In June 2023, Indian authorities continued to commit grave human rights violations in Indian-administered Kashmir (IAK). Indian forces killed at least 17 people in IAK. One individual was killed as a consequence of forced labor, a longstanding and systematic violation in IAK. Additionally, the Jammu & Kashmir administration continued to escalate forced demographic change in IAK by domiciling thousands of non-locals and systematically dispossessing local residents through property expropriation drives. The administration also continued to target human rights defenders and dissenters in IAK, firing two doctors for revealing evidence of an official cover-up in the rape-murder case of two Kashmiri women killed by Indian forces in 2009. The Indian government also continued to escalate its disinformation regarding IAK, including by unveiling a map in its new parliamentary building which depicts a Hindu supremacist, expansionist map of an imaginary “undivided India.” In a case emblematic of the repression targeting Kashmiri journalists, Aasif Sultan, arbitrarily detained on August 27, 2018, remains illegally imprisoned. As of the date of this publication, Sultan has been detained for 1,790 days. In a case emblematic of the repression targeting Kashmiri human rights defenders and civil society, Khurram Parvez, arbitrarily detained on November 22, 2021, remains illegally imprisoned in a maximum-security facility in New Delhi. As of the date of this publication, Parvez has been detained for 607 days. Notably, the UN Working Group on Arbitrary Detention (WGAD) released a detailed legal opinion in June 2023 demonstrating that Parvez is arbitrarily detained.

In May 2023, Indian authorities continued to commit grave human rights violations in Indian-administered Kashmir (IAK). The G20 Tourism Working Group meeting was held in Srinagar, Kashmir from May 22-25, drawing widespread criticism. During the meeting, Indian authorities made false claims that the Kashmiri press enjoyed “absolute freedoms” and dismissed criticism regarding the human rights situation in IAK. Leading up to the meeting, the Indian government heightened security checks, increased raids and arbitrary arrests, and closed schools and stores. There was also an increase in reported extrajudicial killings, with Indian forces killing at least 12 people in IAK. Meanwhile, political and economic disempowerment continued in the region. For a summary of the human rights impact of the G20 meetings in Srinagar, please see ANNEX: Reported Human Rights Consequences of the G20 in IAK.

In March 2023, Indian authorities continued to commit grave human rights violations in Indian-administered Kashmir (IAK). Indian forces committed at least three extrajudicial killings. In addition, Indian authorities claimed to recover the mutilated corpse of Abdul Rashid Dar whom Indian forces abducted and forcibly disappeared in December 2022. Additionally, the Jammu & Kashmir administration continued its repression of the freedom of expression and violations of the social, economic, cultural, and political rights of Kashmiris. The administration continued its escalated campaign of expropriation and systematic dispossession of locals’ property through pretextual “anti-encroachment” drives. Two developments involving the Indian central government are expected to contribute to continued grave violations in IAK. First, the Indian Supreme Court ruled that mere membership in an association deemed unlawful by Indian authorities is sufficient grounds for prosecution under India's counterterror laws. Second, Indian authorities are actively procuring alternatives to the NSO Group’s Pegasus software. Indian authorities intensified their repression of human rights work in IAK through the arrest of human rights defender Irfan Mehraj and a second arrest of human rights defender Khurram Parvez in an ongoing case againt a leading human rgights organization, the Jammu Kashmir Coalition of Civil Society (JKCCS). This case against JKCCS is unique in that it criminalizes a leading human rights organization for doing human rights work per se.

In April 2023, Indian authorities continued to commit grave human rights violations in Indian-administered Kashmir. Indian forces killed at least two adults and one unborn child. At least one person was killed by unexploded ordnance. Indian authorities continued to suppress the right to freedom of expression, specifically targeting Kashmiri journalists. The Jammu & Kashmir administration continued its ongoing systematic campaigns to displace Kashmiris from, and dispossess them of, their residential, agricultural and commercial property on various pretexts. In developments with a disproportionate impact on IAK, Indian authorities continued their ongoing censoring and erasure of information that contradicts or challenges state-preferred narratives, including through revising textbooks to eliminate history and imposing government approvals over social media content about Indian authorities.

In February 2023, Indian authorities continued their systematic repression and rights violations in Indian-administered Kashmir (IAK) with impunity. Indian authorities intensified their ongoing campaign of expropriation and destruction of civilian property, including homes and personal property. The Jammu & Kashmir administration utilized the heightened political disempowerment of the local population to further their economic disempowerment through new property taxes. The administration redoubled its digital surveillance of employees, especially targeting those critical of government policy. The administration also continued to arm, train and finance Hindu vigilante groups with a history of racist violence, criminality and grave rights violations. Survey results from international media correspondents in India described the Indian government’s harassment of journalists and obstruction of journalism with respect to certain topics, including in particular the situation in IAK. In a case with broad significance for the rights to free expression and a free press, and the free operation of international media in India or territories controlled by India, Indian authorities raided the BBC’s offices in India in retaliation for releasing “The Modi Question,'' a documentary on the Narendra Modi administrations’ responsibility for Hindu supremacist violence targeting Muslims in India (the documentary itself was banned in India).