It Will Please Anti-India Lobby, Says Hindu American PAC as Few Lawmakers Write to Biden on Modi Visit

The Hindu American Political Action Committee (PAC) in the US has raised strong objection to a letter written by a group of American lawmakers to President Joe Biden, asking him to raise directly with Prime Minister Narendra Modi certain “areas of concern".

In a tweet, the PAC pointed out that Democrats were being praised for Biden hosting Modi on a state visit, but the letter, signed by 75 lawmakers, including Indian-American lawmaker Pramila Jayapal, will “upset many and mostly please the anti-India lobby”.

Sharing a list of other signatories to the letter, the PAC said: “… the @RepJayapal @ChrisVanHollen letter lecturing India, signed by 70 @TheDemocrats and not one @GOP member, will upset many & mostly please the anti-India lobby.”

A PAC or political action committee raises funds and support for an election political candidate or for a particular election issue.

The letter objected to by the Hindu American PAC urges Biden to discuss with Modi the full range of issues important to a successful, strong, and long-term relationship between the two countries. “As longtime supporters of a strong US-India relationship, we also believe that friends can and should discuss their differences in an honest and forthright way," read the letter.

“That is why we respectfully request that - in addition to the many areas of shared interests between India and the US - you also raise directly with Prime Minister Modi areas of concern."

“You have once again made respect for human rights, press freedom, religious freedom, and pluralism core tenets of American foreign policy. Moreover, these tenets are necessary to the functioning of true democracy. In order to advance these values with credibility on the world stage, we must apply them equally to friend and foe alike, just as we work to apply these same principles here in the United States," it said.

The letter mentioned reports about “the shrinking of political space, the rise of religious intolerance, the targeting of civil society organizations and journalists, and growing restrictions on press freedoms and internet access" in India and also referred to the State Department’s 2022 Country Report on Human Rights Practices in India.

The lawmakers said they want a close and warm relationship between the people of the United States and the people of India and added that the friendship should be built not only on shared interests but also on shared values.

“We do not endorse any particular Indian leader or political party; that is the decision of the people of India, but we do stand in support of the important principles that should be a core part of American foreign policy. And we ask that, during your meeting with Prime Minister Modi, you discuss the full range of issues important to a successful, strong, and long-term relationship between our two great countries," the letter added.