Category: Media

Press Release: HinduPACT Responds to Attack on Hindu Temple in Queen, New York

August 12, 2022
HinduPACT Responds to Attack on Hindu Temple in Queen, New York
WASHINGTON, D.C – HinduPACT condemns the vandalization of a statue of Mahatma Gandhi outside the Shri Tulsi Mandir temple in Queens, New York last Wednesday. An unidentified individual knocked the statue over and left it face down on the ground with its arm cracked and hand broken into pieces.
Utsav Chakrabarti, Executive Director of HinduPACT, said,
“This is the fourth attempt at destroying a Gandhi statue across North America and the fifth attack on a Hindu temple in the past year. There is a concerted campaign at spreading anti-Hindu hate in major urban centers across the country. The rise in anti-Hindu attacks over the last few years has been carried out by the same groups and individuals that target Jews and spread anti-Semitism.”
Ajay Shah, the President of World Hindu Council of America and Convenor of HinduPACT and American Hindus Against Defamation (AHAD) said,
“This represents not just a hate crime against American Hindus but also a deep rooted insecurity of hate mongers. We believe that the targeting of the Hindu mandir and specifically vandalism of Mahatma Gandhi’s statue is an act against the core Hindu ideals of peace, coexistence, respect for diverse religious beliefs and the promotion of diversity and equality among all human beings.”
Tejal Amit Shah, Convener of Hindu Mandir Executives’ Conference (HMEC), said,
“This act of vandalism took place during the holy month of Shravan (9th month of Hindu Calendar), when Hindus are engaged in traditional worships, fasting, and, religious and spiritual practices.” She added, “This is very upsetting for the Hindu community in general. It is a sign of hate crime and Hinduphobia. We strongly condemn this. HMEC thanks NY State Assemblywoman Jennifer Rajkumar for holding the press conference and providing support to the local community. HMEC also appeals to law enforcement to get to the root cause and bring a lawful close to this unfortunate incident.”

August 12, 2022
Press Release: HinduPACT Calls on Congress to Reject Hinduphobic Resolution, Demands Ilhan Omar Cut Ties with Radical Islamist Groups and Ousted PM Imran Khan

Press Release: HinduPACT Calls on Congress to Reject Hinduphobic Resolution, Demands Ilhan Omar Cut Ties with Radical Islamist Groups and Ousted PM Imran Khan

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
June 24, 2022
WASHINGTON, D.C – HinduPACT calls on Republicans and Democrats in Congress to reject Rep. Ilhan Omar (D-MN)’s recently introduced resolution which unfairly and dishonestly condemns India’s human rights record and alleges “violations of international religious freedom.”
“With House Resolution 1196, Congresswoman Ilhan Omar is clearly taking talking points from Jamaat-e-Islami and Muslim Brotherhood-linked groups, which is extremely troubling to see from an elected official who has sworn an oath of loyalty to the United States Constitution,” said HinduPACT Executive Director Utsav Chakrabarti.
Ilhan Omar is a politically controversial Democratic Congresswoman from Minnesota, who has been called out internationally in the past for her anti-Semitic remarks. This is not the first time – nor will it be the last time – she shows her anti-Hindu and anti-Indian bias while revealing her ties to Pakistan. In April, Omar visited Pakistan-occupied Jammu and Kashmir (PoK) following a photo op with former Prime Minister Imran Khan.
That same month, the United States Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF) released a biased report which HinduPACT pointed out was outsourced to Islamist groups. Omar heavily references this biased report in her malicious resolution. HinduPACT Executive Director Utsav Chakrabarti noted in April that this year’s USCIRF report followed “a pattern of reports that have appeared in previous years. Based on publicly available information on topics like Citizen’s Amendment Act (CAA) and Kashmir, the USCIRF report is a ‘copy-and-paste’ of talking points peddled by an agglomeration of Islamist groups working with radical Islamist-linked group “Justice for All”, on whose platform USCIRF commissioners are known to appear regularly.”
Ajay Shah, President of World Hindu Council of America (VHPA) and Convenor of HinduPACT said, “It would be easy to dismiss Rep. Omar’s HR 1196 as being borne out of ignorance or political pandering. However, even to a casual observer of the geopolitical situation in the Indian subcontinent, it is clear that this resolution has much deeper sinister motives.” He further stated, “Ms. Omar has taken her ideological cues from the US hating Pakistani regime of the former Prime Minister of Pakistan, Imran Khan. It raises questions as to whether Rep. Omar was coached by Imran Khan? We demand she cut ties with him.”

