India trashes US panel report; describes it as 'malicious'     

The US Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF) has recommended to the US State Department to designate India as a “Country of Particular Concern” over what it said was the “deteriorating and concerning trajectory” of religious freedom in India.

Ministry of External Affairs Spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal rejected the report saying, "USCIRF is a biased organisation 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.”

Jaiswal added, “USCIRF should desist from such agenda-driven efforts and it would be well advised to utilise its time more productively on addressing human rights issues in the United States."

USCIRF is a US federal entity established by the US Congress to monitor religious freedom abroad. The report was released on Wednesday.

It said, “In its 2024 annual report, USCIRF recommended that the US Department of State designate India as a ‘Country of Particular Concern’, (CPC), or engaging in systematic, ongoing and egregious violations of religious freedom.”

USCIRF said this report highlights how throughout 2024, “individuals have been killed, beaten, and lynched by vigilante groups, religious leaders have been arbitrarily arrested, and homes and places of worship have been demolished”.

These events constitute particularly severe violations of religious freedom, it said.

The USCIRF statement said the report “describes the use of misinformation and disinformation, including hate speech, by government officials to incite violent attacks against religious minorities and their places of worship”.