Sajan K George: India tells UN that it protects equality, but minorities are desperate
The activist challenges the statement by the Indian delegate at the UN Human Rights Council. The US Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF), which monitors religious freedom internationally, says that religious minorities and Dalit communities face discrimination and persecution in India.
Mumbai (AsiaNews) – Speaking at the 27th session of the Universal Periodic Review Working Group at the United Nations Human Rights Council, the head of the Indian delegation, Attorney General Mukul Rohatgi, said that the Indian constitution makes no distinction between caste, creed, colour or religion of a citizen. However, for Sajan K George, president of the Global Council of Indian Christians (GCIC), the erosion of the "spirit of secularism" that appears to be happening in India creates a sense of discouragement and despair among Christians and other minorities.
“India is a secular state with no state religion,” Mr Rohatgi said. Indeed, he noted that the Indian constitution guarantees freedom of religion to every individual. The right to free speech and expression occupies its rightful place in the core of the Indian Constitution. Various provisions exist for the protection of the rights and interests of minorities.
“Our people are conscious of their political freedoms and exercise their choices at every opportunity,” the Indian delegate went on to say. “We believe in peace, non-violence and upholding human dignity. As such, the concept of torture is completely alien to our culture and it has no place in the governance of the nation,” he added.
India, he noted, has made significant strides in addressing the special needs of persons with disabilities through its Accessible India Campaign, and by overhauling its legislative framework on the rights of persons with disabilities and the rights of persons with mental health issues.
India seeks to ensure inclusive development and the protection of rights of vulnerable groups and it has enacted a range of laws to address sexual assault and other gender based crimes.
What is more, India has been at the forefront of recognising transgender rights. The Supreme Court gave a landmark judgement in 2014 directing the government to guarantee them rights like marriage, adoption, divorce, and inheritance.
At the same time, India has taken various steps to ensure a safe and dignified work environment for women and facilitate their overall socio-economic empowerment. It also considers as a priority poverty eradication and achieving inclusive sustainable development, Mr Rohatgi said.
As evidence of this, he cited major initiatives like Smart Cities, Make in India, Beti Bachao Beti Padhao--Celebrate the Girl Child and Enable her Education, Swachh Bharat--Clean India, Jan Dhan Yojana--Bank Accounts for All, Digital India, Skill India, Start up India etc. mirror the targets of the Seventeen Sustainable Development Goals for achieving the 2030 Agenda.
Reacting to Rohatgi’s statement, Sajan K George noted that denying Dalit Christians reservation status is a clear sign of state discrimination against the country’s largest Christian group, which raises questions about its secular credentials.
In fact, about 50 per cent of India’s 29 million Christians are Dalit (Scheduled Castes), excluding tribal Christians. Unlike Sikhs and Buddhists, Dalit converts to Christianity do not receive government aid.
According to Constitutional and Legal Challenges Faced by Religious Minorities in India, a report by the US Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF), India’s religious minority communities and Dalits face discrimination and persecution. Overall, hate crimes, social boycotts and forced conversion have escalated dramatically in the country since 2014.
"Since the BJP assumed power, religious minority communities have been subject to derogatory comments by BJP politicians and numerous violent attacks and forced conversions by affiliated Hindu nationalist groups such as Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh, Sangh Parivar, and Vishva Hindu Parishad," the report says.
"Under BJP-led governments, religious minority communities and Dalits, both have faced discrimination and persecution due to a combination of overly broad or ill-defined laws, an inefficient criminal justice system, and a lack of jurisprudential consistency. In particular, since 2014, hate crimes, social boycotts, assaults, and forced conversion have escalated dramatically," it adds.
Quoting India's Home Ministry figures, the report notes that in 2015, India experienced a 17 per cent increase in communal violence, when compared to the previous year. In 2015, there were 751 reported incidents of communal violence, up from 644 in 2014.
Anti-conversion legislations, euphemistically called Freedom of Religion laws, adopted by several Indian states, are a serious challenge to religious freedom as guaranteed by the Indian Constitution and enshrined in international human rights instruments.
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09/09/2022 17:16