June 24, 2022
Press Release: HinduPACT Lauds International Yoga Day as a Bridge to Universal “Unity”

Press Release: HinduPACT Lauds International Yoga Day as a Bridge to Universal “Unity”

WASHINGTON, D.C – HinduPACT volunteers have helped organize and will participate in the annual World Yoga Day at the Washington Monument in the nation’s capital on Saturday, June 18 at 9 AM.
Yoga is over 5,000 years old and was officially introduced to America in the 19th Century by Swami Vivekananda. The United Nations officially proclaimed June 21 as International Yoga Day on December 11, 2014; a date that coincides with the rise of Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s leadership position he holds to this day as. June 21 is the summer solstice and is the longest day of the year; a highly auspicious day.
“I had the honor of being involved in the first International Yoga Day on June 21, 2015 in Washington, D.C.,” said HinduPACT Executive Director Utsav Chakrabarti. “It’s critically important that events like these are popularized, especially with the visible increase in anti-Hindu activism and hate campaigns being used to target Hindu communities across the world, as well as in America. Every aspect of Hindu dharma is connected to Yoga, because Yoga is not just Asanas or Dhyana but integral to Hindu epistemology and soteriology.”

“Yoga has captivated tens of millions of Americans over the past few decades and it is estimated that approximately 20 million Americans currently actively practice yoga” said VHPA President and HinduPACT Convenor Ajay Shah. “The Hindu way of life is no longer in minority. It has become mainstream.”

The word “yoga” is derived from Sanskrit and literally translates to “union”.

“At a time when our nation and world are broken, driven by fear and division, yoga provides an opportunity for healing through the bridging of Brahman (ultimate divinity) and Atman (soul) through unity of the soul and the physical world around it,” said Adelle Nazarian, HinduPACT Director of Legislative Outreach and Communications. Yoga has become a universal language and the increase of its presence into the mainstream has raised the level of collective consciousness, bringing us steps closer to the path to Moksha (enlightenment, liberation and release).”

June 17, 2022
Press Release: HinduPACT Calls Out Biden Administration’s Hypocritical Views on Religious Freedom

Press Release: HinduPACT Calls Out Biden Administration’s Hypocritical Views on Religious Freedom

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
June 4, 2022
WASHINGTON, D.C – HinduPACT criticizes the 2021 Report on International Religious Freedom released by Secretary of State Anthony Blinken on Jun 2, 2022 for its hypocritical position on India.
The views on International Religious Freedom expressed by the Biden Administration in the Report on International Religious Freedom disproportionately attacks India and turns a blind eye to the egregious religious rights violations being carried out by other countries in the region.
India has a robust and independent judiciary and an independent media. It is very capable of addressing its human rights issues. The State Department should better focus its attention on causes and reasons for religious extremism in the region and look to history to help recognize the same dangerous patterns which are currently repeating themselves.
“It is unfortunate that Secretary Blinken did not mention the forced conversion of young girls from religious minority communities in Pakistan,” said HinduPACT Executive Director Utsav Chakrabarti. “We have provided the State Department with ample information and evidence regarding this.”
On average, everyday three girls – many of them minors – are forcibly converted away from their faiths to Islam and often married to men who are far older than them.
“The State Department must recognize that India has been defending its geographical and civilizational values from radicalized Islamists for generations,” said Utsav Chakrabarti. “It is one of the longest struggles in our world’s history. It is important that fellow democracies like the United States stand with its ally India as it deals with efforts by Taliban-like extremist organizations working to spread their tentacles within the country.”
Ajay Shah, President of World Hindu Council of America and the Convenor of HinduPACT and American Hindus Against Defamation (AHAD) said,
“Plurality and freedom to practice religion in any form is a fundamental tenet of Hindu dharma. Despite massive amounts of foreign money flowing into India for radicalization and conversion, India has retained its character as a multi-faith society true to its Hindu civilizational ethos. As with any country with over 1.4 billion people there are bound to be isolated incidents of unrest. These incidents should not be ascribed to the systemic shortcomings of the society or the government.” He further stated that, “The mention of Indian American Muslim Council in the report is clearly meant for President Biden’s domestic vote bank in the upcoming mid-term elections and diminishes the credibility of the report.”

