Qaisar Mansoor
Since fascist Modi came into power in 2014, it has taken various legislative and other actions that have legitimized discrimination against religious minorities and enabled violent Hindu nationalism. In 2021, three hundred incidents of persecution of minorities have been registered in India.
US State Department has released its international religious freedom report which paints a dark picture of the situation for religious minorities in India. India is on the path to self-destruction with its Hindutva policy targeting all minorities living in India.
President Genocide Watch, Dr. Gregory H Stanton, has cautioned that Indian government’s actions against the Muslims in Kashmir have been an extreme case of persecution and could very well lead to genocide.
The open call for genocide of Muslims in the so-called Dharm Sansad in Haridwar is the latest example of how far the cancer of hate and religious polarization has reached in Indian society.
Moreover, OHCHR’s (Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights) Complaints Procedure Branch has issued a communication to India and same will be published in UN High Commissioner of Human Right’s report for the next session in July 2022.
It has expressed their concerns on trafficking in Persons (Prevention, Care and Rehabilitation) Bill 2021 and its compliance with the state obligations under international law to prevent gender equality and promoting human rights of trafficked persons.
OHCHR reminded Indian government that Article 39 CRC provides that recovery and reintegration of child shall take place in environment, which fosters the health, self- respect and dignity of child victim.
In 2018, the United Nations human rights chief called for an independent international investigation into reports of human rights violations in Kashmir, alleging “chronic impunity for violations committed by security forces”.
Rights groups have also criticised the conduct of armed groups, accusing them of carrying out human rights violations against civilians.
Indian State has become the largest violator of human rights that are guaranteed in the UDHR. From genocide in Kashmir to suppression of religious minorities, India has become an apartheid state where human rights and equality have become a far-flung idea.
US and EU must rise above their economic and strategic interests and call for the protection of human rights in Indian minorities and Kashmiris in Occupied Kashmir.
