India has rejected the 2024 Report of the United States Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF) that claims that recommends that the US government designate India as a “country of particular concern” for engaging in systematic, ongoing, and egregious violations of religious freedom.

In response to media queries regarding the report, the Official Spokesperson of the Ministry of External Affairs, Randhir Jaiswal, alleged that the USCIRF is a biased organization with a political agenda that continues to misrepresent facts and peddles a motivated narrative about India.

“We would urge USCIRF to desist from such agenda driven efforts. The USCIRF would also be well advised to utilise its time more productively on addressing human rights issues in the United States,” he stated.

Besides recommending that the US designate India as a “country of particular concern”, the USCIRF 2024 Annual Report also suggested imposition of targeted sanctions on individuals and entities responsible for severe violations of religious freedom and incorporating religious freedom priorities into bilateral and multilateral forums and agreements. It also called for U.S. Embassy and consulates to strengthen engagement with religious communities, local officials, and law enforcement and to facilitate meetings with prisoners of conscience and human rights defenders. Further, the USCIRF asked for “review by the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) to ensure that international recommendations to prevent terrorist financing are not misused by Indian authorities to detain religious minorities and those advocating on their behalf.”

It also recommended that the U.S. Congress should raise religious freedom and issues affecting religious minorities in India and condition financial assistance and arms sales to India.

The Report claimed that in 2023, religious freedom conditions in India continued to deteriorate and alleged that the BJP led government perpetuated hateful rhetoric, and failed to address communal violence disproportionately affecting Muslims, Christians, Sikhs, Dalits, Jews, and indigenous peoples.

“Continued enforcement of the Unlawful Activities Prevention Act (UAPA), Foreign Contribution Regulation Act (FCRA), Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA), and anti-conversion and cow slaughter laws resulted in the arbitrary detention, monitoring, and targeting of religious minorities and those advocating on their behalf,” the USCIRF also stated.

The Report particularly mentioned the violence in Manipur that has resulted in the destruction of thousands of homes, targeted attacks on places of worship, and the displacement of over 70,000 individuals.

It also mentions the enforcement of anti-conversion laws in 13 out of India’s 28 states that “make it difficult for people to convert from Hinduism to another religion and use broad language that leads to the targeting of religious minorities.” The USCIRF Report also highlights the arrests made the country in the past year under these laws.