New Delhi [India], August 1 : The Ministry of External Affairs on Friday "categorically reject baseless allegations" made in a UK Parliamentary Committee report that India, along with 11 other countries, is trying to silence or intimidate individuals and communities living in the UK.
Ministry of External Affairs spokesperson Spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal said, "We have seen the references to India in the report and categorically reject these baseless allegations."
According to Jaiswal, these claims stem from "unverified and dubious sources" linked to entities and individuals with a "history of anti-India hostility."
"These claims stem from unverified and dubious sources, predominantly linked to proscribed entities and individuals with a clear, documented history of anti-India hostility," MEA stated.
He further questioned the credibility of the report, stating that "the deliberate reliance on discredited sources calls into question the credibility of the report itself."
The report, titled 'Transnational Repression in the UK,' published on July 30 by the Joint Committee on Human Rights (JCHR), mentioned India along with 11 other countries against which it had received evidence of "transnational repression (TNR)."
"Our inquiry received evidence alleging that many states had conducted TNR activities on UK soil. Multiple evidence submissions accused Bahrain, China, Egypt, Eritrea, India, Iran, Pakistan, Russia, Rwanda, Saudi Arabia, Turkey and the United Arab Emirates of perpetrating TNR in the UK," the 'Transnational Repression in the UK' report said.
"A substantial number of submissions we received were personal accounts of TNR perpetrated by Eritrea. China, Russia and Iran were highlighted by witnesses as the three most flagrant TNR perpetrators in the UK," it added.
Notably, all three of these countries have imposed sanctions on UK Parliamentarians, including two members of this Committee, in what appears to be a deliberate attempt to deter scrutiny and suppress criticism. Witnesses described a broad range of tactics employed by China, including surveillance, online harassment, and threats to family members abroad.
"In relation to Russia, the Committee received evidence related to the misuse of INTERPOL Red Notices and Strategic Lawsuits Against Public Participation to intimidate and silence journalists, activists, and other critics," the report highlighted.
According to the report, "common elements identified across most definitions of TNR include the involvement of a foreign state actor and the act occurring outside of the territory of the perpetrating state. Many definitions, including that adopted by the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), limit the scope of TNR to actions directed at individuals from diaspora or exile communities."
"However, the Committee received evidence advising against adopting such a narrow interpretation of TNR. Witnesses emphasised that many of those targeted by hostile states, such as journalists, lawyers, parliamentarians, and human rights defenders, could be excluded by a definition that focused solely on diaspora communities," it added.
The report says, that the UK Government has chosen not to adopt a formal definition of TNR, opting instead to describe it as "certain foreign state-directed crimes against individuals"
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