Nigeria seeks protection for citizens in Indian custody
The Federal Government has urged India to guarantee the safety, dignity and fundamental human rights of Nigerians held in detention facilities across the country.
The Minister of Foreign Affairs, Ambassador Bianca Odumegwu-Ojukwu, appealed during a meeting with a joint delegation of the National Human Rights Commissions of Nigeria and India at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Abuja.
Abimbola Joseph
The Federal Government has urged India to guarantee the safety, dignity and fundamental human rights of Nigerians held in detention facilities across the country.
The Minister of Foreign Affairs, Ambassador Bianca Odumegwu-Ojukwu, appealed during a meeting with a joint delegation of the National Human Rights Commissions of Nigeria and India at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs in Abuja.
According to a statement issued on Thursday by the ministry’s spokesperson, Oluwafemi Adeniyi, the minister expressed concern over the welfare and treatment of Nigerians serving prison sentences in India.
She urged the Indian government to ensure that Nigerian detainees received humane treatment and adequate attention to their welfare and fundamental rights.
Odumegwu-Ojukwu said the proposed cooperation between the two countries’ human rights commissions offered an opportunity to strengthen access to justice, improve complaint-handling mechanisms and protect vulnerable people.
She said, “I call on the Indian government to ensure the humane and proper treatment of Nigerian citizens serving in custodial centres in the country, and that they receive appropriate attention to their welfare, dignity and fundamental human rights.”
The minister’s appeal comes as Nigeria and India deepen their human rights partnership through a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) signed by their respective National Human Rights Commissions.
The agreement is expected to strengthen institutional cooperation through technical exchanges, capacity building and the sharing of best practices in human rights protection.
Odumegwu-Ojukwu described the agreement as a timely step towards translating the longstanding diplomatic relations between both countries into practical cooperation on human rights.
She also called for stronger complaint-resolution mechanisms and equitable access to essential services for vulnerable persons.
The minister said Nigeria and India, as members of the Global South, could contribute to building a more inclusive international human rights framework.
She reaffirmed Nigeria’s commitment to working with India and other international partners to advance human rights diplomacy and strengthen national and international institutions.
She also thanked United Nations member states for supporting Nigeria’s election to the UN Human Rights Council for the 2027–2028 term, pledging that the country would uphold its obligations under the UN Charter and the Universal Declaration of Human Rights.
Earlier, the Executive Secretary of Nigeria’s National Human Rights Commission, Chief Anthony Ojukwu, said the MoU would provide a framework for institutional cooperation and technical exchanges between the two countries.
He identified complaint management, human rights compliance in security sector governance and joint research on international law as key areas of collaboration.
Ojukwu also stressed the importance of working with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs to incorporate international human rights standards into Nigeria’s treaty obligations and diplomatic engagements.
In his remarks, the Chairperson of India’s National Human Rights Commission, Justice V. Ramasubramanian, described the agreement as an important platform for institutional learning and capacity development.
He noted that Nigeria and India shared similarities in population size, ethnic and religious diversity, cultural heritage and democratic aspirations, making cooperation between their human rights institutions particularly valuable.
The Indian delegation was jointly led by Ramasubramanian and Ojukwu.
