New York: Leading American and global human and civil rights activists have come together to reinforce the demand to designate India as a “country of particular concern” to prevent and combat ongoing persecution of its religious minorities.
The November 16 discussion was organized by the Indian American Muslim Council in collaboration with Hindus for Human Rights, Students Against Hindutva Ideology, Dalit Solidarity Forum, India Civil Watch International and International Christian Concern.
Anurima Bhargava, the vice-chair of United States Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF), said that as an ally and as a friend of India, the United States “needs to take steps to make sure that India upholds the rights guaranteed to all of its citizens as enshrined in its own constitution.”
“We saw this process play out in Assam. Many Indian citizens had their citizenship questioned and challenged by local authorities who excluded them from the national register of citizens despite their families having lived in India for generations.”
“And for that reason,” she added, “We made the recommendation to the State Department of the United States that India should be designated as a ‘country of particular concern,’” based on the deterioration and concerns about new state policies of the Narendra Modi government on religious minorities.
Joanne Lin, National Director, Advocacy and Government Affairs, Amnesty International USA, spoke about Amnesty India being forced to shut down its operation in India in October 2020 after two years of relentless threats, intimidation, and harassment by the Indian government.