India and Religious Violence

The anti-Christian and anti-Muslim riots in Gujarat (2002) and Orissa (2002) have a big consequence for India. The US Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF) has added India to a list of countries that fail to protect the rights of religious minority groups. As reported in BBC Leonard Leo, the chair of USCIRF, said that it was "extremely disappointing" that India has done "so little to protect and bring justice to its religious minorities under siege. India's democratic institutions charged with upholding the rule of law, most notably state and central judiciaries and police, have emerged as unwilling or unable to seek redress for victims of the violence. More must be done to ensure future violence does not occur and that perpetrators are held accountable."