09 May , 2024 By : Debdeep Gupta
Russian Foreign Ministry spokesperson Maria Zakharova said that the United States (US) wants to unbalance the domestic political situation in India to complicate the ongoing general parliamentary elections in the country.
Her remarks came days after the US Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF) criticized India for alleged violations of religious freedom. It has also renewed its recommendation to the US State Department to declare India as a “Country of Particular Concern (CPC)” given the alleged violations of religious freedom.
In its annual report, the USCIRF said religious freedom in India continues to deteriorate and that the Bharatiya Janata Party-led Centre has reinforced “discriminatory” nationalist policies.
Zakharova, in a speech shared by RT News, said that Washington lacks a simple understanding of India's national mentality and history and continues to make "unfounded accusations" about religious freedoms. She dubbed it as disrespectful to India.
"The reason (behind the US accusations) is to unbalance the internal political situation in India to make it harder to have the general parliamentary election...," she said, adding that Washington's actions constitute interference in India's internal affairs.
Recently, an investigative report by The Washington Post said that a RAW official identified as Vikram Yadav was involved in the assassination plot of Sikh separatist leader Gurpatwant Singh Pannun in the US and the move was approved by the then Indian spy agency chief Samant Goel.
Pannun is one of the main leaders of the Khalistan movement and the legal advisor and spokesperson for Sikhs for Justice (SFJ), which aims to promote the idea of a separate Sikh state. The Indian government has declared Pannun a terrorist.
Reacting to it, India said the report made "unwarranted and unsubstantiated" imputations on a serious matter. "The report in question makes unwarranted and unsubstantiated imputations on a serious matter," External Affairs Ministry spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal said.
Meanwhile, in the USCIRF report, Jaiswal said the organization is known to be a “biased” entity with a political agenda.
“The US Commission on International Religious Freedom is known as a biased organization with a political agenda. They continue to publish their propaganda on India masquerading as part of an annual report,” Jaiswal stated.
“Their efforts to interfere in the largest electoral exercise of the world will never succeed,” he added at a media briefing.
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