P.Wilson MP Speech in parliament on strengthening National Commission for Minorities
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P.Wilson MP Speech in parliament on strengthening National Commission for Minorities
Thank you, Chairman Sir,
I rise today to speak on a matter that goes to the very soul of our Constitution – the shocking collapse of the National Commission for Minorities established to protect the rights of religious minorities in India, like Muslims, Christians, Sikhs, Buddhists, Parsis and Jains.
In recent years, India has witnessed a disturbing escalation in targeted violence against minority communities – mob lynchings, attacks on pastors and priests, and the systematic vandalism of churches and mosques.
Reports indicate that between 2012 and 2025, over 5,000 incidents of violence and harassment against Christians alone have been documented, with more than 800 incidents recorded in 2024. Hate speech against minorities, including Muslims and Christians in India, rose by 13% in 2025. India Hate Lab documented 1,318 instances of hate speech against minorities between 2023 and 2025. Anti-conversion laws are increasingly misused in some states to file multiple FIRs, even against minors and individuals conducting prayers in private homes. People are arrested and kept in jail for months, only to be acquitted later. During Christmas, the churches were ransacked, idols and decorations were destroyed.
In tribal regions, the situation is even more distressing. Christians are being denied access to burial grounds, and in several cases have been forced to exhume the bodies of their loved ones. Since 2020, nearly 400 cases have been registered under anti-conversion laws, leading to the arrest of over 1,200 individuals on false charges. They strike at the very heart of our constitutional promise of equality, secularism, and religious freedom.
And at a time when minorities need institutional protection the most, the National Commission for Minorities – the body meant to act as a sentinel of justice – has been reduced to an empty office building. Today, every single post in the Commission – the Chairperson, Vice-Chairperson, and all Members – lies vacant. These vacancies have persisted for over ten months, and some for more than three years. It sends a chilling message: that minorities’ constitutional safeguards can be left unaddressed indefinitely.
In 2017–18, the Parliamentary Standing Committee on Social Justice and Empowerment described the Commission as “almost ineffective” in addressing discrimination, marginalisation, and violence, and it recommended granting constitutional status to the National Commission of Minorities without delay. Currently, its powers are merely advisory; a former Chairperson described it as a “toothless tiger” because it has only recommendatory powers.
Nearly a decade later, instead of strengthening the Commission, the Government has allowed it to collapse entirely.
I urge the Hon’ble Minister of Minority Affairs to fill the vacancies in the Commission immediately. I also Urge the Union Government to amend both the Constitution of India and The National Commission for Minorities Act 1992 and upgrade National Commission for Minorities as a constitutional body, entrust powers similar to the SC/ST Commission established under Art 338, 338A, define atrocities against minorities as criminal offence and empower commission to issue directions to register cases similar to that of SC/ST atrocities act, strengthen its investigative and enforcement powers to protect the interest of minority communities better.
Thank you, Chairman Sir,
