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Religious Minorities in India: Targetted Hate and Violence by Non State Actors, and Issues of Impunity

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Religious Minorities in India: Targetted Hate and Violence by Non State Actors, and Issues of Impunity RELIGIOUS MINORITIES IN INDIA: TARGETTED HATE AND VIOLENCE BY NON STATE ACTORS, AND ISSUES OF IMPUNITY Submission to the United Nations Universal Periodic Review of India THIRD CYCLE TWENTY SEVENTH SESSION OF THE UPR HUMAN RIGHTS COUNCIL APRIL - MAY 2017 SUBMITTED BY: EVANGELICAL FELLOWSHIP OF INDIA (EFI) CONTACT NAME: VIJAYESH LAL CONTACT PHONE/EMAIL: +911126431133 / [email protected] ORGANIZATION WEBSITE: WWW.EFIONLINE.ORG List of Organizations / Individuals that endorse this report World Evangelical Alliance, Nagel Institute for the Study of World Christianity, Indian Social Institute - Bangalore, Biblica - The International Bible Society, India Missions Association, United Christian Forum, Oxford Center for Religion and Public Life – South Asia, Alliance Defending Freedom in India, Theological Research and Communications Institute, Indian American Muslim Council, Center for Policy Research, Dr. John Dayal 1 RELIGIOUS MINORITIES IN INDIA: TARGETTED HATE AND VIOLENCE BY NON STATE ACTORS, AND ISSUES OF IMPUNITY A Status Report of 2012-16 for the Universal Periodic Review 2017 This report is a joint submission by the EVANGELICAL FELLOWSHIP OF INDIA, New Delhi, and other groups, on the issue of freedom of religion or belief, related to the 3rd cycle of Universal Periodic Review for India, scheduled to be held in April – May 2017. This report focuses on the status of freedom of religion or belief with respect to the Christian community in India. Brief description of Evangelical Fellowship of India 1. The Evangelical Fellowship of India (EFI), established 1951, is a central network and umbrella body of Evangelicals in India. The constituency of EFI includes Churches, Christian and humanitarian institutions, and individuals. EFI represents more than 65000 Churches all across India. EFI is a charter member of the World Evangelical Alliance, an accredited NGO with the Economic and Social Council of the United Nations. 2. EFI has been documenting hate crimes against the Christian community since the late 1990’s and releases every year a partial list of hate crimes committed against the Christian community in India. The constituency of EFI is most affected by the hate speech inciting acts of violence against the minority Christian community, including member Churches, institutions and FORB defenders. India and the UPR process 1. India is a signatory to the several international human rights covenants. However India’s resistance to international standards is reflected in its rejection of many of the recommendations of UPR 2012, particularly those relating to Freedom of Religion or Belief.1 This resistance is also evident in India’s refusal to grant Visas to UN and other organizations wishing to probe matters of Human Rights and Religious Freedom violations. [Please see Annexure - V] India - religious profile 1. India is characterized by a diversity of religious beliefs and practices. The 2011 census says 79.8% of the population of India practices Hinduism in various sects and denominations, while 14.2% adheres to Islam. The remaining 6% follows other religions (Christianity 2.3 %, Sikhism about 2%, and Buddhism, Jainism and various indigenous 11 “India’s 2012 UPR examination: No commitment on enhancing human rights but a mountain to climb.” http://www.achrweb.org/UN/HRC/IndiaUPR2012.pdf. 2 ethnically-bound faiths). Though India is constitutionally secular “ and equidistance from all religions, but with close to 80 percent of its population, Hinduism is the deemed default religion of India, as can be seen in the illumination of the first copy of the Constitution and the use of Hindu liturgy and symbols in most government and publicly financed events including founding of new cities and launching of new military aircrafts.2 The Hindu idiom overwhelms the state, from such small things as temples within police stations and many public offices. Police permission is required to hold a midnight Mass, or a public Christian or Muslim meeting. Christianity in India 2. Christianity is the 3rd largest religion in the country tracing its roots to the First Century, and is concentrated largely in the southwestern coast and in the hills of the North East. This results in large-scale political and economic disempowerment on the one hand, and on the other, the growth of an underground Church, which seeks to practice its faith and survive in the face of aggressive persecution by state and non-state actors. Christian converts from former untouchable castes,” covered under the legal term of Scheduled Castes and the popular term Dalit Christians, are subject to targetted violence and profiling, and are specifically disempowered economically and politically under the Presidential Order 1950. is well known. The Dalits may constitute as much as 60 per cent of the country’s Christian population. Minorities and the Indian justice system 1. India retained many colonial criminal laws after the transfer of power from the British Crown in 1947. Indian Penal Code (IPC), 1860, the Criminal Procedure Code (Cr. PC), 1861, the Evidence Act, 1874 and the Police Act, 1860 were all retained. According to experts, these laws do not contain any specific protective provisions for the minorities. The Indian criminal justice system is yet to incorporate international principles and standards on minority issues. 