New Delhi,
The government today told the Supreme Court that it had decided to adopt the UN Convention Against Torture and was looking into the issue of having a law on the subject in “all seriousness”.

“The executive is looking at the issue with all seriousness,” Attorney General KK Venugopal told a three-judge Bench headed by Chief Justice of India Dipak Misra.

The Bench, which also included Justice AM Khanwilkar and Justice DY Chandrachud, said it could not direct the government to make a law to prevent torture and inhuman treatment in custody. It disposed of a PIL filed by senior advocate and former Law Minister Ashwani Kumar, who wanted the top court to ask the government to bring an effective law on the issue and empower agencies such as the National Human Rights Commission with necessary enforcement capabilities and mechanisms to implement its orders and directions.

The Bench referred to the submissions of the Attorney General who said the prayer in a plea with regard to framing of a law to prevent torture and inhuman treatment of individuals in custody was also a subject matter of discussion in the Law Commission. Kumar wanted the Bench to keep the matter in abeyance for a month or two to see how things moved on legislation front. But the Bench disposed of his PIL in view of the submissions made by the Attorney General. Kumar had earlier submitted that despite being a signatory to the UN convention, India had not ratified it so far since ratification required an enabling legislation to reflect the definition and punishment for ‘torture’. But the government maintained that a writ petitioner could not seek a law through the court as the issue fell under the domain of the legislature.