Press Release
WASHINGTON, D.C. – Indian American Muslim Council (IAMC) has expressed disappointment at Congressman Ro Khanna’s recent letter requesting House Speaker Kevin McCarthy to invite Prime Minister Narendra Modi to deliver a joint address to Congress.
“The opportunity to speak before Congress will help to legitimise Modi’s brand of Hindu nationalist politics and the systematic persecution of religious minorities, particularly Muslims and Christians, under his rule,” the IAMC said on Friday.
“Ro Khanna has previously and admirably criticised Hindu nationalism, Congress leader Rahul Gandhi’s expulsion from parliament, and disingenuous cries of Hinduphobia used to deflect legitimate criticism of the Indian government. IAMC urges Rep. Khanna to continue this fight, cancel his request, and instead educate his constituents about the harm the Modi regime has done to India.”
The IAMC statement adds: “The US government and numerous internationally recognised organisations have condemned Modi and his party’s attacks on core democratic freedoms, as well as their role in enabling violence against Indian minorities. The 2023 report on International Religious Freedom by the Department of State highlights hate speeches by leaders of Modi’s Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), which have contributed to anti-Muslim and anti-Christian violence; the BJP’s criminalisation of religious conversion; BJP-led demolitions of Muslim homes and properties; Hindu supremacist rewriting of school curricula; arbitrary arrests of Muslims; and denial of bail for jailed Muslim activists. For four years running, the United States Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF) has designated India as a Country of Particular Concern for its egregious violations of human rights and religious freedoms, citing similar abuses.”
It pointed out that rights watchdog Genocide Watch and the US Holocaust Museum have both raised the alarm over impending mass violence in India. Freedom House has downgraded India to “Partly Free” and Reporters Without Borders has placed India at 161st rank in their latest press freedom survey, behind Afghanistan. This year, the Indian government banned a BBC documentary that showcases the then chief minister’s role in the 2002 anti-Muslim pogrom in which an estimated 2,000 people were killed.
The IAMC argued: “The Modi government has curtailed free press through buyouts where intimidation has failed. One of Modi’s closest allies, the disgraced oligarch Gautam Adani, took over the previously independent cable news channel NDTV and cut its critical reportage. Later in January, Hindenburg Research revealed that the Adani Group overinflated their stock value with assistance from the Indian government in what many have called the most serious financial scandal of the decade.”
To fail to note these anti-minority, authoritarian tendencies is not only to ignore the US government’s own findings but a strategic blunder with the potential to jeopardise global stability, it warned.
“For these reasons, we call on Rep. Khanna to rescind his letter to House Speaker Kevin McCarthy, and to use his platform to ensure that the US’s strategic partnership with India guarantees the human rights enshrined in the constitution of both countries.”
