India rejects US report on treatment of minorities

Shillong, May 17: The US State Department’s 2022 Report on International Religious Freedom was categorically rejected by India, describing it as “flawed”, “motivated”, and “biased”. This is not the first time the US has given India a negative assessment on the treatment of its minorities.

Arindam Bagchi, a spokesperson for the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA), said in a statement in response to the report: “We are aware of the publication of the US State Department 2022 Report on International Religious Freedom. Unfortunately, these reports continue to be based on incomplete knowledge”.

He added, “Motivated and biased commentary by some US officials only serves to undermine further the credibility of these reports. We value our partnership with the US and will continue to have frank exchanges on issues of concern to us.”

Prior to Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s first official visit to the US next month, the Religious Freedom Report was released.

At a news conference on Monday, Rashad Hussain, Ambassador at Large for the Office of International Religious Freedom, stated that “far too many governments, including Saudi Arabia, Russia, India, and China, continue to freely target members of the faith community within their borders.”

The study also listed the alleged hate speech and inflammatory remarks made by BJP members throughout the nation.