The Wire Staff 
New Delhi: India on Thursday (October 10) abstained on a resolution that extended the mandate of an UN independent expert on the human rights situation in Russia.
This marks the second consecutive year that the mandate of the UN special rapporteur on Russia has been extended. The resolution passed with 20 votes in favor, eight against and 19 abstentions.
The UN human rights body, based in Geneva, had first created this country-specific special rapporteur position in 2022. The European-backed proposal at the time secured 17 votes in favour, 24 abstentions and six against.
The voting pattern has remained consistent, with Western nations supporting the resolution on Thursday, while countries from the Global South mostly abstained.
The eight nations that opposed the resolution, which highlighted the “continued significant deterioration” of human rights in Russia, were China, Cuba, Burundi, Vietnam, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Eritrea and Sudan.
Russia was expelled from the UN Human Rights Council in 2022 by a General Assembly resolution following its invasion of Ukraine.
India has consistently abstained on any resolutions at any UN platforms that criticised Russia after the start of the war.
Next week, Prime Minister Narendra Modi will be travelling to Russia to take part in the BRICS summit.
Earlier this week, UN human rights chief Volker Turk voiced alarm over the “widespread and systematic” torture of Ukrainian prisoners of war (POWs) by Russian forces based on testimonies from 174 Ukrainian soldiers.
“The evidence gathered also suggests involvement of facility supervisors, and significant coordination among various entities of the Russian Federation – such as the Federal Security Service and the Federal Penitentiary Service.”
He also raised concerns about the “dehumanising rhetoric” from Russian public figures advocating for the mistreatment and even execution of Ukrainian POWs, warning that sweeping amnesty laws for Russian service members were encouraging impunity.
Turk noted that some Russian POWs held by Ukrainian authorities had also reported instances of torture and sexual violence, primarily during the initial phases of their detention.
“In nearly all cases, the torture and ill-treatment stopped when prisoners arrived at official places of internment, where conditions generally met international standards,” he said.
The Russian foreign ministry accused Turk of becoming a “tool for the processing of political orders from the West.”
It added: “The OHCHR is ready to ‘whitewash’ any crimes of the Kiev regime.”