Algorithmic Bias and Human Rights Protection: A Comparative Study of International Instruments and Indian Legal Regimes

The swift integration of artificial intelligence (AI) into business, government, and public life has shown a growing tension between the protection of fundamental human rights and technological development. Although algorithms are typically regarded as objective and efficient, they frequently amplify and perpetuate societal and structural biases, which raises significant concerns about justice, accountability, and transparency. This paper uses a doctrinal legal method to analyse algorithmic prejudice as a current human rights issue. It does this by consulting primary and secondary sources, such as international treaties, policy documents, and academic literature. It creates an algorithmic accountability framework that includes private developers, businesses, and data controllers in addition to states. In addition to the principles of equality, dignity, and nondiscrimination found in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights (UDHR) and the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR), the paper argues that algorithmic bias undermines India's constitutional ideals of justice and liberty. It contrasts and compares international initiatives, such as the UN Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights, the EU AI Act (2024), and UNESCO's Recommendation on the Ethics of Artificial Intelligence (2021), with India's more recent frameworks, including the Digital Personal Data Protection Act, 2023, and NITI Aayog's "Responsible AI for All." In order to preserve human dignity in the digital era, the study ends by suggesting a human rights-focused pathway for India that incorporates openness, institutional supervision, and moral leadership into AI policy.