2. A recent report featuring data released by the National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB) says minorities particularly Christians and Sikhs are more likely to be undertrials, detenus and convicts than Hindus. Christians are most likely to be detained and imprisoned. 3 2 Andhra Chief Minster Chandrababu Naidu laid the foundation of the proposed capital of the state according to Vedic rituals. The newspapers reported that Naidu, his wife Bhuvaneshwari and son Nara Lokesh, performed the pooja (worship) amidst Vedic chants. In another display of Hindu symbolism, the aircraft carrier, Tejas, was inducted into the service of the Indian Air Force amidst the chanting of Vedic Mantras. http://www.thehindubusinessline.com/news/naidu-performs-bhoomi-pooja-for-new-capital-city-of- amaravati/article7288949.ece 3 “Sikhs, Christians More Likely to Be Jailed than Hindus and Muslims | India | Hindustan Times.” http://www.hindustantimes.com/india/hindus-least-likely-to-be-jailed-sikhs-christians-most-likely/story- Og4PhnhYsPlVLJglKyeOKL.html. 3 3. Muslims, Dalits and adivasis — three of the most vulnerable sections of Indian society — make up more than half of India's prison population. Although the proportion of these three communities in India adds up to about 39%, their share amongst prisoners is considerably higher at 53%. 4. “Most experts say that this disturbing trend is not because these communities commit more crimes. Rather, it arises because they are economically and socially under- privileged, unable to fight costly cases or often even pay for bail. Some say that these communities are targeted with false cases.”4 5. The National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) has stated that 60% of the arrests made are unjustified or unnecessary and that 75% of all the complaints received by the commission were against the police. Growing Religious Nationalism 1. The situation of Religious Minorities in India has worsened since the last UPR was conducted in 2012. The present government, of the Bhartiya Janata Party led National Democratic Alliance, since May 2014, is ideologically aligned and governed by the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS). The RSS is a supremacist outfit that espouses a commitment to overthrowing the Indian Constitution. Hence the worsening of the situation for minorities has to be understood in the background of the present government. 5 Hate speech inciting violence, by members of the Central Council of Ministers and Members of Parliament, has increased since May 2014. Especially hate speech that provokes throngs of Hindutva supporters to commit acts of violence against the religious minorities of India particularly Muslims and Christians. 6 4 Muslims, Dalits and Tribals Make up 53% of All Prisoners in India: http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/india/Muslims-dalits-and-tribals-make-up-53-of-all-prisoners-in- India/articleshow/45253329.cms. 5 http://scroll.in/article/689584/how-the-sangh-parivar-systematically-attacks-the-very-idea-of-india; 6 Annexure--List of Hate Speech since May 2014 till May 2015 4 2. As soon as the election results were declared in May 2014, M G Vaidya, an ideologue of the RSS (Rashtriya Swayamsewak Sangh) called on the BJP to ‘tackle’ the issues of Ram Mandir (on the disputed site of the Babri Mosque) and Article 370. 7 3. Ashok Singhal, Ex International president of the VHP (Vishwa Hindu Parishad) and a lifelong pracharak (propagator) of the RSS said of the Muslims in July 2014: “they must learn to respect Hindu sentiments. If they keep opposing Hindus, how long can they survive?”8 4. In states where the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) is ruling, a new threat is felt to the life, security and rights of the minorities even as members of the RSS are now entering the civil services and the police in those states.9 5. According to the government data released by the Ministry of Home Affairs in February 2014, there had been noticed a “steep 30 per cent rise in the number of communal violence incidents in 2013 as compared to 2012, with the maximum number of cases being reported from Uttar Pradesh.” 10 The first ten months of 2013 saw more bloodshed for religious and sectarian reasons than the entire three-year period of 2010-2012.11 6. Uttar Pradesh,
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