USCIRF is in the news of late since India has denied VISA to its officials for a six-day investigation about the state of religious freedom. The United States Commission of International Religious Freedom (USCIRF) in its annual report for the year 2015 placed India in a spiteful tier 2 category along with nine other countries. This independent US Federal government advisory body created under the International Religious Freedom Act of 1998 makes recommendations to the President, the Secretary of the State and the Congress. It documents the religious freedom violations in 33 nations and generates a report. All the developed nations, the US and Christian countries of West are excluded from its scrutiny.

Tier 2 designates all those “nations where violations engaged in or tolerated by the government are serious and are characterised by at least one of the elements of the systemic, ongoing and egregious standard but don’t fully meet the CPC (Countries of particular concern) standard.” India was placed in the watch list in 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2009 and 2010. Other nations in the Tier 2 category are: Afghanistan, Azerbaijan, Cuba, Indonesia, Kazakhastan, Laos, Malaysia, Russia and Turkey. It is worth mentioning that the countries under CPC remain relatively unchanged-Burma, China, Eritrea, Iran, North Korea, Saudi Arabia, Sudan, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan. The commission has recommended additional actions for promoting religious freedom in countries like- Central African Republic (first time entrant), Egypt, Iraq, Pakistan, Nigeria, Tajikistan, Syria and Vietnam. Tier 1 (CPC) otherwise called Tier 2 threshold includes- Bahrain, Bangladesh, Belarus, Cyprus, Kyrgyzstan and Sri Lanka. India instead of being touchy about any comment articulated by the Western World has loftily dismissed the report on the basis of “limited understanding of our constitution and our society”.  But this report provided fodder to media acolytes to rake up the issue of communal harmony by its partisan analysis.

As we delve into the origins of USCIRF, it reeks of the bigotry and consequently its outpourings can bear least significance. While all kind of moral policing and high branding of nations in the ‘third world’ has become a free right for USCIRF it barely makes cognition of derogatory remarks made by its religious leaders. The offensive and repugnant remarks of its senators about other religious are blissfully ignored and obliterated off its purview of surveillance. Depending on countries prominence in US strategic foreign policy, countries which served as hotbeds for appalling atrocities are pardoned off. Hence it would be preposterous to expect disciplinary action against countries like Iran, Saudi Arabia and Pakistan. Even nations like Turkmenistan, Uzbekistan which serve interests of US are exonerated of all charges. Our western neighbour Pakistan is bestowed with a special bounty, economic aids and modern weaponry for religiously making it to the list of CPC.

USCIRF 2015 report implicates that campaign for 2014 elections sowed the seeds of religious polarisation causing a spurt in “religiously-motivated attacks” on minority communities. It claimed that incandescent statement of Hindu leaders has further augured the religious-divisiveness. Report says that Christian leaders expressed concerns about the future of their community in the Indian states where Freedom of Religion (FoR) or Anti Conversion law is enforced. Truly, the issue is of grave concern since the unabated evangelisation is checkmated by this law. States like Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Himachal Pradesh, Gujarat, Arunachal Pradesh, Odhisha having a high population of tribal have strictly enacted this act to curtail the attempts made by the well-funded evangelical lobby that coverts people enmasse by force, fraud or inducement. The huge sections of vulnerable people in India make it a lucrative breeding ground for proselytization. Despite the commission’s serious objections to the existence of FoR in India, US can ill afford to snap ties with New Delhi as India is a potential counter-balance to China in this region. It alleges that existence of “a climate of impunity” in India is escalating the social and religious tensions in India. The report raised tirade against the gharwapsi program (1).

Interestingly, USCIRF has problem with both the Freedom of Religion Act (FoR) implemented in certain Indian States and gharwapsi which is a reconversion programme. Opposing both these programmes simultaneously is beyond comprehension since FoR prevents religious conversion and ensures freedom of religion. It alleges that Indian approach is one-sided. Finally it rubbed a pinch of salt into report by bringing in remarks made by President Obama on in January 2015 visit that country shouldn’t be “splintered along the lines of religious faith”. In short, the commission has been baying for Modi’s blood since 2002 Gujarat riots and irrespective of the ground realities, the report has been very critical of India. USCRIF vociferously maintained that Modi be denied entry to US in the aftermath of 2002 Gujarat riots and steadily upheld the stance till 2013. In 2013, USCIRF commissioner in an interview announced that Modi’s shouldn’t be allowed to enter US even he becomes Prime Minister of USCIRF (2). But after Modi was elected as Prime Minister with thumping majority, denial of entry into US held no sway and USCIRF had to concede.

