Ganesh Kendale
NEW DELHI: India on Thursday rejected the US Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF) report, calling the body “a biased organisation with political agenda“.
Sharing New Delhi’s take on the report, the ministry of external affairs spokesperson, Randhir Jaiswal, said the USCIRF “continues to misrepresent facts and peddles a motivated narrative about India”.
“Our views on the United States Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF) are well known. It is a biased organization with a political agenda. It continues to misrepresent facts and peddles a motivated narrative about India. We reject this malicious report, which only serves to discredit USCIRF further,” Jaiswal said.
He further said: “We would urge USCIRF to desist from such agenda driven efforts. The USCIRF would also be well advised to utilise its time more productively on addressing human rights issues in the United States.”
The US federal government commission had flagged the alleged worsening of religious freedom in India and called for it to be designated as a “Country of Particular Concern“.
“This report highlights how, throughout 2024, individuals have been killed, beaten, and lynched by vigilante groups, religious leaders have been arbitrarily arrested, and homes and places of worship have been demolished. These events constitute particularly severe violations of religious freedom,” the USCIRF said.
Beginning with the previous Manmohan Singh-led UPA government, India has consistently denied visas to USCIRF members to visit the country, citing “interference” in its internal affairs, it added.
India and several Indian-American groups have in the past accused the USCIRF of biased, unscientific and agenda-driven reporting to malign the country.
“It (the report) further describes changes to and enforcement of India’s legal framework to target and disenfranchise religious minorities, including the Citizenship Amendment Act, a uniform civil code, and several state-level anti-conversion and cow slaughter laws,” the USCIRF said.
