Minorities Rights Day is observed on December 18. The day reminds us of true rights of Minorities. Every nation has different ethnic, linguistic and religious minorities group. It is the duty of the state to provide all the rights to the minorities irrespective of their population and religion. Providing an equal right to minorities is a true hallmark of a democracy. There are hundreds of instances in the world when a particular minority group had to suffer because of policy discrimination.
In order to strengthen the cause of the minorities, the United Nations promulgated the “Declaration on the Rights of Persons belonging to National or Ethnic, Religious and Linguistic Minorities” on December 18, 1992 proclaiming that:
“States shall protect the existence of the National or Ethnic, Cultural, Religious and Linguistic identity of minorities within their respective territories and encourage conditions for the promotion of that identity.”
The National Commission for Minorities has been observing December 18 as a Minorities Rights Day every year in India. It is a very important day in India because India is a nation of diversities, there are many minor groups all over India, which leads to frequent discussion and disagreements on majority-minority issues. Though the Republic of India has always provided equal rights to all the religions, pertinent issues regarding minority rights keep creeping in. The commission has played a major role in protecting the rights of the minority communities and in bringing about better understanding among the various religious minority communities in India.