June 4, 2022
Press Release: Leading Washington, D.C. to Host HinduPACT Leaders for Panel Discussion on Diaspora Geopolitics

May 20, 2022
For Immediate Release
WASHINGTON, D.C – HinduPACT Executive Director Utsav Chakrabarti and CHINGARI Director Rakhi Israni will speak on a panel at the Gold Institute for International Strategy (GIIS) on May 25 titled, “How the Indian American Diaspora is Affected by Issues on the Indian Subcontinent.”
“As the United States and the Indo-Pacific region become increasingly interconnected, the Indian American community will become an important player in the exchange of soft power between the two regions. At the same time the Indian American community has to watch out for growing efforts to vilify and marginalize them using disinformation, by India’s geopolitical adversaries” said HinduPACT Executive Director Utsav Chakrabarti. “Mutual respect” and “greater inter dependability” are going to be the watchwords in this growing relationship.
Issues affecting Indians on the subcontinent also impact the immigrant diaspora communities in the United States. More than 5 million Indian Americans now deal with the impact of geopolitical issues from the Indo-Pacific and South Asian regions in their everyday lives, on campuses, and in the public square.
“As Indian Americans are increasingly being viewed and handled in America as an extension of the Indian subcontinent, it becomes increasingly important to talk about the other side of that same region: Pakistan,” said CHINGARI Director Rakhi Israni. “Until 1947, the people of both India and Pakistan were one people: sharing similar languages, food, and overall customs. The daily atrocities faced by Hindus, Christians, and Sikhs in Pakistan after partition should naturally affect all people from that region. The gross and severe injustices being committed against one part of a cultural people must be a part of any discussion about the region as a whole.”
“As a daughter of immigrants, I understand all too well how issues in the homeland affect and impact the diaspora community,” said Adelle Nazarian, Media Fellow at the Gold Institute for International Strategies. “I look forward to discussing this important topic so that we may find ways to improve the situation for immigrants here in the United States and to foster a healthier environment for all.”
This panel discussion dives into some of those issues and how the Indian American community deals with them.

May 22, 2022
Press Release: HinduPACT Demands USCIRF Stop Outsourcing its Research on India to the “Islamist Lobby”

