00:00In India, we see a concerning increase in anti-conversion laws, hate speech,
00:05devolutions of homes and places of worship for members of minority faith communities.
00:10We therefore reject it. The exercise itself is a mix of imputations, misrepresentations,
00:17selective usage of facts, reliance on biased sources and a one-sided projection of issues.
00:24As in the past, the report is deeply biased, lacks understanding of India's social fabric.
00:30A statement on the US State Department's report on international religious freedom 2023.
00:42And thereafter, we will open the floor for questions.
00:46We have noted the release by the US State Department
00:50of its report on international religious freedom for 2023. As in the past,
00:55the report is deeply biased, lacks understanding of India's social fabric
01:01and is visibly driven by vote bank considerations and a prescriptive outlook. We therefore reject
01:08it. The exercise itself is a mix of imputations, misrepresentations, selective usage of facts,
01:16reliance on biased sources and a one-sided projection of issues. This extends even to
01:23the depiction of our constitutional provisions and duly enacted laws of India. It has selectively
01:29picked incidents to advance a preconceived narrative as well. In some cases, the very
01:36validity of laws and regulations are questioned by the report, as are the right of legislatures
01:42to enact them. The report also appears to challenge the integrity of certain legal judgments
01:51given by Indian courts. The report has also targeted regulations that monitor misuse of
02:01financial flows into India, suggesting that the burden of compliance is unreasonable. It seeks
02:08to question the need for such measures. On its own part, the United States has even more stringent
02:16laws and regulations and would surely not prescribe such solutions for itself. Human rights
02:24and respect for diversity have been and remain a legitimate subject of discussion between India
02:32and the United States. In 2023, India has officially taken up numerous cases in the
02:38US of hate crimes, racial attacks on Indian nationals and other minorities, vandalisation
02:46and targeting of places of worship, violence and mistreatment by law enforcement authorities,
02:53as well as the according of political space to advocates of extremism and terrorism abroad.
03:01However, such dialogues should not become a license for foreign interference in other
03:07polities. So that was my statement. In India, we see a concerning increase in anti-conversion laws,
03:15hate speech, demolitions of homes and places of worship for members of minority faith communities.
05:30Transcribed by https://otter.ai
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