The 2020 Country Reports on Human Rights Practices released by the US State Department on Tuesday garnered a negative response from the Ministry of External Affairs in India, dismissing the reports as largely inaccurate.
The Report, as presented to US Congress highlighted the “unlawful and arbitrary killings, arbitrary arrest and detention by government authorities, overly restrictive rules on non-governmental organizations, violence against women and minorities and restrictions on freedom of expression and the press” as some of the concerns in India.
It further stated that “There were several instances in which the government or actors considered close to the government allegedly pressured or harassed media outlets critical of the government, including through online trolling,” and that “There were also reports of extremists perpetrating acts of killing, violence, and intimidation against journalists critical of the government.”
Touching upon the situation in Jammu and Kashmir, the report stated that while steps to restore normalcy in Jammu and Kashmir were taken, it also identified the “serious abuses” of terrorists in Jammu and Kashmir and the North East, “including killings and torture of armed forces personnel, police, government officials, and civilians, and recruitment and use of child soldiers”.
This report is one that voices the larger sentiment present in the international community, which is concern about the apparent degradation of democracy ever since the Modi-led regime came into power. Many international organizations have raised concerns regarding India’s deteriorating situation with regards to political rights and civil liberties and fear that this is just a symptom of a larger process that could prove to be a critical blow on the integrity of democracy in India.
In response, the Ministry of External Affairs dismissed the report saying that “This is clearly an internal exercise of the US government, We are not a party to it. There should be a proper understanding of developments in India.” And that “The country does not need approval or tedious moral lectures from a “set of self-appointed custodians of the world”. It is to be noted that in the past too, the Indian Government has rejected similar claims and reports regarding human rights concerns in the nation.
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