A US agency on religious freedom has asked the State Department to impose sanctions against India for its allegedly “increased transnational targeting of religious minorities and those advocating on their behalf.”
The US Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF) has been critical of the Indian government and has recommended sanctions on it every year since 2020. However, the State Department has declined to do so.
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USCIRF stated on Dec. 15 it’s “alarmed by India’s increased transnational targeting of religious minorities and those advocating on their behalf. Recent efforts by the Indian government to silence activists, journalists, and lawyers abroad pose a serious threat to religious freedom.”
Due to what it called “India’s systematic, ongoing, and egregious violations of freedom of religion or belief,” USCIRF implored the US Department of State to designate India a Country of Particular Concern (CPC).
“The Indian government’s alleged involvement in the killing of Sikh activist Hardeep Singh Nijjar in Canada and the plot to kill Gurpatwant Singh Pannun in the United States are deeply troubling, and represent a severe escalation of India’s efforts to silence religious minorities and human rights defenders both within its country and abroad,” said USCIRF Commissioner Stephen Schneck.
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“We call on the Biden administration to acknowledge the Indian government’s perpetration of particularly severe religious freedom violations and designate it as a country of particular concern (CPC).”
Indian authorities, USCIRF alleged have used spyware and online harassment campaigns to target and intimidate journalists and activists abroad advocating on behalf of religious minorities.
Following Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s State Visit to the United States in June, comments from the head of India’s Bharatiya Janata Party’s (BJP) information and technology department, Amit Malviya, prompted an online campaign against US Wall Street Journal journalist Sabrina Siddiqui for posing a question about religious freedom conditions in India, it alleged.
“Within its own borders, Indian authorities have repeatedly used draconian legislation like the Unlawful Activities Prevention Act and anti-conversion laws to systematically crack down on religious minorities, journalists, and activists,” said USCIRF Commissioner David Curry.
“Extending this repression to target religious minorities from India living abroad, including intimidation tactics against journalists, is especially dangerous and cannot be ignored,” he stated.
“We urge the US government to continue its active engagement with senior Indian officials and international partners to ensure religious minorities can live and express themselves without fear of reprisal, whether in India or elsewhere.”