US hearing spotlights persecution allegations against Indian Muslims
Researcher tells US commission anti-Muslim campaigns in India are backed by Hindutva political networks and protected by state impunity and coordinated hate speech
WASHINGTON (MNTV) — A hearing before the United States Commission on International Religious Freedom intensified international attention on alleged worsening persecution of Muslims, Christians and other minorities in India, with rights advocates accusing state institutions and Hindu nationalist groups of enabling systemic discrimination and violence.
During the proceedings, a prominent researcher on religious freedom warned that attacks, exclusionary policies and impunity for extremist groups were contributing to what critics described as a deepening climate of fear and marginalization for minority communities across the country.
Raqib Hameed Naik, executive director of the Centre for the Study of Organized Hate, told the commission during testimony over the weekend that anti-minority campaigns in India were receiving “high political patronage” and were increasingly embedded within state structures, political networks and extremist organizations.
Naik alleged that repression of minorities in India had become “embedded in bureaucracy, codified in law, protected by complete impunity and increasingly ruthless.”
His testimony pointed to policies, speeches and actions linked to senior political figures, including Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath and Assam Chief Minister Himanta Biswa Sarma.
According to figures cited in the testimony, 1,318 hate speech incidents targeting minorities were recorded across 21 Indian states in 2025, which Naik described as a 97% increase compared with 2023. He alleged that Muslims and Christians were routinely dehumanized at political and religious gatherings using terms such as “termites,” “snakes,” “worms” and “pigs.”
Naik also claimed that some Hindu extremist groups had organized weapons training involving swords, knives and firearms, while social media platforms including Facebook, Instagram, YouTube and X had become what he called “central infrastructure” for spreading anti-minority hate speech.
A major focus of the testimony was the situation in Assam, where Naik alleged that eviction and demolition campaigns disproportionately targeted Muslims.
Referring to the government led by Himanta Biswa Sarma, he claimed that at least 33 eviction drives had been carried out between 2021 and 2026, resulting in the demolition of more than 22,000 homes and structures and affecting nearly 300,000 families.
“If this trend continues, India could become one of the countries with the largest internally displaced populations in the world,” Naik told the commission.
The testimony also criticized laws and administrative measures such as the Citizenship Amendment Act, the National Register of Citizens and revisions to electoral rolls, alleging that such policies disproportionately affected Muslim communities and risked disenfranchising large numbers of voters.
Naik further raised concerns over the demolition of Muslim-owned properties in several Indian states, alleging that bulldozers and heavy machinery manufactured by companies including JCB, Caterpillar Inc., Tata Group, Mahindra Group and Hyundai Motor Company were used during demolition campaigns.
He urged the commission to examine whether companies supplying such equipment were conducting adequate human rights due diligence.
The activist also alleged that Muslim cattle traders and transporters were frequently targeted by self-styled cow vigilante groups and said more than 4,000 videos documenting such attacks had been recorded over the past three years.
Addressing violence against Christians, Naik cited data from the United Christian Forum claiming that attacks against Christians increased by 555% between 2014 and 2024.
He alleged that churches in some regions had been shut down and that priests and worshippers faced violence, harassment and accusations of forced conversion.
Naik additionally claimed that Indian authorities were monitoring and pressuring critics living abroad, alleging that he personally received a request through X seeking access to his GPS location data.
During the hearing, he called on the United States government to designate India as a “Country of Particular Concern” under international religious freedom laws and urged sanctions under the Global Magnitsky Act against organizations such as Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh, Bajrang Dal and Vishwa Hindu Parishad, along with sanctions against certain Indian political leaders.
Indian government officials and Hindu nationalist organizations have repeatedly denied allegations of systematic persecution, maintaining that Indian laws apply equally to all citizens regardless of religion. Authorities have also defended eviction drives and law enforcement actions as necessary measures against illegal encroachments and threats to public order.
The testimony is likely to intensify international debate over religious freedom, minority rights and democratic backsliding in India, particularly as global rights organizations continue to raise concerns about rising anti-minority rhetoric and violence in the country.
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