Washington, D.C. Newsroom, Dec 19, 2023 / 10:45 am
A religious freedom watchdog is urging the Biden administration to add the government of India to a list of the world’s worst violators of religious freedom.
The United States Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF) said this month in a press release that it was “alarmed by India’s increased transnational targeting of religious minorities and those advocating on their behalf.”
“Recent efforts by the Indian government to silence activists, journalists, and lawyers abroad pose a serious threat to religious freedom,” the group said.
USCIRF was created by the 1998 International Religious Freedom Act (IRFA). The commission “monitors the universal right to freedom of religion or belief abroad,” makes “policy recommendations” to the executive branch and to Congress, and “tracks the implementation” of those suggestions, according to its website.