The United States Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF) has recommended that the United States impose targeted sanctions on India’s hardline Hindu nationalist group Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) and the country’s external intelligence agency Research and Analysis Wing (RAW), citing what it described as serious and worsening violations of religious freedom.
In its latest annual report, the commission again designated India as a “Country of Particular Concern (CPC)”, a category reserved for nations where governments are accused of engaging in or tolerating systematic violations of religious freedom.
The report recommended that Washington consider imposing sanctions on the RSS, including freezing assets and restricting the entry of its members into the United States. It also called for sanctions against India’s intelligence agency RAW over alleged involvement in activities that undermine religious freedom.
Call to link trade and arms deals with religious freedom
The commission further urged the United States government to factor religious freedom conditions into its trade policy and arms sales with India.
USCIRF said the situation of religious freedom in India has continued to deteriorate, with minorities facing increasing violence, discrimination and legal restrictions.
Allegations of attacks on minorities
According to the report, religious minorities and their places of worship have come under attack in several parts of the country, while authorities have often failed to take adequate action against perpetrators.
It cited several incidents as examples. Among them was unrest in Maharashtra linked to protests by the Vishwa Hindu Parishad over the removal of Mughal emperor Aurangzeb’s tomb, which reportedly triggered violence.
Another case mentioned an attack in Odisha last June, when extremist Hindu groups allegedly targeted about 20 Christian families following disputes related to religious conversion. The commission said at least eight people were injured and accused local police of failing to stop the violence.
Concerns over laws and detentions
The report also criticised the adoption of anti-conversion laws in several Indian states, which it said carry strict punishments and are often used against religious minorities.
It is alleged that authorities have detained citizens in camps, carried out forced expulsions and conducted surveillance targeting minority communities.
USCIRF also raised concerns over the treatment of Rohingya refugees. It claimed that in May, authorities arrested 40 Rohingya refugees, including 15 Christians, and later transported them to the coast of Myanmar, forcing them to swim toward the shore with only life jackets.
The report further alleged that hundreds of Bengali-speaking Muslims were deported from Assam to Bangladesh, with leaders of India’s ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) describing them as “infiltrators”.
Reference to earlier restrictions on Modi
The report also recalled that the US government once barred Narendra Modi, now India’s prime minister, from entering the United States over allegations linked to religious freedom violations and communal violence during his tenure as chief minister of Gujarat. The ban was later lifted after he became prime minister.
India rejects criticism
The Ministry of External Affairs of India has not yet responded to the latest report. However, it has previously dismissed USCIRF assessments as “politically motivated” and “biased.”
Independent advisory body
USCIRF is an independent US government advisory body that monitors religious freedom worldwide and submits policy recommendations to the US administration and Congress. However, its recommendations are not binding, meaning the US government may choose whether or not to act on them.
Countries flagged for concern
In its latest report, the commission listed 18 countries as “countries of particular concern,” including Afghanistan, Myanmar, China, Iran, North Korea, Pakistan, Russia, Saudi Arabia, Syria, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan and Vietnam, among others.