Like an Ostrich whose head is buried in muck of intolerance, the USCIRF is busy pointing fingers at the pluralistic status of India and for gross neglect of minorities. A couple of days ago in Washington a naked man, wielding a ceremonial sword desecrated sacred items of a gurudwara. Last year, Baltimore became hot bed for protests and rioting over the mysterious death of a black youth in police custody. The state reeled under the burden of a week-long night curfew following the riots. Over the last few years there is increase in incidence of vandalizing Hindu temples and Gurudwaras. The attack on an Indian grandfather in Alabama too reflected the intolerance of US which is above such surveillance ordained for third world countries.

The situation in Europe, which is beyond any scrutiny, is no better. There has been considerable rise in right-wing parties promoting marked intolerance towards foreigners. In fact France banned use of hijab or veil or other religious symbols in public places reinstating their conservative approach. The latest internal churning in the continent of Europe following the influx of refugees has become fresh breeding ground for hate crimes. USCRIF, which holds the mantle of upholding religious freedom hardly raised any of these issues brewing in the West. But all these instances don’t make India a land true to paradigm of secularism.

According to some insiders, people openly remarked that the prime objective of USCIRF is to “name and shame a country”. Its double speak is clearly reflected in its vehement objection for gay marriages and abortion. Indeed one of the USCIRF commissioner’s is chief campaigner of anti-gay marriages in Indiana. USCIRF in a bid to enforce its agenda is strong advocating inclusion of issues related to religious freedom in strategic dialogue framework and urging the central government to press Indian states to repeal anti-conversion laws. These duplicitous recommendations of the commission clearly blow the lid off its reviling intentions.

Indictment of India as being intolerant by USCIRF rises more suspicion as Home Ministry cracked down upon nearly 9000 NGO’s that received funds from the overseas entities for infringing certain provisions of the Foreign Contributions Regulations Act (FCRA). These include some US based organisations with dubious evangelical connections funding NGO’s engaged in activities that compromise on the national security. Ford Foundation is one such institution under watch list for diverting funds to such alleged activities.

While the targeted killings of Shias and other minorities in Pakistan happen, the ruthless executions of Saudi Arabia escaped admonitions; India is unduly hounded on the global platform for religious violations. For all the hue and cry, USCIRF weren’t denied visas for the first time; New Delhi has refused visas to the commission twice earlier. The current regime simply followed the stance of the previous governments. Indian government defended its stand by questioning the locus standi of the commission for interfering in the domestic affairs of constitutionally secular nation.

Barring occasional aberrations of religious violations, by and large India commands a respectable position in the international community. It is puzzling why the commission hasn’t made a big issue about visa denial all these years and raised serious doubts about its intentions of portraying the BJP-led government in a wrong vein. The reports produced by USCIRF so far have exposed the hypocritical attitude of the US and India consistently rejected its claims. It’s study has been based on versions of hand-picked individuals and are largely aimed at implicating the majority for any spurious religious violations whatsoever. Its overwhelming fears about the religious freedom of minorities are an exaggeration embellished with partisan mockery. Moreover, USCRIF is a US government organisation unlike international agency like the UN which is mandated to evaluate any situation. Any sovereign country has a right to deny or allow access to such bodies for scrutiny or assessment.

There is no denying that India is facing the brunt of religious and sectarian violence. It is high time that government contemplates stringent action against those convicted of such treacherous action. India with its humongous diversity should adopt a holistic approach in enforcing the concept of secularism in true sense. Further, it is essential to rein in on the motor mouths that threaten to thwart the communal harmony and peace. It would be nonsensical to judge the credentials of a secular country based on a report formulated by a body whose termination has been periodically extended through amendments on regular basis to pamper its elitist religious bodies.