NEW DELHI: The ministry of external affairs (MEA) has strongly criticized the US State Department‘s report on international religious freedom in India, dismissing it as “deeply biased” and lacking an understanding of the country’s social fabric. The ministry refuted the report suggesting that it is driven by “votebank considerations” ahead of the presidential elections.
MEA Spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal said, “We have noted the release by the US State Department of its report on international religious freedom for 2023.As in the past, the report is deeply biased, lacks an understanding of India’s social fabric, and is visibly driven by votebank considerations and a prescriptive outlook. We therefore reject it.”
Jaiswal criticized the report as being a “mix of imputations, misrepresentations, selective usage of facts, reliance on biased sources, and a one-sided projection of issues.”
He argued that it misrepresents India’s constitutional provisions and duly enacted laws and questions the validity of certain laws and regulations. The report, he said, also questions the right of Indian legislatures to enact them, and even challenges the integrity of legal judgments by Indian courts.
MEA also took issue with the report’s critique of regulations monitoring financial flows into India, suggesting that the burden of compliance is unreasonable. “On its own part, the United States has even more stringent laws and regulations and would surely not prescribe such solutions for itself,” Jaiswal noted.
Highlighting the broader context of human rights and diversity, Jaiswal highlighted that these have been and remain legitimate subjects of discussion between India and the United States. He pointed out that in 2023, India has officially raised numerous cases in the US regarding hate crimes, racial attacks on Indian nationals and other minorities, vandalization and targeting of places of worship, violence and mistreatment by law enforcement authorities, and political space being accorded to advocates of extremism and terrorism abroad.
Jaiswal also warned that such dialogue should not become a “license for foreign interference in other polities.”
The US State Department’s report on international religious freedom has sparked controversy by mentioning violent attacks on minority groups in India, including killings, assaults, and vandalism of houses of worship. The report also highlighted that senior US officials have consistently raised concerns about religious freedom with their Indian counterparts throughout the year.
MEA Spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal said, “We have noted the release by the US State Department of its report on international religious freedom for 2023.As in the past, the report is deeply biased, lacks an understanding of India’s social fabric, and is visibly driven by votebank considerations and a prescriptive outlook. We therefore reject it.”
Jaiswal criticized the report as being a “mix of imputations, misrepresentations, selective usage of facts, reliance on biased sources, and a one-sided projection of issues.”
He argued that it misrepresents India’s constitutional provisions and duly enacted laws and questions the validity of certain laws and regulations. The report, he said, also questions the right of Indian legislatures to enact them, and even challenges the integrity of legal judgments by Indian courts.
MEA also took issue with the report’s critique of regulations monitoring financial flows into India, suggesting that the burden of compliance is unreasonable. “On its own part, the United States has even more stringent laws and regulations and would surely not prescribe such solutions for itself,” Jaiswal noted.
Highlighting the broader context of human rights and diversity, Jaiswal highlighted that these have been and remain legitimate subjects of discussion between India and the United States. He pointed out that in 2023, India has officially raised numerous cases in the US regarding hate crimes, racial attacks on Indian nationals and other minorities, vandalization and targeting of places of worship, violence and mistreatment by law enforcement authorities, and political space being accorded to advocates of extremism and terrorism abroad.
Jaiswal also warned that such dialogue should not become a “license for foreign interference in other polities.”
The US State Department’s report on international religious freedom has sparked controversy by mentioning violent attacks on minority groups in India, including killings, assaults, and vandalism of houses of worship. The report also highlighted that senior US officials have consistently raised concerns about religious freedom with their Indian counterparts throughout the year.