HUMAN RIGHTS VIOLATIONS IN INDIAN PUNJAB

WebDesk August 9, 2023 3 minutes read

US has raised the issue of human rights violations in Indian Punjab. The report titled, “State, Foreign Operations and Related Programs Appropriations Bill 2024” in which the Committee showed concerns with recent unrest and restrictions on civil liberties in the Indian state of Punjab and it is closely monitoring the situation. The Committee remains concerned that vulnerable and persecuted religious minorities, including victims of genocide designated by the Secretary of State and other groups that have suffered crimes against humanity and ethnic cleansing are not receiving necessary assistance, despite congressional direction. Minorities whether Sikhs, Christians, Muslims or Dalits are victims of Hindu extremism, narrow-mindedness, and state-sponsored terrorism for a long in India. Indian authorities executed massive mobilizations of paramilitary and police forces, conducted multiple coordinated arrests, imposed mobile internet data blackouts, blocked SMS services, censored media and disproportionately targeted Sikhs and political dissenters across Punjab. The police have invoked the National Security Act (NSA) and the Arms Act against Amritpal Singh and his associates. In a recent letter to United States Secretary Blinken, Sikh Coalition expressed its concern for India’s human rights abuses against Sikhs. The Indian government is violating civil liberties and human rights of political dissenters, removed information access and media for all Punjab regardless of political affiliation and have implemented wide reaching laws and paramilitary presence to create a general atmosphere of distrust and fear in the public. This further exacerbates concerns around the lack of due process afforded to the scores of Sikh arrestees and detainees. These actions not only contradict human rights freedoms but also risk exacerbating civil unrest, limiting freedom of expression and alienating a religious minority community. More recently, there has been a decline in press freedom, coinciding with increased censorship and arrests of journalists and threats against social media executives. The Indian government has previously charged several journalists who documented the police violence in the Farmers’ Protests. India-based employees at Facebook, WhatsApp, and Twitter were also threatened with fines and prison time for failing to immediately censor and remove social media content which criticized the Indian government for these restrictions. India ranks poorly for civil, political, and human rights according to Freedom House, Amnesty International, World Justice Project, Human Rights Watch. Pro-Khalistan SFJ, which is running the Khalistan Referendum campaign has said that more than 300 Khalistan Referendum supporters have been detained under sedition laws in India and there were over 1000 raids on supporters of Sikhs For Justice (SFJ) in the week prior to the Indian government’s crackdown on Amritpal and his supporters. Modi government does not want to see progress of Sikhs in Hindu Rashtra state. Intensity of such attack will continue until Sikhs will submit to Indian grand design of accepting Brahmin Supremacy and forgo demand of Khalistan movement.