India’s Ministry of External Affairs Criticizes USCIRF Report on Religious Freedom
The Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) in India has strongly criticized a report by the United States Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF). The MEA described the report as “malicious” and accused USCIRF of being a “biased organization” with a political agenda. According to MEA spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal, the report misrepresents facts and promotes a “motivated narrative” about India.
Jaiswal stated, “Our views on the United States Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF) are well known. It is a biased organization with a political agenda. It continues to misrepresent facts and peddles a motivated narrative about India. We reject this malicious report, which only serves to discredit USCIRF further.”
The MEA also advised USCIRF to focus on addressing human rights issues within the United States instead of pursuing “agenda-driven efforts.” The USCIRF report alleged severe violations of religious freedom in India, including violence against individuals, arbitrary arrests of religious leaders, and demolition of homes and places of worship. It also criticized India’s legal framework, citing the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA), a Uniform Civil Code (UCC), and various state-level laws.
Doubts Revealed
Ministry of External Affairs -: The Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) is a part of the Indian government that handles India’s relations with other countries. They work on things like diplomacy, international trade, and protecting Indian citizens abroad.
USCIRF -: USCIRF stands for the United States Commission on International Religious Freedom. It is a group in the US that looks at how different countries treat people’s right to practice their religion freely.
Religious Freedom -: Religious freedom means that people have the right to choose and practice their religion without being harmed or discriminated against. It is an important part of human rights.
Malicious -: Malicious means something that is intended to harm or hurt someone. In this context, it means that the report was seen as trying to unfairly damage India’s reputation.
Politically biased -: Politically biased means that the report is seen as unfairly favoring one political view or agenda over another. It suggests that the report might not be objective or neutral.
Religious minorities -: Religious minorities are groups of people who follow a religion that is not the majority religion in a country. In India, examples include Muslims, Christians, Sikhs, and others.
