The world has heard enough of those cliche — cooperation between the world’s oldest democracy, the United States, and the world’s most populous democracy, India, is touching new heights. So much so that India’s controversial Prime Minister Narendra Modi went to the extent of backing Donald Trump’s back to power campaign by openly exhorting Indian-Americans to vote for him by his now famous slogan “Ab ki bar, Trump Sarkar” (this time on, Trump government again).

When Joe Biden and not Donald Trump won the US presidency, Modi’s spin doctors worked overtime to make amends. An initially unforgiving Democrat administration sought to pin down Modi on the rights issue.

Reports on religious freedom and human rights by US congressional committees and influential think tanks indicated ‘deepening US concerns’ over PM Narendra Modi’s Hindu nationalist Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) making India less tolerant of minorities, especially Muslims.

Modi’s 2019 revocation of the special semi-autonomous status—granted under Article 370 of the Indian Constitution—to Muslim-majority Jammu and Kashmir has been followed by repressive government policies in Kasmir such as curbs to freedom of expression, peaceful assembly, and other basic rights. These have found pointed mentions in US government reports and those by think tanks, some close to the US deep state.

Later that year, the Indian Parliament passed the Citizenship Amendment Act, providing a fast track for non-Muslims in Afghanistan, Bangladesh, and Pakistan to become Indian citizens—a move that the U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom condemned as “a significant downward turn in religious freedom in India.” After being held up for years because of numerous protests, the law finally went into effect this March. In January, Modi’s inauguration of a new Hindu temple in Ayodhya, known as Ram Mandir, built on the ruins of the 16th century Babri Masjid mosque that Hindu nationalists tore down in 1992, raised fresh questions about India’s future as a secular and tolerant nation.

American deep state bigwigs tell their Indian counterparts that partnering with India holds immense promise, particularly when it comes to fine-tuning Washington’s strategy to counter China. But Modi’s foreign minister S Jaishanker has never hesitated to hit back at US institutions who have pulled Delhi on issues like religious freedom, human rights (especially with regard to minorities) and the “general decline in democracy standards”.

“Despite widespread optimism about the future of the U.S.-India partnership, relations are considerably more fragile than they might appear. Indeed, the two countries continue to experience friction in several areas that, if left unaddressed, could ultimately undermine or even derail future cooperation,” said policy........

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