,,iii #aahth ,,congress #ast ,session ,s4 ,,res4 #dbd ,,in ,,the ,,senate ,,of ,,the ,,united ,,states ,october #bd1 #bjbc,ms4 ,baldwin submitted the following resolution2 which was referred to the ,committee on ,foreign ,relations ,,resolution ,expressing the sense of the ,senate that the ,united ,states ,government engage the ,government of ,india to seek a swift end to the persecution of1 and violence against1 religious minorities and human rights defenders in ,india and a reversal of government policies that discriminate against ,muslims and ,christians on the basis of their respective faiths4 ,whereas religious freedom is a core human right and a right recognized by international law and treaties2 ,whereas religious freedom is-- 7#a7 a necessary component of ,united ,states foreign policy and our ,nation's commitment to defending democracy and freedom globally2 and 7#b7 a vital element of national security1 which is critical to ensuring a more peaceful1 prosperous1 and stable world2 ,whereas ,india is the world's most populous democracy1 which has long1 unique1 and important relationship with the ,united ,states in promoting common values and upholding regional stability2 ,whereas the strong relationship between the ,united ,states and ,india is fundamentally premised on both countries'-- 7#a7 cherished common values of liberty1 freedom1 justice1 and equality before law2 and 7#b7 opposition to every type of discrimination2 ,whereas1 during a visit to ,india in ,july #bjba1 ,secretary of ,state ,antony ,blinken stated1 ,we view ,indian democracy as a force for good in defense of a free and open ,indo-,pacific and a free and open world2 ,whereas the existence of a truly free and open ,indo-,pacific is conditional on the protection of the freedoms and rights of all civilians2 ,whereas1 on ,june #b1 #bjbb1 while releasing the ,department of ,state's #bjba ,report on ,international ,religious ,freedom1 ,secretary ,blinken commented1 ,in ,india1 the world's largest democracy and home to a great diversity of faiths1 we've seen rising attacks on people and places of worship2 ,whereas1 less than #a year after becoming ,india's ,prime ,minister in #bjad1 ,narendra ,modi promised1 ,my government will ensure that there is complete freedom of faith and that everyone has the undeniable right to retain or adopt the religion of his or her choice without coercion or undue influence2 ,whereas ,india has historically been a strong and pluralistic democracy1 being the birthplace of several of the world's great religions1 including ,hinduism1 ,buddhism1 ,sikhism1 and ,jainism2 ,whereas ,india's #a1cjj1jjj1jjj people include ,hindus1 who are the majority at #hj percent1 #bjj1jjj1jjj ,muslims1 which constitute the world's third largest ,muslim population1 #dj1jjj1jjj ,christians1 and millions of ,sikhs1 ,jains1 ,baha'is1 ,jews1 ,zoroastrians1 and people of innumerable animist and indigenous faiths2 ,whereas the preamble to the ,constitution of ,india states1 in part1 ,we1 the people of ,india1 having solemnly resolved to constitute ,india into a ,sovereign1 ,socialist1 ,secular1 ,democratic ,republic1 and to secure to all its citizens3 ,justice1 social1 economic and political2 ,liberty of thought1 expression1 belief1 faith and worship '''2 ,whereas article #ad of the ,constitution of ,india states1 ,the ,state shall not deny to any person equality before the law or the equal protection of the laws within the territory of ,india42 ,whereas article #be of the ,constitution of ,india states1 in part1 all persons are equally entitled to freedom of conscience and the right freely to profess1 practice and propagate religion42 ,whereas violence against ,india's religious minorities1 especially ,muslims and ,christians1 has escalated in the last decade2 ,whereas such violence against religious minorities has included-- 7#a7 public lynchings by vigilante groups2 7#b7 the disruption of prayer services at1 and the vandalizing and demolition of1 mosques and churches2 7#c7 the demolition of homes and businesses of ,muslims without due process by state authorities in retaliation for protesting for their constitutional rights2 and 7#d7 arrests of ,muslim men for marrying ,hindu women in the name of the false theory of ,love ,jihad2 ,whereas ,india's federal government and various state governments have failed to prosecute the culprits and bring justice to the victims1 which has been noted in the #bjba ,department of ,state ,country ,reports on ,human ,rights ,practices and the #bjba ,department of ,state ,report on ,international ,religious ,freedom2 ,whereas in #bjbj1 #bjba1 and #bjbb1 the ,united ,states ,commission on ,international ,religious ,freedom 7,,uscirf7 recommended that the ,department of ,state designate ,india as a country of particular concern for engaging in and tolerating systematic1 ongoing1 and egregious religious freedom violations1 as defined by the ,international ,religious ,freedom ,act 7,,irfa72 ,whereas ,india has failed to act against partisan leaders from the ,hindu religious community for repeatedly calling for a genocide of ,india's ,muslims1 such as ,pooja ,shakun ,pandey1 a leader of ,hindu ,mahasabha1 who stated1 in ,december #bjba1 in the holy ,hindu city of ,haridwar in ,uttar ,pradesh1 ,if #ajj of us are ready to kill #b1jjj1jjj ,muslims1 then we will win and make ,india a ,hindu nation2 ,whereas the ,indian state of ,karnataka has1 without cause1 banned ,muslim female students from wearing the hijab in schools and colleges1 which violates their fundamental rights guaranteed under article #ad of the ,constitution of ,india2 ,whereas in ,august #bjai1 ,jammu and ,kashmir1 the only ,indian state with a majority ,muslim population-- 7#a7 was deprived of its special autonomy without