Delhi High Court slams government for failing to fill National Commission for Minorities, leaving it non-functional since 2024.
Newsroom (09/02/2026 Gaudium Press ) The Delhi High Court has sharply criticized India’s federal government for allowing the National Commission for Minorities (NCM) to remain vacant and non-functional since late 2024, calling the government’s progress report “absolutely bald and vague.”
A bench of Chief Justice D.K. Upadhyaya and Justice Tejas Karia, on February 6, censured the Ministry of Minority Affairs for failing to appoint new members to the statutory body responsible for protecting minority rights. The court said the affidavit filed by the ministry “does not say as to when the ministry initiated the process of appointment and what all are the different stages of the process.”
Directing greater accountability, the bench ordered the government to submit a fresh affidavit, detailing the specific steps taken and a concrete timeline for completing the appointments.
Long-Standing Vacancies and Institutional Paralysis
The judicial intervention came in response to a public interest litigation filed by Mujahid Nafees, convenor of the Minority Coordination Committee. Nafees has accused the government of “serious executive dereliction,” noting that the absence of a chairperson, vice-chairperson, and five members has effectively paralyzed the commission.
Created under the National Commission for Minorities Act, 1992, the body serves as a quasi-judicial institution tasked with monitoring the constitutional and legal safeguards of India’s minority communities. However, since November 2024—when several members completed their five-year terms—the commission has been largely dormant. The situation worsened after the chairperson’s tenure ended in April 2025, leaving the institution without leadership or representation.
The court had already expressed concern over these prolonged vacancies on January 30, reiterating its position with even stronger language in the February 6 order.
A Commission Without Representatives
The last NCM chairperson, Iqbal Singh Lalpura, a Sikh and former Punjab legislator, was widely regarded for his efforts to build interfaith understanding. George Kurian, a Christian politician from the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), earlier served as vice-chairperson before his retirement in March 2020. Since Kurian’s departure, no Christian member has been appointed to the commission.
The commission is mandated to include one representative each from the six officially recognized minority communities—Muslims, Christians, Sikhs, Buddhists, Parsis, and Jains. At present, all these positions remain vacant, marking a complete breakdown of the commission’s functioning.
Minority Leaders Welcome Judicial Scrutiny
Civil society members and minority rights advocates have welcomed the court’s intervention.
Christian activist Minakshi Singh said the order “offers hope to minority communities,” calling on the government to act swiftly. “We hope and pray that the government takes up the issue at the earliest and resolves it. Otherwise, minority communities will continue to suffer,” she said in remarks to UCA News on February 9.
Muhammad Arif, chairman of the Centre for Harmony and Peace, echoed those sentiments, warning that the government’s apparent indifference “raises fears that the government may be attempting to do away with” the NCM altogether. He asserted that the commission, as the country’s highest quasi-judicial body on minority rights, plays a vital role in ensuring constitutional equality under a pro-Hindu political administration.
A Broader Demographic Context
India’s religious minorities account for roughly 18 percent of its 1.4 billion people. Hindus form over 80 percent of the population, while Muslims make up 14.2 percent, Christians 2.3 percent, and Sikhs 1.7 percent. Smaller communities of Buddhists, Jains, and Parsis also fall under the NCM’s purview.
For now, the Delhi High Court’s directive stands as a reminder that statutory institutions designed to safeguard these communities cannot be allowed to lapse into silence—a silence that, according to petitioners, threatens the spirit of India’s constitutional pluralism.
- Raju Hasmukh with files from UCA News
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