In its annual report, the USCIRF has recommended designating India as a “Country of Particular Concern” due to “severe violations of religious freedom.” The report points to incidents of violence against religious minorities and the demolition of homes and places of worship, claiming that India’s legal framework—particularly laws like the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA) and various state-level anti-conversion regulations—disenfranchises these communities.
The USCIRF stated, “Throughout 2024, individuals have been killed, beaten, and lynched by vigilante groups; religious leaders have faced arbitrary arrests; and homes and places of worship have been demolished. These incidents represent severe violations of religious freedom.” The report also noted that India has consistently denied visas to USCIRF members since the tenure of the previous Manmohan Singh-led government, citing concerns over “interference” in its internal affairs.
India has firmly rejected a report from the US Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF) that highlighted “increasing abuses” against religious minorities in the country. The Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) labeled the report as biased and accused the USCIRF of promoting a motivated narrative.
MEA spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal stated, “Our stance on the United States Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF) is well established. It is a biased organization with a political agenda.” He added, “We reject this malicious report, which only serves to further discredit the USCIRF.”
Who Wrote The Report?
As always, factory of lies, USCIRF came up with another dog & pony show-country update report on India. While it is laced with usual anti-India tropes such as CAA & Islamophobia, what is important is to take a good look at the person drafting it.
Meet Sema G Hasan & USCIRF’s Pakistani pool of “experts” on India
The report is curated by Sema Gabriela Hasan, a Pakistani American appointed as South Asia Policy Analyst first in 2023, then promoted to senior analyst in 2024. Before this, she served as an intern at South and Central Asia Bureau, Office of Pakistan Affairs, US State Department.
She has been closely linked to the US State Department, having previously served as a Congressional Staffer at the Joint Economic Committee as a Democratic Representative in 2019.
More importantly in 2021, she was granted the Critical Language Scholarship (CLS), a program of the US State Department, pursuing which she came to the American Institute of Indian Studies to learn Urdu. A year & a half later, she was appointed as South Asia Policy Analyst at USCIRF.
But where have we seen this before? Sema G Hasan was groomed following the same blueprint before being appointed at the USCIRF as an “expert” on India. USCIRF’s 2020 policy analyst Harrison Akins covered a similar journey before bullshitting on India.
Like Sema, he’s also a graduate of Johns Hopkins & came to India in 2016 under the same CLS program. Another commonality- both their trips aligned with visa denials to USCIRF officials
Cherry on top, while Akins isn’t Pakistani, he was groomed by former Pak diplomat Akbar Ahmed.
That’s not it. USCIRF’s affair with Pakistanis and terror-linked Islamists isn’t new. Two other names in this special report on India also have roots in Pakistan and incidentally, they happen to hold brazen anti-India views.
Asif Mahmood is a Pakistani national appointed as a Commissioner at USCIRF in May 2024. Perhaps the USCIRF is trying to make us believe that a Pakistani would be anything but biased when it comes to India. His views say otherwise.
Next is Mohamed Elsanousi, appointed as commissioner in June 2024. He’s a graduate of Shariah & Law from International Islamic University, Pakistan & has served as director of Community Outreach & Interfaith Relations of the MB offshoot Islamic Society of North America (ISNA).
USCIRF’s best picks for opining on India’s religious freedom are either of Pakistani descent, trained in Pakistan or by a Pakistani national, or have spent years in the country for some project. In 2021, it was another Pakistani national Niala Mohammed, who crapped on India. It is noteworthy that the 2020 Report was written by Harrisson Akins and the 2021 & 2022 reports on India were drafted by Pakistani national Niala Mohammed who is a critic of India.
USCIRF had sold its soul to Islamists to publish bullshit reports on India when they fed USCIRF with some dimes to lobby against India, as exposed multiple times.
Years of this charade and the USCIRF isn’t even trying to hide it anymore. At this point, they are carelessly operating on zero ounce of credibility.
This article is based on an X thread by OSINTWa.
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