MPPSC 2019 Prelims Q28: Chairperson and Members of the State Human Rights

Q: What is the answer to MPPSC 2019 Prelims Q28?

A. Correct — A, the Governor. Under Section 22 of the Protection of Human Rights Act, 1993, the Chairperson and Members of a State Human Rights Commission are appointed by the Governor of the State by warrant under his hand and seal, acting on the recommendation of a committee headed by the Chief Minister. (Where a sitting Judge is appointed as a Member, it is done after consultation with the Chief Justice of the High Court — but the appointing authority remains the Governor.)

MPPSC 2019 Prelims Paper-I · Question 28 of 99

Verified against the official question paper. Answer as per the official MPPSC answer key.

Chairperson and Members of the State Human Rights Commission are appointed by

(a)Governor
(b)President
(c)Chief Justice of the High Court of the concerned State
(d)Chief Justice of India

Answer

Why

Correct — A, the Governor. Under Section 22 of the Protection of Human Rights Act, 1993, the Chairperson and Members of a State Human Rights Commission are appointed by the Governor of the State by warrant under his hand and seal, acting on the recommendation of a committee headed by the Chief Minister. (Where a sitting Judge is appointed as a Member, it is done after consultation with the Chief Justice of the High Court — but the appointing authority remains the Governor.)

Why the others are wrong

(b)President — The President appoints the Chairperson and Members of the central body, the NHRC — not the State Human Rights Commissions.
(c)Chief Justice of the High Court of the concerned State — The Chief Justice of the High Court is only consulted before a sitting Judge is appointed as a Member; he does not himself appoint the Commission.
(d)Chief Justice of India — The Chief Justice of India has no role in appointing the members of a State Human Rights Commission.

Concept

A State Human Rights Commission (SHRC) is the state-level counterpart of the NHRC under the Protection of Human Rights Act, 1993. Its Chairperson and Members are chosen by a committee headed by the Chief Minister and are formally appointed by the Governor. This mirrors the Centre, where the NHRC is appointed by the President on the advice of a Prime-Minister-led committee.

Remember it as: state body → the Governor appoints; central body → the President appoints. The distractors bait you with the President (the central-level authority) and the two Chief Justices (who are only consulted, never the appointing authority for the SHRC).

Key facts

SHRC Chairperson and Members are appointed by the Governor (Section 22, PHRA 1993)
They are recommended by a committee headed by the Chief Minister
A sitting Judge is appointed as a Member after consulting the Chief Justice of the High Court
Central mirror: the NHRC is appointed by the President

How a State Human Rights Commission is appointed

Selection committee (Chief Minister as chairperson)
Recommends names for Chairperson & Members
Governor appoints by warrant

At the state level the Governor appoints (mirroring the President for the NHRC at the Centre).

Study next

State Human Rights Commission — composition, powers and jurisdictionNHRC appointment (President) versus SHRC appointment (Governor)Human Rights Courts (Section 30) and their Special Public ProsecutorRemoval of an SHRC Chairperson or Member (by the President, on a Supreme Court inquiry)The Governor's statutory appointment powers

Common traps

Picking 'President' by analogy with the NHRC — states are appointed by the Governor
Note the split: appointment is by the Governor, but removal of an SHRC member is by the President

Asked as 'who appoints SHRC members'. Anchor the pair: SHRC → Governor; NHRC → President.

Related PYQs

UPSC_1999_GS1_Q341999Open & attempt →

Consider the following statements regarding the National Human Rights Commission of India: I. Its Chairman must be a retired Chief Justice of India. II. It has formations in each state as State Human Rights Commission. III. Its powers are only recommendatory in nature. IV. It is mandatory to appoint a woman as a member of the Commission. Which of the above statements are correct?

(a) I, II, III and IV
(b) II and IV
(c) I and III
(d) I and II

Answer(c) I and III

The same institutional scheme — the NHRC and its state-level formations, the SHRCs, under the Protection of Human Rights Act, 1993, which this MPPSC item probes from the angle of who appoints the state body.

MPPSC_2022_PRE_PaperI_Q212022Open & attempt →

Who presides over the committee constituted for the appointment of members of the State Human Rights Commission?

(a) The Governor
(b) The Chief Minister
(c) The Chief Justice
(d) The Advocate General

Answer(b) The Chief Minister

The other half of SHRC appointment — the Chief-Minister-led committee recommends the names, and the Governor then makes the appointment.

Practice

practice — not a real PYQ
The Chairperson of a State Human Rights Commission is appointed by the Governor on the recommendation of a committee headed by:
- (a)the Chief Justice of the High Court
- (b)the Chief Minister
- (c)the Governor himself
- (d)the Speaker of the Legislative Assembly
Answer(b) the Chief Minister.
practice — not a real PYQ
While the Governor appoints a Member of a State Human Rights Commission, the authority empowered to remove such a Member is:
- (a)the Governor
- (b)the Chief Minister
- (c)the President
- (d)the High Court
Answer(c) the President — on a reference inquired into by the Supreme Court.