New Delhi

The Indian Minorities Foundation, a citizens’ organization in India, has called the report of the United States Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF), a case of "misdirected activism” by focusing disproportionately on perceived negatives ignored religious freedom and social harmony in India and thereby risks exacerbating tensions in India.

The report recommends the US government place India alongside authoritarian regimes in Afghanistan, Cuba, North Korea, Russia, and China as a country of particular concern (CPC) as far as religious freedom is concerned.

Coming down heavily in the report, the IMF questioned the intent behind this bizarre report and said it needs to be examined, “whether this body is  conducting itself as an agent of conflict instead of an instrument of harmony.”

The Indian Minorities Foundation founded and led by Satnam Singh, Chancellor of Chandigarh University, works to amplify the voice of minority communities of India and has like-minded people and organizations for advocacy, networking, engagement, endorsing, and creating equal opportunities for all.”

The Foundation issued a strong statement after the report was released. It said, “USCIRF's attempt to lump India, the world's largest democracy-with countries like Afghanistan, Cuba, North Korea, Russia, and China highlights the misdirected nature of its activism. Its failure to recognize that the world's largest democracy not only has a robust constitutional framework a vibrant civil society, and a long history of pluralism is a telling commentary on how the USCIRF has lost its way over the years.”

The statement says the report shows “USCIRF's failure to understand the nuanced reality of India's religious freedom landscape while it is discrediting genuine concerns about human rights violations globally.”

The IMF also referred to the recent remarks of the US Secretary of State Dr. Antony Blinken about the "increase in anti-conversion laws" in India. “No new laws were passed by any state during the period of focus of the report,” the statement said.

“His broad sweep reference to "hate speech" is at odds with the kind of hateful speech targeted against India and its elected Leaders that routinely emanates from North America these days. This hateful speech includes instances that have glorified violence and celebrated the assassination of a former Prime Minister of India. It would appear perhaps that the line blurs between "free speech" and "hate speech" depending on the country of origin.”

To the parts of the USCRIF report about demolitions of homes and places of worship of minorities in India, the IMF said “the report fails to note that the few stray instances of demolitions had little to do with religion and everything to do with illegal constructions.”

“Further, the USCIRF's report seems to be unduly influenced by NGOs and activists who have been at the receiving end of regulations that have nothing to do with religion or religious identity by mixing up the secular issue of strict monitoring of foreign funding to NGOs and Activists under ICRA foreign funding to NGO Activism in India.”

News Agency ANI has posted the full text of the IMF statement on X:

"Indian Minorities Foundation (IMF) strongly condemns the USCIRF'S International Religious freedom report. USCIRF's efforts to label India alongside authoritarian regimes like Afghanistan, Cuba, North Korea, Russia, and China overlook India's democratic framework, vibrant civil… pic.twitter.com/v0zq2ClDfM

— ANI (@ANI) June 27, 2024

Trashing the USCIRF comments about the Manipur violence, the IMF statement says,“By giving a communal twist to the ethnic violence in Manipur, the USCIRF report crosses a very dangerous line with its patently false and communal labeling of Meitei as Hindu and Kuki as Christian to further exacerbate the ethnic faultlines in Manipur.”

The IMF said the report clarifies that the USCIRF's value judgments on religious freedom have no respect for India's unity and territorial integrity. It refers to the report’s remarks about Jammu Kashmir and Punjab.

On the situation in J&K. “USCIRF fails to recognize that the revocation of Article 370 was aimed at integrating Jammu and Kashmir more closely with the rest of India, fostering economic development and ensuring equal rights for all residents.” Also, the move has been upheld by India’s Supreme Court.

“The second instance has to do with the reference to the Khalistani Movement and the USCIRF parroting a new catchphrase that is routinely being used by advocates of Khalistan-"transnational repression". It is almost as if the world's largest democracy is obliged to patronize those who advocate for destabilizing India's territorial integrity from beyond its borders.”

It further says, “By seeking to falsely frame the issue as one of "religious freedom" the USCIRF's comments sum up all that is wrong with its mission.”

Since 2020, the USCIRF has consistently attempted to designate India as a country of particular concern (CPC) However, the US. State Department has refused to endorse this designation. The State Department's refusal is a telling indicator that the USCIRF's claims do not align with the on-ground realities and nuanced understanding of India's commitment to religious freedom and democratic values.

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"The USCIRF appears to operate with a magnifying lens, searching for violations across the globe while losing sight of the bigger picture of harmony and coexistence in many societies. Its approach raises a critical question is the USCIRF an instrument of peace or an agent of conflict?"