By Sahil Pandey

New Delhi [India], November 10 (ANI): India on Tuesday strongly hit back at the US Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF), describing it as a "biased and ill-informed organisation" with a "blatantly political agenda", and questioned its credibility over its silence on attacks on religious places, hate crimes and racial abuse targeting the Indian community in the United States.

Addressing a press briefing, Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal said that the USCIRF and its commissioners had consistently chosen to remain silent on such incidents in the US.

"As I have said before, the USCIRF is a biased and ill-informed organisation with a blatantly political agenda. It is particularly telling that the USCIRF and its Commissioners have consistently chosen to remain silent on attacks on religious places in the US and on the hate crimes and racial abuse targeted at the Indian community in the US. A prejudiced entity can hardly be taken seriously," Jaiswal said.

On the Russia-Ukraine conflict, Jaiswal reiterated India's position that dialogue and diplomacy remain the only way forward, while underlining New Delhi's continued engagement with both Moscow and Kyiv to facilitate peace efforts.

He said Prime Minister Narendra Modi had recently spoken with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, during which the two leaders exchanged views on the ongoing conflict, its humanitarian aspects and various efforts to restore peace.

"The Prime Minister reiterated India's firm commitment to contributing in every possible way towards a peaceful resolution," Jaiswal said.

Following the conversation, External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar also spoke with Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov on ongoing diplomatic initiatives focused on the conflict.

Jaiswal said India had been engaging both sides with ideas relating to the safety of shipping in the Black Sea, addressing immediate concerns of Russia and Ukraine over grain and energy exports, and exploring possibilities of non-attack arrangements.

"On the issue of the food corridor, we have exchanged ideas. India remains in touch with both sides, as well as other interested parties, to contribute towards return of peace to the region," he added.

Responding to a question on reports of Chinese influencers filming in Dhaka and allegedly portraying parts of the Bangladeshi capital as Delhi, Jaiswal termed such efforts to distort the image of a country as unfortunate.

"Such efforts to present a distorted picture of any country are unfortunate. In so far as efforts by foreign elements to portray parts of Dhaka as Delhi are concerned, peddling of false narratives only undermines the credibility of the actors involved and those behind them in such an exercise. We urge authorities concerned to take appropriate action against them," he said.

On the US midterm elections, the MEA spokesperson said the electoral exercise was an internal matter of the United States and declined to comment, while emphasising the bipartisan support enjoyed by India-US relations.

"The India-United States relationship enjoys strong bipartisan support in the US. We continue to work to further strengthen our Comprehensive Global Strategic Partnership with the US," he said.

On reports concerning India's engagement with lobbying firms in Washington, DC, and disclosures under the US Foreign Agents Registration Act (FARA), Jaiswal said it was a normal diplomatic practice for missions to engage such firms to facilitate outreach with the US administration, members of Congress and other stakeholders.

He said India's engagement with lobbying firms in Washington, DC, dates back to 1948 and that such activities were undertaken in accordance with applicable US laws, including FARA, under which the activities of these firms are publicly disclosed.

"Such engagements are undertaken in accordance with the applicable US laws, including the Foreign Agents Registration Act (FARA), under which the activities of these firms are publicly disclosed. India has been engaging lobby firms in Washington DC since 1948," he said. (ANI)