Police in India Detains Students & Activists Protesting Against Anti-Muslim Violence in Tripura
The Indian American Muslim Council (IAMC) strongly condemns Delhi Police for detaining students and activists who protested outside the Tripura Bhawan in New Delhi against the ongoing anti-Muslim violence in the northeast state unleashed by Hindu extremist mobs linked to the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), the party of Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
Police also confiscated the placards from students, which read “#Muslimlivesmatter” and termed its use illegal.
Over the past week, the mobs affiliated to Vishwa Hindu Parishad, Hindu Jagran Manch, Bajrang Dal, and the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) restored to targeted violence on mosques and homes of Muslims across Tripura as retaliation for the violence in Bangladesh.
The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), which runs the Tripura government, has given a free hand to the Hindu extremist to attack Muslims. Instead of acting upon the miscreants, the state machinery is being used to threaten and intimidate the social media users and activists, who are highlighting the deteriorating law and order situation in the state.
To Silence Non-Resident Indian Critics, Indian Government Starts Canceling Visas & OCI Cards
IAMC expresses its deep anguish and concern over the Indian government’s move to cancel the long-term visas and Overseas Citizens of India (OCI) cards of Non-Resident Indians (NRIs) critical of the BJP government policies.
Last week, Indian-American businessman Darshan Singh Dhaliwal was sent back from the Delhi airport despite carrying all the valid documents. The immigration officials questioned him about his support for the farmers who have been protesting against the three farm laws passed by the Modi government in 2020.
According to The Tribune, the BJP government has canceled visas and OCI cards of an unknown number of NRIs over participation in the ongoing anti-farm laws protests in India and abroad.
IAMC calls on the Indian government to immediately roll back these draconian measures that aim to chill free speech and expression in the diaspora and Indian students studying abroad.
BJP Ruled Karnataka Becomes New Hotbed for Anti-Christian Attacks
The IAMC condemns the continuing attacks by Hindu extremists on Christians in the Indian state of Karnataka after the BJP Chief Minister B.C. Bommai announced his plan to enact an anti-conversion law in the state.
The law, a long pending demand of Hindu right-wing groups in the state, is based on a conspiracy theory that accuses Christians of “forcefully and deceitfully” converting Hindus to Christianity after promising monetary benefits. The proposed anti-conversion law is nothing but a legal permit for radical Hindu nationalists to attack and harass religious minorities.
Over the past two weeks, many attacks on Churches and congregations were reported from different parts of the state. In one incident, the Karnataka Police, instead of taking action against the Hindu radicals, arrested Pastor Somu Alwadi. The Hindu extremist mob told him that they would crucify him like Jesus was crucified.
This has become a pattern in India, with Hindu extremists attacking Muslims and Christians at will while the police and the administration fail to protect the victims.
