India denies US findings of religious freedom violations

‘It is India’s habit mechanically and summarily to reject reports that indict its record of human rights and freedom of religion and belief,’ said the veteran rights activists John Dayal.

The Indian government once again dismissed the findings of the US Commission for International Religious Freedom (USCIRF) as “biased and agenda-driven”, denying the claims of violations of religious freedom in its 2025 report despite increasing attacks against Christians and other minorities in the country.

The report published on 25 March included India among the 16 countries it recommended be designated as “countries of particular concern” (CPS), detailing its dismal record on religious freedom.

It also recommended that sanctions be imposed on its foreign intelligence agency – the Research and Analysis Wing (RAW) – for its alleged involvement in conspiracies to assassinate separatists.

Indian officials rejected the charges outright. The spokesman for the federal ministry of external affairs Randhir Jaiswal said the report continued the pattern of biased and politically-motivated assessments which the Indian government has refuted in previous years.

He said the USCIRF’s persistent attempts to “misrepresent” isolated incidents and “cast aspersions” on the country’s vibrant multicultural society reflect a “deliberate agenda” rather than a genuine concern for religious freedom.

“Such efforts to undermine India’s standing as a beacon of democracy and tolerance will not succeed,” he said. “In fact, it is the USCIRF that should be designated as an entity of concern.”

However, the veteran rights activists John Dayal told The Tablet that “it is India’s habit mechanically and summarily to reject reports that indict its record of human rights and freedom of religion and belief, whether they come from the USCIRF or from human rights groups in Europe or from the United Nations”.

Corroborating the report, Michael Williams, the founder-director of the ecumenical persecution watchdog the United Christian Forum, told The Tablet that it recorded recorded 834 incidents of violence against Christians in 2024, over 100 incidents more than the preceding year.

“Our own fact-finding groups within India have found that such incidents of hate crimes against Christians has quadrupled since Narendra Modi assumed office as prime minister 11 years ago,” said Dayal.

He reported that in the northern state of Uttar Pradesh there are at least 100 pastors in prison without trial on frivolous charges of proselytisation under its harsh anti-conversion law.

“We support the USCIRF with data and appreciate their efforts as a global watchdog covering 65 countries on freedom of religion,” said Williams.

He said it was particularly disturbing that the federal government did not do anything to curb the rising violence over a decade of its rule.

Speaking in a personal capacity, the chair of USCIRF Stephen Schneck told The Tablet that he was particularly concerned by “states that wink at or are complicit in their inaction vis-à-vis religious persecution by vigilante mobs or militant private actors”, citing India and Pakistan in particular.

“This can be just as much of a threat to freedom of religion or belief as states that persecute directly,” he said.

The USCIRF report recommended sanctions against the intelligence agency RAW for its alleged involvement in murder plots against Sikh separatists, which have damaged India’s relations with Canada and the US in recent years.

It also accused Modi and his Hindu nationalist Bharatiya Janata Party of promoting hateful rhetoric against Muslims in particular during the 2024 election campaign that encouraged attacks on minority communities.

“Authorities continued to exploit anti-terror and financing laws, including the Unlawful Activities Prevention Act (UAPA) and the Foreign Contribution Regulation Act (FCRA), to crack down on civil society organisations and detain members of religious minorities, human rights defenders, and journalists reporting on religious freedom,” the report said.

Hundreds of voluntary agencies, several run by Christians, were forced to cut back their activities or close down as the government revoked their licenses to receive funds from abroad.

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