The Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR), the nation’s largest Muslim civil rights and advocacy organization, today renewed its call on the State Department to designate India a ‘country of particular concern’ after more than 8,500 Muslim homes were bulldozed in the city of Ahmedabad.
Thousands of Muslim families in Ahmedabad have been rendered homeless after authorities demolished more than 8,500 homes. While officials claim the action targeted “illegal Bangladeshi immigrants,” many of the evicted say they have been living there for decades, some since before the country’s independence.
SEE: Over 8,500 Muslim Homes Bulldozed in Ahmedabad; Hindu Properties Spared – Clarion India
In a statement, CAIR National Executive Director Nihad Awad said:
“India’s far-right Hindutva government has been escalating its targeting of Indian Muslims. Violence and ethnic cleansing are becoming more common. It is time for the State Department to recognize India as a country of particular concern and take action to stop the Modi government from continuing its violence against Muslims, Christians, Sikhs and other minorities.”
Last week, Rutgers University’s Center for Security, Race, and Rights released the report Hindutva in America: A Threat to Equality and Religious Pluralism, which examines how Hindutva nationalists have capitalized on the anti-Muslim public discourse to gain greater acceptance for their ethnonationalist agenda.
CAIR has previously called on the State Department to designate India a country of particular concern.
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CONTACT: CAIR National Deputy Director Edward Ahmed Mitchell, 404-285-9530, e-Mitchell@cair.com; CAIR Government Affairs Director Robert McCaw, 202-742-6448, rmccaw@cair.com; CAIR National Communications Director Ibrahim Hooper, 202-744-7726, ihooper@cair.com; CAIR National Communications Manager Ismail Allison, 202-770-6280, iallison@cair.com