'Misrepresentation Of Facts': MEA Rejects USCIRF Report On Religious Freedom In India

<p>India on Tuesday categorically trashed as "biased" and "motivated" a report by the US Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF) that alleged "severe violations" of religious freedom in the country.&nbsp;External Affairs Ministry spokesperson Arindam Bagchi said the Commission continues to regurgitate such comments and India rejects the "misrepresentation of facts" which only serves to "discredit USCIRF itself".</p> <p>He also asked USCIRF to develop a better understanding of India, its plurality and its democratic ethos.</p> <p>"The US Commission on International Religious Freedom continues to regurgitate biased and motivated comments about India, this time in its 2023 annual report," he said.</p> <p>"We reject such misrepresentation of facts which only serves to discredit USCIRF itself," Bagchi added.</p> <p>"We would urge USCIRF to desist from such efforts and develop a better understanding of India, its plurality, its democratic ethos and its constitutional mechanisms," he said.</p> <p><strong>READ | <a title="NSA Doval Meets Iranian President Raisi, Talks Of A 'New Level' In Bilateral Ties" href="https://ift.tt/c9s1uMW" target="_self">NSA Doval Meets Iranian President Raisi, Talks Of A 'New Level' In Bilateral Ties</a></strong></p> <p>In its annual report on religious freedom, the USCIRF asked the US State Department to designate India as a "country of particular concern" on the status of religious freedom along with several other nations.</p> <p>The USCIRF has been making similar recommendations to the State Department since 2020, which have not been accepted.</p> <p>The recommendations of USCIRF are not mandatory for the State Department.</p> <p>In its India section of the latest report, the USCIRF alleged that in 2022, religious freedom conditions in India continued to worsen.</p> <p>The US Commission also urged the Biden administration to impose targeted sanctions on Indian government agencies and officials responsible for &ldquo;severe violations&rdquo; of religious freedom in the country by freezing their assets.</p> <p>It also recommended that Congress raise the issue of religious freedom during US-India bilateral meetings and hold hearings on it.</p> <p><strong><em>(This report has been published as part of the auto-generated syndicate wire feed. Apart from the headline, no editing has been done in the copy by ABP Live.)</em></strong></p>

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