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
April 27, 2022
WASHINGTON, D.C – The United States Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF) has again recommended placing India on the “blacklist” as a “Country of Particular Concern (CPC), a practice that began in 2020. HinduPACT condemns the continued outsourcing of the USCIRF report and recommendations on India, comparing it to propaganda narratives provided by Jamaat-e-Islami linked groups.”
Utsav Chakrabarti, Executive Director of HinduPACT said,
“This year’s report follows a pattern of reports that have appeared in previous years. Based on publicly available information on topics like Citizen’s Amendment Act (CAA) and Kashmir, the USCIRF report is a ‘copy-and-paste’ of talking points peddled by an agglomeration of Islamist groups working with radical Islamist-linked group “Justice for All”, on whose platform USCIRF commissioners are known to appear regularly .”
Ironically, the USCIRF report chose to use images of Sikh victims of Islamist terror, and Muslim Afghan women – living peacefully in India – who fled their nation at the onset of the Taliban’s takeover, protesting with signs in English and Pashto (in October 2021) to demand better rights for women in Afghanistan, on its cover page.
Ajay Shah, President of World Hindu Council of America (VHPA) and Convenor of HinduPACT, sharply criticized the report and said,
“It is now obvious that the USCIRF has been taken over by the Indophobic and Hinduphobic members. Many of these members have attended India and Hindu bashing events. It is no surprise that their selective observations are meant to promote a political agenda and further their electoral reach in selected communities.” He further asked: “If for example, Sikhs were discriminated against in India, why did the Afghan Sikhs fleeing the Taliban seek refuge in India taking advantage of preferential immigration that USCIRF criticizes? Why would the report ignore the violence against Hindus in West Bengal, Rajasthan, or Kerala? And why would they report on a purely internal economic issue of India such as ‘Farm Bills’?” Shah concluded, “We are confident that the State Department will reject this religious fundamentalist driven, corrupt NGO-promoted report on India.”
We hope that USCIRF will regain some of its credibility in future reports, if it refrains from becoming an instrument of propaganda promotion targeting democratically elected leaders in diverse, peaceful multi-ethnic countries around the world.

April 27, 2022
Press Release: HinduPACT Honors Victims of 1971 Bangladesh Genocide, Demands Official Recognition and Punishment for Pakistani Perpetrators

March 26, 2022
HinduPACT Honors Victims of 1971 Bangladesh Genocide, Demands Official Recognition and Punishment for Pakistani Perpetrators
WASHINGTON, D.C – HinduPACT has launched a campaign to officially recognize the planned massacre of millions of people in Bangladesh, mostly Hindus, in 1971 as a genocide and to prosecute the Pakistani perpetrators who were involved with the planning and execution of “Operation Searchlight.”
“There are more than 195 officially recognized Pakistani military officers who were never prosecuted for their crimes against humanity,” said HinduPACT Executive Director Utsav Chakrabarti. “Many of these officials now hold positions of power and influence in Pakistan today including in the Armed Forces of Pakistan. It is time to hold them responsible and apply Magnitsky sanctions and prosecute them to the highest degree.”
“HinduPACT has been reaching out to the lawmakers over the course of many months to inform them of this atrocity and push for a formal recognition of this genocide,” said Ajay Shah, President of World Hindu Council of America (VHPA) and the Convenor of HinduPACT. He added, “this is the largest genocide to take place in recent times. It is incomprehensible why the perpetrators of this monstrosity have not been held accountable. Are political considerations more important than justice for the victims?”
“History repeats itself because people forget it,” said Adelle Nazarian, Director of Communications and Legislative Outreach for HinduPACT. “It is critical that the 1971 genocide be formally recognized for what it is so that future generations can look back in the coffers of history and never repeat the same mistakes again.” She added, “I encourage the White House and the State Department to promote peace and stability in the Indo-Pacific region as a whole, and the rights of all people living in the region, regardless of race, ethnicity, nationality or religion so they may all equally enjoy the benefits of democracy and economic opportunity.”
HinduPACT has been advocating global human rights and civil liberties issues under the initiative HAHRI – Hindus Advancing Human Rights Internationally – and has met with several lawmakers to discuss the issue and has many more meetings planned and urges everyone interested in seeing the 1971 genocide formally recognized to sign the following petition: https://hindupact.org/2022/03/23/condemn1971genocide_2022/

March 26, 2022
Press Release: On IWD 2022, HinduPACT calls for Prosecution of Pakistan Army Men Responsible for Rapes in 1971 to Prevent Forced Conversion and Trafficking of Girls in Present Day Pakistan

