US body opposes Mohan Bhagwat’s visit this month, seeks sanctions on RSS members over religious freedom

E-PaperSubscribeSubscribeEnjoy unlimited accessSubscribe Now! Get features like The US Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF) publicly opposed a scheduled visit to the United States by RSS chief Mohan Bhagwat, which is set to take place later this month in New York. Ahead of Mohan Bhagwat’s US visit, USCIRF seeks sanctions against RSS members (ANI)In a statement released on X, members of the USCIRF stated that the US government should focus on imposing sanctions on RSS members found guilty of violating religious freedoms. “India’s PM Modi is a member of the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS), an Indian umbrella organization whose sub-groups have perpetrated attacks on religious minorities, incl. Christians & Muslims. Now the RSS leader, Mohan Bhagwat, plans to visit the US,” said Asif Mahmood, the chair of USCIRF, which is an agency of the American legislative branch created in 1998. Its members are appointed by the President and top lawmakers although the organisation states that it functions independently of the US government. Also Read | Trump cites Gyanesh Kumar while renewing push for SAVE America Act, praises India's voter ID system “RSS leaders, even when affiliated with the Indian government, should not be honored with high-level meetings or diplomatic courtesies. Instead, the USG should focus on imposing sanctions on RSS members found responsible for FoRB (Freedom of Religious Belief) violations,” added USCIRF member Gene Mills. Earlier this year, the agency created a stir when it recommended the use of targeted sanctions against India’s external intelligence agency and the RSS. It also called for the US government to link security assistance and bilateral trade policies towards India to religious freedom in the country while also recommending that India be designated a “country of particular concern”. To be sure, these recommendations are not binding on the United States government and have not, thus far, played a significant role in the bilateral relationship. Although India’s ministry of external affairs has not yet issued a formal statement in response to USCIRF’s latest statements, it has firmly repudiated the commission’s findings in previous years. Also Read | US names India a part of ‘shadow transhipment network’ helping China evade Trump tariffs “The USCIRF’s persistent attempts to misrepresent isolated incidents and cast aspersions on India’s vibrant multicultural society reflect a deliberate agenda rather than a genuine concern for religious freedom,” India’s foreign ministry stated in 2025 in response to the agency’s annual report for that year. “India is home to 1.4 billion people who are adherents to all religions known to mankind. However, we have no expectation that the USCIRF will engage with the reality of India’s pluralistic framework or acknowledge the harmonious coexistence of its diverse communities. Such efforts to undermine India’s standing as a beacon of democracy and tolerance will not succeed. In fact, it is the USCIRF that should be designated as an entity of concern,” the Ministry of External Affairs said last year. Shashank Mattoo is the Washington DC-based US Correspondent for Hindustan Times. Shashank covers the Trump administration, the India-US relationship and America's policies towards South Asia and the broader Indo-Pacific.Read More