Several Islamist and anti-India groups have planned protests during Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s upcoming USA visit. According to reports, Indian American Muslim Council and other anti-India organisations have planned to protest and wave banners stating “Save India from Hindu Supremacy” and “Modi Not Welcome” during the action-packed state visit of PM Modi from June 20 to 23.
Several organisations including the Indian American Muslim Council (IAMC), Peace Action, Veterans for Peace, and Bethesda African Cemetery Coalition have planned to orchestrate a protest outside the White House on the 22nd of June. PM Modi is scheduled to meet President Biden on that day in Washington DC on that day.
They have assembled banners that would state “Modi Not Welcome” and “Save India from Hindu Supremacy,” according to Reuters.
Apart from a protest outside the White House, these organisations have planned another protest in New York. To garner eyeballs, the protestors have tried to use PM Modi’s 2019 “Howdy Modi” event in which Indian Prime Minister and then-U.S. President Donald Trump addressed a large gathering in Houston, Texas. They have named their show, “Howdy Democracy”.
Further, two other rabid anti-India organisations, Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch, will screen the highly controversial BBC documentary. Notably, it is a ‘propaganda piece’ that tried to undermine the Indian Judiciary’s verdict regarding the 2002 Gujarat riots and peddle its politically driven falsehoods. The BBC documentary was banned by the government in India for the same reason.
Now, both these organisations have invited their sympathisers including ideologically coherent policymakers, journalists, and analysts for the next week’s screening. They have planned to screen the BBC documentary just two days ahead of PM Modi’s official state visit, hosted by President Joe Biden.
Human Rights Watch’s Asia Division director Elaine Pearson wrote a letter to Biden urging the White House to raise concerns, both publicly and privately, about these so-called Human Rights issues in India during Modi’s visit.
As per Reuters, in her letter, she said, “We strongly urge you to use your meetings with Prime Minister Modi to urge Modi to move his government and his party in a different direction.” However, it is unlikely that Biden will raise anything like that during the meeting. Donald Camp, a former State Department official and part of the Washington think tank Center for Strategic and International Studies, said that Washington would be reluctant to raise human rights issues to make the trip successful for both sides.
Several international organisations, including institutions under the US government, have released ‘reports’ accusing India of trampling the human rights of Muslims. But it is unlikely that president Biden will mention it during his high-profile meeting with PM Modi where several important matters will be discussed.
Despite being sympathetic to the falsehoods of these Islamists and anti-India organisations, Washington has been courting vibrant democratic India as it realises that growing India is the only counter to China, their long-term rival. Interestingly, India recently declined United States’ purported invitation to join the NATO-plus five grouping.
During this visit, PM Modi will address the joint session of the US Congress and with this, he will become the first Indian PM to address US Parliament twice. A state dinner also has been planned for his honour.
It is important to note that several top American lawmakers have also released a series of video messages to welcome PM Modi for his Official State Visit to the US. All of them have unequivocally highlighted that they are eagerly looking forward to his address at the Joint Meeting of the Congress.
