without charge or trial. Torture and ill-treatment continued to be widespread, and hundreds of people were reported to have died in custody. Conditions in many prisons amounted to cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment. "Disappearances" continued and hundreds of extra-judicial executions were reported. At least 35 people were sentenced to death; no executions were reported. Armed groups committed grave human rights abuses, including torture, hostage-taking and killings of civilians ...

In May a Prevention of Terrorist Activities Bill (1998) was passed in the Tamil Nadu state legislature ... I November the President of India returned the legislation to the state government, requesting it to reconsider several provisions. Other legislation that facilitates human rights violations continued to be used in parts of the country, including the Armed Forces (Special Powers)Act which gives the security forces powers to shoot to kill and grants them virtual immunity from prosecution.

The National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) continued to monitor human rights abuses and make recommendations for the promotion and protection of human rights. During the year state human rights commissions were established in Kerala and Manipur. In June a high level Advisory Committee was appointed by the NHRC to look into provisions of the 1993 Protection of Human Rights Act under which the NHRC was established. Areas of consideration included Section 19 of the Act which restricts NHRC investigations of alleged human rights violations by members of the armed and paramilitary forces.

 In September the Supreme Court dismissed a challenge by the central government to the NHRC's powers to investigate past human rights violations in Punjab ... Armed conflict between government forces and armed groups continued in parts of the country, including J&K, north eastern states and AP: Civilians, including women and children, were often the victims of abuses by both sides. Thousands of political prisoners, including prisoners of conscience, were detained without charge or trial. They included human rights defenders and people peacefully protesting against violations of civil, cultural, economic, political and social rights..

Many people were detained under the 1980 National Security Act (NSA), which permits administrative detention for up to one year on loosely defined grounds of national security. There were regular reports of arrests under the NSA in Tamil Nadu and UP during the year.

In J&K, political leaders peacefully protesting against human rights violations were frequently detained without charge or trial under the 1978 J&K Public Safety Act and the preventive detention provisions of the ordinary criminal law ...

 Several human rights defenders were arrested in Punjab. There were concerns that the arrests were connected with their involvement in the Punjab Committee for Coordination on Disappearances, a network of lawyers established in recent years to pursue the issue of redress for "disappearances" ...

Torture, including rape, and ill-treatment continued to be endemic throughout the country ... There were continuing reports of rape by members of the security forces in various parts of the country ...

Hundreds of people were reported to have died in custody. The NHRC continued to monitor deaths in police and judicial custody and to call for reports from the authorities about steps taken to investigate such deaths and bring those responsible to justice.

Prison conditions amounted to cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment in many facilities including juvenile homes .... "Disappearances" continued to be reported during the year - predominantly in J&K, Assam and Manipur. Legislation protecting members of the security forces from investigation and prosecution continued to prevent the determination of the fate of the "disappeared" ...

In August Haleema Begum and her'14-year-old son, Sliakeel Ahmed, were shot dead by unidentified gunmen in their home in Srinagar, J&K. Since the "disappearance" of her son, Bilal Ahmad Bhat, following his arrest by the security forces in December 1992, Haleema Begum had campaigned to highlight the issue of "disappearances" ..

No investigation had been carried out into the deaths of Haleema Begum and her youngest son by the end of the year. Hundreds of extra-judicial executions were reported in many states. In September, a judicial inquiry ordered by the High Court into three incidents among scores of so- called "encounter" killings of armed criminal suspects by the Mumbai (Bombay) policed ... found that the police version of events was false and that there was evidence to suggest that the three men concerned were extra-judicially executed.

In September, a. 10-year-old boy was killed and several others were injured during a cordon-and-search operation in Nowpora village in J&K ... An investigation was reported to have been ordered, but had not been completed by the end of the year. At least 35 people were sentenced to death ... No executions were reported during the year but the Home Minister referred on several occasions to government plans to extend the use of the death penalty for crimes including rape, child rape and the carrying of explosives ... There were increasing reports of attacks on religious minorities including Christians and Muslims, most notably in Gujarat state. Many of the attacks were reportedly carried out by members of militant Hindu groups. The National Commission for Minorities investigated reported incidents in Gujarat in August and expressed serious concern about the situation, pointing to violations of fundamental rights. Its recommendations included increased training of police in order to ensure respect for the rights of minorities.

In August, in response to public pressure, the state government of Maharashtra published the report of the Srikrishna Commission of Inquiry set up in 1993 to investigate the ... riots ... in Mumbai in December 1992 and January 1993 following the destruction of the mosque at Ayodhya ... The report pointed to communalism within the police force which led to discrimination against members of the Muslim community during the riots and incitement to riot by members of the Shiv Sena ... The Government of Maharashtra, a Shiv Sena-BJP alliance,dismissed the majority of the recommendations ... in the report.

Armed groups continued to commit grave human  rights abuses, including torture, hostage-taking and deliberate and arbitrary killings of civilians ... In December, 23 Muslims were shot dead by suspected members of an armed Bodo group in Kokrajhar district. In January unidentified gunmen shot dead 23 civilians,. including four children, in the village of Vandhama, near the town of Ganderbal in J&K, before setting fire to a Hindu temple. Similar incidents continued to occur  throughout the year in J&K. Hostages abducted by armed groups in previous years remained held.

Throughout the year Amnesty International called on armed groups in J&K and north eastern states to abide by the principles of international humanitarian law.