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The Principle of Non- Refoulement in International Law and its Applicability in Protection of Refugees in India


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1 Amity Law School, Amity University, Noida, India
     

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The principle of non refoulement, as codified in the Article 33 of the Convention relating to the Status of Refugees 1951, is a fundamental principle of the international refugee protection regime. This principle imposes an obligation upon states to ensure that no refugee or asylum seeker is forcibly returned to a country where he or she might be subjected to torture, inhumane or degrading treatment. Keeping in view the importance of the principle in refugee protection, the present work, in the first part, provides an overview of the principle of nonrefoulement as fundamental rule of customary international law. The second part of the paper gives a general overview of India’s refugee policy so as to delineate the incorporation of the principle of non-refoulement in the Indian legal system via Article 21 and 51 of the Constitution and also to highlight the excellentjudgments awarded by the judiciary pertaining to adherence to international principles on refugee protection including nonrefoulement.

Keywords

Refugees, Non-Refoulement, Customary International Law and India’s Refugee Policy.
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  • The Principle of Non- Refoulement in International Law and its Applicability in Protection of Refugees in India

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Authors

Ruchi Lal
Amity Law School, Amity University, Noida, India

Abstract


The principle of non refoulement, as codified in the Article 33 of the Convention relating to the Status of Refugees 1951, is a fundamental principle of the international refugee protection regime. This principle imposes an obligation upon states to ensure that no refugee or asylum seeker is forcibly returned to a country where he or she might be subjected to torture, inhumane or degrading treatment. Keeping in view the importance of the principle in refugee protection, the present work, in the first part, provides an overview of the principle of nonrefoulement as fundamental rule of customary international law. The second part of the paper gives a general overview of India’s refugee policy so as to delineate the incorporation of the principle of non-refoulement in the Indian legal system via Article 21 and 51 of the Constitution and also to highlight the excellentjudgments awarded by the judiciary pertaining to adherence to international principles on refugee protection including nonrefoulement.

Keywords


Refugees, Non-Refoulement, Customary International Law and India’s Refugee Policy.

References