USCIRF Report 2024 on India: 'Biased and Politically Motivated', Says MEA Randhir Jaiswal

India rejects the United States Commission on International Religious Freedom’s (USCIRF) says  'biased and politically motivated'.

"The USCIRF is known as a biased organisation with a political agenda. They continue to publish their propaganda on India, masquerading as part of an annual report. We really have no expectation that USCIRF will even seek to understand India's diverse, pluralistic and democratic ethos. Their efforts to interfere in the largest electoral exercise in the world will never succeed," said MEA spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal in a press conference.

'Biased and Politically Motivated', Says MEA Randhir Jaiswal

#WATCH | On The United States Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF) report, MEA spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal says, "The USCIRF released their report 2024 yesterday. They have been releasing their reports earlier as well...The USCIRF is known as a biased… pic.twitter.com/UgH8zabr7O

— ANI (@ANI) May 2, 2024

In its 2024 annual report, USCIRF highlighted that religious freedoms in India continued to deteriorate, including outbreak of clashes between tribal Kuki and Meitei communities in Manipur, sparked by a proposal to grant Scheduled Tribe status to the majority Hindu Meitei people. This move, intended to provide expanded benefits, triggered protests from the minority Christian Kuki community, fearing political and economic marginalization.

The report pointed out the religious dimension of the conflict, with approximately '400 churches' belonging to both communities destroyed, along with reports of damage to synagogues and acts of sexual violence.

Additionally, the USCIRF report highlights the issue of anti-conversion laws in India. Despite constitutional protections for religious freedom, 13 out of India's 28 states continued to enforce anti-conversion laws in 2023. These laws, often using broad language, make it difficult for individuals to convert from Hinduism to other religions and disproportionately target religious minorities. The report details instances of detentions under state-level anti-conversion laws, such as in Chhattisgarh and Uttar Pradesh, where individuals were arrested for alleged forced conversions.

Furthermore, the USCIRF report addresses the growing concern surrounding interfaith marriages and the concept of "love jihad." Several states, including Maharashtra, have introduced measures to prevent such marriages, with right-wing Hindu nationalist groups launching awareness campaigns to discourage interfaith unions.