Subrata Roy Chowdhury is an Indian

lawyer A lawyer is a person who practices law. The role of a lawyer varies greatly across different legal jurisdictions. A lawyer can be classified as an advocate, attorney, barrister, canon lawyer, civil law notary, counsel, counselor, solicit ...

in the

Supreme Court of India The Supreme Court of India ( IAST: ) is the supreme judicial authority of India and is the highest court of the Republic of India under the constitution. It is the most senior constitutional court, has the final decision in all legal matters ...

and in the

Calcutta High Court The Calcutta High Court is the oldest High Court in India. It is located in B.B.D. Bagh, Kolkata, West Bengal. It has jurisdiction over the state of West Bengal and the Union Territory of the Andaman and Nicobar Islands. The High Court b ...

. He is known for his works on international human rights law. He helped draft the proclamation of independence of Bangladesh written by

M Amir-ul Islam M Amir-ul Islam ( bn, এম আমীর-উল ইসলাম; born 2 January 1936) is a Bangladeshi lawyer and politician. He drafted the proclamation of independence of Bangladesh in 1971 and was a member of the drafting committee of Ba ...

in 1971.

Career

Chowdhury is an activist in the area of international human rights law. In 1972 he published a book studying the legal aspects of 9 months war in the then

East Pakistan East Pakistan was a Pakistani province established in 1955 by the One Unit Policy, renaming the province as such from East Bengal, which, in modern times, is split between India and Bangladesh. Its land borders were with India and Myanmar, wit ...

(present day

Bangladesh Bangladesh (}, ), officially the People's Republic of Bangladesh, is a country in South Asia. It is the eighth-most populous country in the world, with a population exceeding 165 million people in an area of . Bangladesh is among the mo ...

). According to Professor Richard Lillich, the Paris Minimum Standards of Human Rights Norms in a State of Emergency adopted by the International Law Association in 1984 were originally Mr Roy Chowdhury's idea. Chowdhury chaired the ILA sub-committee for drafting and revising the Paris Minimum Standards. As Chairman of the sub-committee, Mr Chowdhury expands on the Paris Minimum Standards by detailed analysis of state practice and the work of international monitoring bodies. The Paris Minimum Standards are based on norms derived from international human rights covenants. They are intended to ensure that the rule of law is upheld even after a bona fide declaration of a state of emergency. It follows the format of the ILA report on the Paris Minimum Standards and is divided into three sections. The first section of the book sets forth and analyzes the minimum standards that should be observed with respect to the declaration, duration and control of a national state of emergency. The second section deals with the general principles to be observed with respect to the suspension or limitation of the rights of the individual and the role of the legislature and the judiciary in ensuring the protection of such rights. The third section sets forth and describes the non-derogable rights and freedoms that may not be suspended or limited even during a state of emergency.

Works

* Roy Chowdhury, S. (1989). Rule of law in a state of emergency : the Paris minimum standards of human rights norms in a state of emergency. New York, St. Martin's Press. * Roy Chowdhury, S. (1972). The genesis of Bangladesh; a study in international legal norms and permissive conscience. Bombay; New York, Asia Pub. House

Awards

Chowdhury received honorary doctorate from the Institute of Social Studies in 1992.

References

External links

Profile at Institute of Social Studies
{{DEFAULTSORT:Chowdhury, Subrata Roy 20th-century Indian lawyers Indian legal writers Indian human rights activists Year of birth missing (living people) Living people University of Calcutta alumni Place of birth missing (living people)