USCIRF must uphold truth

The latest news is that- a US Federal advisory body has reiterated its concern about Gujarat Chief Minister Modi’s admissibility to the US. The reason being his alleged ‘complicity in the 2002 riots in the State. This comes as a shock because the US Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF)  has exposed its communalism and myopic vision.

To us here in India and it should be applicable to the rest of the world –Modi is a constitutional head of a State duly elected by the people. The Supreme Court appointed Special Investigative Team (SIT) has been probing for the past ten years on the Gujarat riots and the alleged role of the Chief Minister. It has categorically stated that Modi had no role in the riots and all the cases against him has been demolished on legal scrutiny all the evidence are fabricated, hearsay and biased rumors-that was what the SIT had stated to the Supreme Court. The SC has thus exonerated Modi and given him a clean
chit. In this background I cannot understand why and how the USCIRF is persistent with its false and highly communal stand. ‘It has noted that Modi is the only individual in whose case a provision of the international Religious Freedom Act (IRFA) was invoked. It states that the IRFA bars the entry of such individuals “responsible or directly carried out…particularly severe violations of religious freedom. On this basis the USCIRF has argued that the Departments of State and Homeland Security have a list of “aliens who are inadmissible to the US’.

This is sheer arrogance and ignorance of truth. The USCIRF mindset reflects a myopic mentality. It would be relevant to question its credibility to monitor global Religious Freedom violations when it stands indicted on communalism. There seem to be more than eye can see. Why is it against Modi? Had Modi instigated or abetted the Gujarat riots? If so the USCIRF can place the relevant material or evidence in the Supreme Court. Its ignorance stems from the fact that it is blissfully unaware of SC’s and SIT’s investigations. Its bias is evident and obvious because Gujarat riots of 2002 were not the first of its kind. There have been riots in Gujarat in the earlier regimes. For that matter there have been riots in various states. Will it be appropriate to point an accusing finger on the respective CMs of these States? If so then should one say that when terrorists attack coumtry the Head of the Country/ State abets it and is a accomplice to it?

Why this special treatment for Modi alone? For that matter a singular example is the brutal mass murder of 3000 Sikhs after the assassination of Indira Gandhi 29 years ago. Massacres, rapes and brutality were the order of the day. This ghastly persecution took place right in the capital of India and went unabated for three days. What was Rajiv Gandhi doing? Why was the army not called in? And worse still he justified the massacres by saying that when a big tree falls the small plants around would die. Did the USCIRF ban Rajiv Gandhi from visiting the US because it was human rights violation of an unprecedented scale? A minority community targeted simply because Indira Gandhi’s assassins –her own guards were Sikhs. No political assassinations have ever been rightly probed and truth was the casualty .The Congress party should have been indicted because its leaders led the butchers to kill-rape and rampage the Sikh community. Cases are still on. What is shocking is that these Congress leaders who led the rampage were rewarded by Rajiv Ganhi.They all were awarded plum posts and even became ministers in his cabinet.Thus the complicity of Rajiv Gandhi was proved. But the  USCIRF was not in the picture. So why this discrimination and bias now? Such an institution has no credence or credibility to judge Modi. It must prove its unbiased stand-it must uphold truth and must be above blemish and blame. But it has failed in this. It seems it is being used by vested interest and political masters who have axes to grind against Modi.

How can the USCIRF then monitor the violations of religious freedom?-It has lost its moral authority to overseer religious violations. It must then start at the very beginning. It does not mention even the Godhra train burning of 59 innocent kar Sevaks.When there is a riot passions are aroused and when it a backlash there is no logic and humans become animals-mob psychology has no logic or validity. Where does Modi come in the picture? If one woman-Indira Gandhi’s assassination resulted in the massacre of 3000 innocent Sikhs is it not explainable that  the backlash of the burning of 59 innocent devotees of Ram triggered the rioting and resulting in the killing of 1300 innocents-both Muslims and Hindus. This is not to justify massacres and killings and terrorism but I am only trying to understand human behavior when rationality and logic abandons humans and they turn into animals. Narendra Modi had just taken over the reins of the government-what he did and what he did not do is recorded and there is ample evidence with the Supreme Court and the Special Investigative Team(SIT). Concocted stories and fabricated hearsays cannot be the evidences/ guidelines for the USCIRF to seek the debarring of Modi.This will be a travesty of truth.If the USCIRF  seeks justice and its goal is in upholding human rights then it must become independent and cannot yield itself to  become a tool of communalism in the hands of vested interest. It will be a great injustice and how can injustice wrought justice?

The NGOs are harvesting money on this issue and the USCIRF is abetting the exploitation of this issue to the benefit of these NGOs. Ban the funds that flow into these NGO kitties and the issue will evaporate but what is saddening is the fact that the USCIRF is allowing itself to be used by vested interest at the loss of its own credibility. I am aware that the US is s great country which respects impartiality and upholds truth. It is time to stop demonization of Narendra Modi because it goes against all norms of impartiality and independent assessment. I believe that the USCIRF will abide with these lofty values which have marked the Institutions of the US and gear its operations in the pursuit of truth. Only then Human Rights can be handcrafted by the USCIRF and truth upheld. Towards such a process and goal- seeking justice I offer my sincere wishes, hopes and prayers to the USCIRF

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