US Religious Report: The US State Department’s 2023 report on international religious freedom has been sharply criticized by the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA), which calls it “deeply biased” and devoid of a true knowledge of India’s social dynamics. A “concerning increase” in hate speech, anti-conversion laws, and the demolition of houses and places of worship for members of minority groups in India were also mentioned in the study.
Lack of Understanding of India’s Social Fabric
MEA Spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal said in response, “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.”
The study was criticized by the MEA for being a “mix of imputations, misrepresentations, selective usage of facts, reliance on biased sources, and a one-sided projection of issues.” It went on to say that the report casts doubt on the validity of India’s judicial and legislative systems, misrepresents the country’s laws and constitutional provisions, and selectively selects certain occurrences to support a preconceived narrative.
US Regulations and Compliance Burden Criticized
The MEA spokesperson stated that the US has tougher laws and regulations and would not recommend such solutions for itself. “The report has also targeted regulations that monitor the misuse of financial flows into India, suggesting that the burden of compliance is unreasonable,” the spokeswoman said.
Additionally, Randhir Jaiswal emphasized that respect for diversity and human rights are topics that India and the US can legitimately discuss. He brought attention to India’s continuous efforts to combat hate crimes, racial attacks against Indian citizens and other minorities living in the US, vandalism, and targeting of places of worship. He did, however, issue a warning against using this kind of discourse as a cover for outside meddling in domestic matters.
Dialogue on Diversity and Human Rights
“In 2023, India has officially taken up numerous cases in the US of hate crimes, racial attacks on Indian nationals and other minorities, vandalisation and targeting of places of worship, violence and mistreatment by law enforcement authorities, as well as according political space to advocates of extremism and terrorism abroad,” Jaiswal said. “However, such dialogue should not become a license for foreign interference in other polities,” the MEA spokesperson said.