US Religious Freedom Panel Recommends India for Blacklist

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Facts

  • The independent US Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF) for the fourth year in a row has requested the State Department to designate India as a "country of particular concern" regarding its treatment of religious minorities.1
  • The USCIRF argued that the conditions for religious freedom in India "continued to worsen" last year and that "the Indian government at the national, state, and local levels promoted and enforced religiously discriminatory policies...which negatively impact Muslims, Christians, Sikhs, Dalits, and Adivasis [indigenous peoples]".2
  • The USCIRF also claimed that Prime Minister Narendra Modi's government imposes "laws targeting religious conversion, interfaith relationships, the wearing of hijabs and cow slaughter," as well as "suppress[es] critical voices – particularly religious minorities and those advocating on their behalf."1
  • The commission urged Pres. Joe Biden to impose targeted sanctions on Indian government agencies and officials, and recommended that Congress raise the issue during US-India bilateral meetings and hold hearings on this subject.3
  • Arindam Bagchi, asn Indian Ministry of External Affairs spokesperson, rejected what he deemed "such misrepresentation" of facts, and asked the panel to "develop a better understanding of India, its plurality, its democratic ethos, and its constitutional mechanisms."3
  • The commission, which also asked Biden to include Afghanistan, Nigeria, Syria, and Vietnam on its blacklist, doesn’t have the power to set policy. This comes as US-India relations have recently grown stronger.1

Sources: 1Al Jazeera, 2The Quint, and 3The Economic Times.

Narratives

  • Narrative A, as provided by FRC. Modi’s government and his vigilante supporters continue to assault religious minorities, both legally and physically, and the USCIRF has been spot-on each year it has revealed these atrocities to the US government and the world. Now it’s up to Biden to respond to these cries for justice with diplomatic action to align US policies with the human rights norms of the international community.
  • Narrative B, as provided by OpIndia. Since its inception in 1998, the USCIRF has been corrupt and had a staunchly anti-India stance. While India has been bending over backward to welcome Muslim immigrants, this commission is maligning Modi and his party and lending support to Pakistan. Biden would be wise to ignore the USCIRF recommendations.