Country Report Glossary

26 of 26 terms

Addendum report

A short supplementary report that updates an earlier country report, usually because conditions have changed or new questions have been raised. It refers back to the original rather than repeating it.

Awami League

Bangladeshi political party that governed under Sheikh Hasina until August 2024. Reports now assess the risk to its supporters and former officials under the changed balance of power, reversing the position that applied before the transition.

Bangladesh Country PageBangladesh Political ClaimsSouth Asia Asylum Explained

BJP (Bharatiya Janata Party)

India's governing party, linked to the RSS and Hindutva politics. India reports note whether the appellant's home state is BJP-governed, as this often bears on how minorities are treated by local authorities.

India Country PagePolitical Persecution Profile

BNP (Bangladesh Nationalist Party)

Bangladesh's principal opposition party under the Awami League governments and a long-standing ally of Jamaat-e-Islami. Reports for BNP supporters address how their risk has changed since August 2024.

Bangladesh Country PagePolitical Persecution ProfileBangladesh 2024 Guide

CAA (Citizenship Amendment Act 2019)

Indian law giving faster citizenship to non-Muslim migrants from Afghanistan, Bangladesh and Pakistan. Reports consider it together with the NRC when assessing the position of Muslims in Assam and other border areas.

India Country PageReligious Minority Profile

Caste

The hereditary social hierarchy found in India and Nepal. Caste reports document how people of the appellant's caste are treated in their region and whether the harm is serious enough to amount to persecution.

Caste Discrimination ProfileIndia Country PageNepal Country Page

Country guidance case

An Upper Tribunal decision designated as authoritative on conditions for a particular country or profile, which tribunals follow unless strong evidence shows it is out of date. Among the countries covered here, only Sri Lanka has current country guidance.

CPIN & Country GuidanceSri Lanka KK Guide

CPIN (Country Policy and Information Note)

Home Office guidance used by decision-makers on asylum claims. Reports often respond to a CPIN directly, pointing out where its sources are dated or where it does not address the appellant's particular profile.

CPIN & Country GuidanceSouth Asia CPIN GuideCPIN Challenge Service

Dalit

Members of the communities at the bottom of the caste hierarchy in India and Nepal, formerly referred to as 'untouchables'. Reports address the exclusion and violence they face and whether they form a particular social group.

Caste Discrimination ProfileNepal/Bhutan Guide

Hindutva

Hindu nationalist political ideology associated with the RSS and BJP. It is central to many India reports on Muslim and Christian appellants, particularly when internal relocation is argued.

India Country PageReligious Minority ProfileIndia Asylum Guide

HJ (Iran) [2010] UKSC 31

Supreme Court judgment holding that a gay person cannot be expected to conceal their sexuality to avoid persecution. LGBTQ+ reports are written to address the questions this test raises about life on return.

LGBTQ+ ProfileIndia Country Page

Jamaat-e-Islami (Bangladesh)

Islamist party in Bangladesh, historically aligned with the BNP and targeted under Awami League rule. Reports for Jamaat-linked appellants assess what has changed for them since August 2024.

Bangladesh Country PagePolitical Persecution Profile

Khalistan

The movement for a separate Sikh state in Punjab. Reports on Sikh appellants assess the risk from actual or perceived Khalistan links, including activity in the UK.

India Country PagePolitical Persecution Profile

KK and Others [2021]

KK and Others (Sri Lanka: Tamil) CG [2021] UKUT 00245, the country guidance for Tamil appellants. Sri Lanka reports are structured around its risk categories, including LTTE links, prominent diaspora activism and giving evidence against the state.

Sri Lanka Country PageSri Lanka KK GuideSri Lanka Tamil Case TypeCPIN & Country Guidance

Letter of instruction

The document from the instructing solicitor that sets out the questions the report must answer and lists the papers provided. A clear letter keeps the report focused on the issues in dispute.

Lhotshampa

Nepali-speaking people of southern Bhutan, around 100,000 of whom left for Nepal in the 1990s after losing citizenship. Most Bhutan reports concern this community.

Bhutan Country PageNepal/Bhutan Guide

LTTE (Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam)

Tamil separatist armed group defeated in 2009. Actual or perceived links to the LTTE remain one of the main risk factors addressed in Sri Lanka reports.

Sri Lanka Country PageSri Lanka Tamil Case Type

Maoists (Nepal)

The Communist Party of Nepal (Maoist), which led the 1996–2006 insurgency. Nepal reports deal with claims from people targeted by Maoists and from former combatants facing reprisals.

Nepal Country PagePolitical Persecution Profile

Navtej Singh Johar v Union of India (2018)

Indian Supreme Court ruling that decriminalised same-sex conduct under section 377. India reports explain that social and family risks continue despite the change in the law.

LGBTQ+ ProfileIndia Asylum Guide

NRC (National Register of Citizens)

Indian citizenship register first compiled in Assam. Reports consider the risk of exclusion, detention or removal it creates for Muslim residents, alongside the CAA.

India Country PageIndia Minority Claims

Prior authority (Legal Aid)

Approval from the Legal Aid Agency needed before a report is commissioned in a legally aided case. The application normally includes the expert's CV, the proposed scope and a fee estimate.

RSS (Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh)

Hindu nationalist organisation regarded as the ideological parent of the BJP. Its presence across India is a key point in reports challenging internal relocation.

India Country PageReligious Minority ProfileIndia Asylum Guide

Section 377

Colonial-era penal provision criminalising same-sex conduct. It remains in force in Bangladesh, similar provisions apply in Sri Lanka, and India's equivalent was struck down in 2018.

LGBTQ+ ProfileBangladesh Country Page

State protection

Whether the authorities are willing and able to protect the appellant. In South Asian reports this usually means comparing the laws on paper with how police and courts actually respond.

South Asia Asylum ExplainedCPIN & Country Guidance

Tamil Eelam

The independent Tamil state in northern and eastern Sri Lanka sought by the LTTE and some diaspora groups. Advocacy for it is considered when assessing risk from UK activity.

Sri Lanka Country PageDiaspora Activity Profile

Well-founded fear

The Refugee Convention test: the fear must be genuinely held and objectively justified. Country reports supply the objective evidence the tribunal uses to decide the second part.

South Asia Asylum ExplainedWhat Is a South Asia Expert Report?