WASHINGTON, D.C – On the 47th anniversary of International Women’s Day, HinduPACT is calling for the prosecution of Pakistani army men who were responsible for the rapes of women during the 1971 Bangladeshi genocide in order to prevent forced conversions and trafficking of girls in present-day Pakistan.
The Rig Veda, considered the oldest canonical revealed scriptures in the World, includes Ghosha, Lopamudra, Maitreyi, and Gargi as prominent authors. The Rig Veda says: “A scholarly woman, the entire life of society depends upon you. You provide us the right knowledge. May you bring knowledge to all segments of society.” — Rig Veda 2.41.17
“It is important to send a strong message to modern day aggressors like the Mian Mithoo and other Islamist clerics in Pakistan, that even 50 years from now, they will be held accountable for the crimes that are being committed today against underage girls belonging to the Hindu, Sikh and Christian communities. More than a 1000 girls face kidnapping, forced conversion and trafficking with tacit support of the Pakistan Army every year,” said Rakhi Israni, who leads HinduPACT’s Coalition for Hindu Girls Abducted and their Rights (CHINGARI).
Shreya Mishra, an intern for CHINGARI said, “The Chingari project not only represents the fight to eradicate gender-based violence, but was also created to protect, promote, and celebrate the strength of women across the globe, and highlight the ongoing battle that women face in different regions every single day. Today, I encourage folks to reflect on the current state of gender-based violence across the globe and support the Chingari project and other causes which advocate for the rights of women and girls.”
Utsav Chakrabarti, the Executive Director of HinduPACT said, “More than 50 years after the Pakistan Army perpetrated violence and sexual assault on more than 300,000 women, and killed three million people, the war crimes that were committed have not been recognized as genocide. Not only have the crimes not been recognized, but many of the war-criminals went on to become powerful generals and administrators in Pakistan, influencing decision making even today. On International Women’s Day, we call upon the US and the international community to recognize the genocide of Bangladeshis by Pakistan and take immediate steps to bring to trial the 195 current and former members of the Pakistan Army, who were recorded as being responsible for perpetrating the violence. Prominent genocide prevention watchdogs like Genocide Watchand Lemkin Institute have already recognized what occurred in Bangladesh in 1971 as genocide.”
There is a need to address these issues, especially on International Women’s Day and during Women’s History Month.

March 16, 2022
HinduPACT Thanks Wayne State President for Censuring Hinduphobic Professor Khaled Beydoun, Requests Stronger Action

WASHINGTON, D.C – Hindu Policy Research and Advocacy Collective (HinduPACT) is thankful to Wayne State President M. Roy Wilson for his decision to censure Professor Khaled Beydoun for his targeted hate against Hindus and calls for greater action to be taken.
Beydoun, a professor of law at Wayne State has repeatedly fomented violence against Hindus through his instigative social media posts.
In April 2020, Beydoun shared a still from the Bollywood film titled “Parzania” and falsely claimed that this was evidence that a Hindu organization was targeting Muslims in India.
In April 2019, Beydoun allegedly plagiarized content from a New Zealand journalist and circulated misinformation about the victims of the Christchurch Mosque shooting to spread misinformation about the attack.
Later that month, Beydoun was among several people to put out an ad for a free trip to New Zealand in which one person would be selected among all the submissions to meet the families of the victims of the Christchurch Mosque shooting and go on a tour of the mosques that were shot up; a move that was heavily criticized by fellow Muslims.
HinduPACT Executive Director Utsav Chakrabarti said,
“There is a pattern of targeted hate against Hindus emerging from some individuals. Beydoun, along with journalist CJ Werleman – an anti-Semtic supporter of banned terror group Hay’at Tahrir al-Sham (the Syrian branch of al-Qaeda) – has also given multiple statements similar in nature. Rutgers University Professor Audrey Truschke, University of California faculty Huma Dar and Columbia University Professor Manan Ahmed Asif, have also been identified by members of the American Hindu communities as regularly spreading disinformation and hate against Hindus and India.”
We hope that exemplary disciplinary action will be taken against a repeat offender like Khaled Beydoun. We also hope that the University will ensure that a public apology will be issued by Mr Beydoun, as early as possible to ensure that Wayne State suffers no further erosion of trust and credibility.

February 22, 2022
HinduPACT Statement on Canadian PM Trudeau’s Swastika Statement on WION

February 17, 2022