ensuring consultation or any participation of the people living in ,jammu and ,kashmir2 and 7#b7 was split into #b federally governed union territories2 ,whereas in ,december #bjai1 the ,indian ,parliament passed the ,citizenship 7,amendment7 ,act1 #bjai 7referred to in this resolution as the ,,caa71 which allows expedited citizenship for ,hindus1 ,sikhs1 ,buddhists1 ,jains1 ,parsees1 and ,christians from ,afghanistan1 ,bangladesh or ,pakistan1 but excludes ,muslims1 which imposes a religious basis to the bestowal of citizenship for the first time2 ,whereas ,indian police have wrongfully arrested hundreds of people throughout ,india1 most of them ,muslims1 merely for protesting against the enactment of the ,,caa over concerns that this law would be used in conjunction with a nationwide head count to deny citizenship to ,muslims1 a concern that has been repeatedly expressed by the ,,uscirf2 ,whereas the ,indian police arrested prominent ,muslim activists on charges of carrying out violence against ,muslims in ,delhi coinciding with a visit by then ,president ,donald ,trump to the ,indian capital1 but failed to act against violent mobs that actually carried out the anti-,muslim violence as documented by the ,delhi ,minorities ,commission of the ,government of ,national ,capital ,territory of ,delhi and ,amnesty ,international ,india2 ,whereas1 during the widespread protests against the ,,caa and the ,national ,register for ,citizens 7referred to in this resolution as the ,,nrc7 the police1 instead of stopping the violence against the protesters1 sometimes joined crowds shouting ,hindu nationalist slogans and fired indiscriminately on peaceful protestors1 which killed many of them2 ,whereas ,,uscirf has recommended that the ,united ,states ,government should consider sanctions against ,minister of ,home ,affairs ,amit ,shah and other principal leadership for the passage of the ,,caa2 ,whereas a headcount for the ,,nrc held in ,assam state in #bjai determined that #a1ijj1jjj of the state's #ca1jjj1jjj residents do not have sufficient documents proving that they or their parents lived in ,assam from before #aiga1 and they are now likely to be stripped of their citizenship by quasi-judicial bodies known as ,foreigners ,tribunals2 ,whereas approximately #ejj1jjj of these #a1ijj1jjj undocumented people are ,muslims and thousands of them have been uprooted from their homes1 where they have lived for generations1 and sent to detention centers2 ,whereas1 according to ,human ,rights ,watch1 government operatives in states ruled by the ,prime ,minister ,narendra ,modi's ,bharatiya ,janata ,party have resorted to summary punishments by demolishing ,muslim homes and businesses without legal authorization2 ,whereas1 according to ,federation of ,indian ,american ,christian ,organizations1 ,india's #dj1jjj1jjj ,christians are increasingly targeted by police and vigilante mobs throughout ,india1 leading to a steep rise in incidents of violence against ,christians1 with #a1aih incidents recorded in #bjbb1 which represents a staggering increase from the #gfa such incidents reported in #bjba2 ,whereas ,international ,christian ,concern1 a ,united ,states-based nongovernmental organization1 has reported that anti-blasphemy and anti-forced conversion laws1 which effectively criminalize minority religious beliefs and freedom of conscience1 are becoming increasingly common throughout ,india and have led to numerous cases of violence against religious minorities2 ,whereas a culture of impunity for radical ,hindu nationalists has led to an unprecedented level of violence against ,christian1 ,muslims1 and other vulnerable religious minorities3 ,now1 therefore1 be it ,that the ,senate-- 7#a7 recognizes the security challenges faced by the ,government of ,india and the continuing threat of state-supported cross-border terrorism2 7#b7 encourages the ,government of ,india to amend the discriminatory laws and executive orders based on the love1 jihad conspiracy theory1 including the ,citizenship 7,amendment7 ,act1 #bjai1 by treating ,muslims the same as other religious groups1 and the ,foreign ,contribution ,regulation ,act2 7#c7 urges the ,government of ,india-- 7,a7 to end the discriminatory and undemocratic ,,nrc and return citizenship to the estimated #a1ijj1jjj people who declared noncitizens in a wholly dubious manner2 7,b7 to immediately release individuals unnecessarily detained in detention centers1 protect the right to health of such individuals1 and ensure access to healthcare and safe1 sanitary conditions for anyone who remains detained2 7,c7 to immediately release any unjustly detained human rights defenders1 journalists1 and other critics1 many of whom have been held in custody for longer than #a year without being charge with a crime2 7,d7 to establish accountability for the brutal police violence against the anti-,,caa protesters by prosecuting the policemen and others in the chain of command who are found to be complicit in such violence2 7,e7 to repeal the anti-conversion and anti-blasphemy laws that are widely misused against religious minorities1 especially ,christians2 7,f7 to repeal the hijab ban in ,karnataka and allow thousands of ,muslim girls and women to attend classes1 as students or teachers1 while wearing the hijab2 7,g7 to end the demolition of homes1 businesses1 and places of worship belonging to ,muslims and ,christians2 and 7,h7 to allow unrestricted access to ,jammu and ,kashmir by independent human rights observers and international press2 and 7#d7 calls on the ,government of ,india to repeal the colonial-era sedition law 7section #abd of the ,indian ,penal ,code7 that is used to stifle dissent and debate and has been used against individuals who express their opposition to the ,,caa4