The United States Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF) has been at the helm of anti-India propaganda for several years. It has cast aspersions on the integrity of Indian institutions and peddled hysteria about an impending genocide in India.
USCIRF, which was created in 1998 by the Clinton administration, has been reporting on religious freedom in India for the past two decades. The US federal government commission has been interfering in India’s internal affairs and portraying a falsified image of India to the rest of the world.
As per the website (archive) of USCIRF, a civil rights lawyer named Anurima Bhargava served as the Chair of the Commission between December 11, 2018, and May 19, 2020. She was appointed to the position by Democratic leader Nancy Pelosi.
Interestingly, Bhargava was the recipient of the ‘Leadership in Government Fellowship’, which was provided by the Open Society Foundations (OSF) run by Hungarian-American billionaire George Soros.
Anuima Bhargava and her views on Article 370, NRC
In a statement, Anurima Bhargava claimed, “We remain troubled by any government policies or actions that have the effect, whether intentional or not, of undermining religious freedom for vulnerable religious minorities.”
The USCIRF Chair alleged, “The National Register of Citizens verification process must not become a means to target and render stateless the Muslim community in northeastern India.”
She also insinuated that NRC will put ‘a higher burden for verification’ on Muslims and foster a dangerous climate for the community in India’s north-east region.
Anurima Bhargava runs a strategic advisory and consulting firm ‘Anthem of us’. The firm lists a number of partner organisations. One of them – Sorors’s Open Society Foundations. Bhargava herself is a OSF Fellowship winner. 5/7 pic.twitter.com/99MmXfPiH1
— Stop Hindu Hate Advocacy Network (SHHAN) (@HinduHate) June 4, 2022
Arunmia Bhargava also made similar contentious remarks about the Indian government’s landmark decision to abrogate Article 370 of the constitution. She had claimed, “The restrictions in Kashmir impacted the ability of people to practice their faith, visit their places of worship and exercise their rights.”
Bhargava has also been connected to the Doc Society, which in turn is associated with the Open Society Foundation of George Soros and the American private foundation Ford.
Open Society Foundations has extended support to the likes of ‘journalist’ Rana Ayyub over a withheld tweet. Doc Society, supported by George Soros, has also funded the documentary film on NDTV News anchor Ravish Kumar titled ‘While We Watched’.
So Arunima Bhargava is active with Kejriwal, Ravish Kumar, Rana Ayyub, Hindus for Human Rights, Indo American Muslim Council, FIACONA, Ford Foundation, Doc Society, USCIRF, she is close to Biden Administration & is woman behind pic.twitter.com/bXYp9x8UZf
— Alok Bhatt (@alok_bhatt) November 17, 2022
USCIRF and its vendetta against India
Prior to the legislation on the Citizenship Amendment Bill in 2019, USCIRF appealed to the US government to impose sanctions on India.
In a statement, USCIRF said, “The CAB is a dangerous turn in the wrong direction; it runs counter to India’s rich history of secular pluralism and the Indian Constitution, which guarantees equality before the law regardless of faith.”
It further threatened, “If the CAB passes in both houses of parliament, the US government should consider sanctions against the Home Minister and other principal leadership.”
Full statement by MEA on US Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF) on the Citizenship (Amendment) Bill (CAB) https://t.co/8EQqrnh11O pic.twitter.com/MMgAMADvBC
— Sidhant Sibal (@sidhant) December 10, 2019
In reality, Citizenship Amendment Bill (now an Act) is meant to fast-track the citizenship of religious minorities (from nearby Islamic Republics of Pakistan, Bangladesh, and Afghanistan) living illegally in the country on or before December 31, 2014.
From 2020 onwards, USCIRF has continued to categorise India as a ‘country of particular concern.’ In November 2022, the United States Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF) published a report citing the ‘dubious’ Tek Fog allegation as an example of a lack of religious freedom in India.
The report claimed, “The BJP has also been accused of using ‘Tek Fog,’ a highly sophisticated app utilized by online operatives to hijack major social media and encrypted messaging platforms to amplify hate speech and exacerbate sectarian divides.”
This was despite the fact that the original purveyor of the fake claim i.e. The Wire took down the story a month prior to the publication of the USCIRF report. It thus becomes evident that the Commission is highly prejudiced against India and will stoop to any level to further its baseless claims.
George Soros and his nefarious anti-India agenda
George Soros has several intellectuals on his payroll, including the former PM Manmohan Singh’s daughter Amrita Singh. Not to forget the curious case of ‘author’ and ‘social activist’ Harsh Mander who had been at the forefront of creating civil unrest during the Anti-CAA protests.
In 2018, George Soros-funded NGO, Sherpa, had attempted to thwart India’s defense deal with France and stall the delivery of Rafale fighter jets.
Moreover, Open Society Foundations (OSF) run by the billionaire had funded the Socio-Legal Information Centre (SLIC), which had been active in seeking the repeal of the sedition law currently used against anti-India elements.
In September 2019, George Soros also met Pakistani Prime Minister Imran Khan shortly after US President Donald Trump attended Narendra Modi’s ‘Howdy Modi’ event in Houston, Texas.
Interestingly, he is also friends with prominent Congressman Shashi Tharoor, who also happens to have a Pakistani connection. In 2021, there was a hullabaloo in India over allegations of snooping by the Modi government through the use of Israeli spyware, Pegasus.
These allegations stemmed from a report by the leftist-propaganda news outlet, The Wire, which in turn was fed the story by ‘Forbidden Stories (FS). Coincidentally, George Soros’ Open Society Foundation (OSF) happens to be one of the donors of the organization.
George Soros had been unabashed in his attempt to fuel a dangerous anti-India narrative through media and ‘civil society. Organizations funded by him played a key role in creating chaos and unrest under the pretext of anti-farm law protests.
In 1999, the Open Society Foundation began activities in India by providing scholarships and fellowships to pursue studies and research at Indian colleges. Through the OSF, George Soros made significant contributions towards the spread of instability in India.
The Hungarian-American billionaire has also tried to use international institutions, which are funded by him, including Freedom House and V-Dem (Varieties of Democracy) Institute to tarnish the image of India at a global level.
