WASHINGTON: US Cong­resswoman Ilhan Omar has introduced a resolution in the House of Repre­sentatives for designating India a “country of particular concern”.

The US secretary of state is authorised to use the CPC designation to mark out a nation guilty of particularly “severe, systematic, ongoing and egregious” violations of religious freedom.

The resolution stated that in 2021, “The Indian government escalated its promotion and enforcement of policies — including those promoting a Hindu-nationalist agenda — that negatively affect Muslims, Christians, Sikhs, Dalits, and other religious minorities”.

The resolution noted that the House has also expre­ssed grave concern about the “worsening treatment” of religious minorities in India and called on Secretary Blinken to designate India a “country of particular concern” under the International Religious Freedom Act of, 1998.

The resolution, co-sponsored by lawmakers Rashida Talib and Juan Vargas, was submitted on Tuesday and has been referred to the Committee on Foreign Affairs for further action.

The movers based their arguments to declare India as a country of particular concern on the conclusions and findings of recent rep­orts by the United States Commission on International Religious Freedom. They poi­nted out that the USCIRF had called for designating India as a country of particular con­cern for three consecutive years.

Quoting from a USCIRF report, the resolution stated that the government of India has “continued to systemise its ideological vision of a Hindu state at both the nati­onal and state levels through the use of both existing and new laws and structural changes hostile to the country’s religious minorities”.

The report described the use of laws such as the Unlawful Activities Preve­ntion Act and the Sedition Law in India as a means “to create an increasing climate of intimidation and fear in an effort to silence anyone speaking out against the government”.

Published in Dawn, June 24th, 2022