Dear Mr. President,
We write today to express our concern regarding the religious freedom situation in India. We ask that you raise the situation of religious persecution of Christians and other minorities in India as you meet with Prime Minister Narendra Modi in private and in public during your upcoming visit to India.
The United States and yourself, Mr. President, have made a clear stand for religious freedom not least during your remarks at the US-led United Nations General Assembly Event on Religious Freedom. We ask that you stay true to your promises and religious freedom commitments.
The religious persecution carried out by the government of Prime Minister Modi is not restricted to Indian citizens alone, US citizens who work for Christian organizations are regularly deported and or denied entry upon arrival at Indian airports. As recently as October 2019, police arrested a US Pastor from Tennessee, Bryan Nerren in Bagdogra airport in Northeast India.[1] The police arrested him on the grounds of failing to declare funds after they had interrogated and cleared him in New Delhi, asking him if he was Christian and if the money was for Christians or Hindus. Authorities have confiscated the pastor’s funds and passport and while he has now been released, he is still waiting to receive his passport. Senator Alexander and Senator Blackburn are working on his case. The boldness of the authorities’ arrest and discrimination of a US national because of his faith - shows that actors of religious persecution in India, afforded government impunity, further emboldens state and non-state extremists to continue their discriminatory and abusive actions towards non-Hindus. Last year, the Chief of Immigration at Chennai airport deported a team of Episcopal Pastors from the Council of Churches (USA) visiting Chennai and threatened that he will not let another American Christian enter his country again.
What concerns us is how the cases of mob violence, which includes severe beatings, harassment and threats of Christians, Muslims and other non-Hindus; are not addressed or prosecuted by the local governments or police. According to Open Doors from November 2018-October 2019, at least 1497 Christians were attacked. When individuals go to report their cases oftentimes they themselves get arrested or questioned. In addition, police have used excessive force against demonstrators protesting the Citizenship Amendment Act, including many students. Within a week of its introduction in December 2019, 25 deaths were reported, all in states governed by the Prime Minister-led Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP).[2]
In January 2020, in the state of Andhra Pradesh, attacks and harassment by upper-caste Hindus led a 40-member church congregation to stop meeting. Local Hindu extremists there beat the pastor badly as the extremists were trying to build a wall outside the pastor’s home to block church members from attending worship services. A first information report was filed with the police but there has been no arrest.[3] Another similar case happened in Southern India, where Hindu extremists interrupted a Church service taking photos of the Christian children, claiming forced conversions; when the children asked them to stop, the Hindu extremists beat up the Christian children and then they filed a police complaint against the congregation. When the congregation made it to the police station to report the incident, the police tried to find fault with the Christians for using their home as a place of worship.[4] These cases are not isolated, mob violence and discrimination when reporting the violent incidents to the police are common.
In addition to the mob violence, states in India are enforcing “anti-conversion” legislation. While the government of India defends these laws as, “important safeguards against coercion and inducement to convert or reconvert from one religion to another in a multi-religious society,” they have only been applied towards Christians, and have restricted the right to worship, even in private, and have emboldened Mr. Modi’s Hindu nationalists. These laws together with the anti-cow slaughter laws have been used discriminatorily against non-Hindus and Dalits. According to Human Rights Watch, extremist Hindu groups have killed 50 people and injured over 250 in response to rumors they trade or have killed cows for beef since May 2015; including Muslims who were also beaten and forced to chant Hindu slogans. Anti-conversion laws have been implemented in Orissa, Madhya Pradesh, Chhattisgarh, Gujarat, Himachal Pradesh, Jharkhand and Uttarakhand states, all during the time when Prime Minister’s BJP party is/was in power.
Unfortunately, every single time, citizen tribunals have found that the mob belongs to the ruling party, BJP and its affiliated organizations. Due to the erosion of rule of law, its leaders enjoy total immunity for their violence against Christians and other religious minority groups.[5]
Far-reaching legislations introduced by Prime Minister Modi’s government affecting longstanding secular and liberal values of India has the potential to create large scale civil unrest in India, as has been documented. Such unrest could be very detrimental to the interest of the United States not only in India but also across the region from Afghanistan to Indonesia if not beyond.
While we should develop economic and trade opportunities for US companies in India, we must also do that without compromising our cherished values or undermining our commitment to protecting over 100 million people who practice Christianity in India besides the over 200 million other religious minorities.
In conclusion, President Trump, at the UNGA, you urged every nation to, “increase the prosecution and punishment of crimes against religious communities,” we respectfully ask, therefore, that you raise the issue of impunity regarding mob violence against Christians and religious minorities India with Prime Minister Narendra Modi. Please also raise the case of the US pastor, the anti-conversion laws, and urge the government of India to show itself willing to enact and enforce policy to protect religious liberty for all.
As you promised in UNGA, “no matter the case, America will always be a voice for victims of religious persecution everywhere.” We ask that you do not let the voices of persecuted Christians, Muslims and other religious minorities in India go unheard.
https://www.fiacona.org/news-updates/letter-to-presdient/
