“When we have concerns about human rights, as we have in India, we express those openly. We express them directly to the government of India. We have done that and we’ll continue to do it, as we do with countries all around the world,” the State Department spokesperson added.
The government under Modi denies discriminating against minorities and dissidents and says it works for the benefit of all Indians.
Human rights advocates contest this. They point to a rise in anti-Muslim hate speech, the revoking of Muslim-majority Kashmir’s special status, a citizenship law that the UN calls “fundamentally discriminatory”, the demolition of Muslim properties in the name of removing illegal construction and India’s low rank in the World Press Freedom Index.
