A federal watchdog has formally recommended that the U.S. government freeze the assets of India’s RSS and spy agency RAW, alleging systematic religious persecution and overseas hits.

The gears of American diplomacy just ground to a screeching halt.

In a move that sends a lightning bolt through Washington-Delhi relations, the U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF) is now officially calling for a ban on the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS). And they didn’t stop at the political grassroots. The commission wants the Research and Analysis Wing (RAW)—India’s elite foreign intelligence agency—blacklisted right alongside them.

This isn’t just another dry human rights report. It’s a direct hit on the bedrock of India’s current power structure.

The recommendation, detailed in a scathing 2026 report, hinges on a grim allegation: that India has exported a policy of “transnational repression.” We’re talking about state-sanctioned hits on foreign soil. The commission explicitly links these organizations to the plotted assassination of Gurpatwant Singh Pannun in New York and the killing of Hardeep Singh Nijjar in Canada.

How does a strategic ally explain away a murder plot in the middle of Manhattan?

The USCIRF is pushing the State Department to designate India as a “Country of Particular Concern” (CPC). This is the diplomatic equivalent of being moved to the “do not trust” list. It opens the door for sanctions that could freeze assets and bar officials from entering the United States.

The Ideological Backbone in the Crosshairs

For years, the RSS has operated as the ideological backbone of the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP). To the commission, however, it’s a “violent extremist” entity that fuels a climate of fear for religious minorities. They claim the group’s influence has turned India’s secular constitution into a piece of paper.

Throughout 2025, conditions for religious freedom in India didn’t just stumble—they cratered. The government introduced and enforced new legislation targeting minority communities and their houses of worship. Several states undertook efforts to strengthen anti-conversion laws, including harsher prison sentences. Indian authorities also facilitated widespread detention and tolerated vigilante attacks.

The report highlights a disturbing trend: Hindu nationalist mobs across several states harassed and instigated violence against Muslims and Christians with near-total impunity. In March 2025, violence erupted in Maharashtra after hardline groups called for the removal of the tomb of Aurangzeb. The resulting riots injured dozens, fueled by rumors that religious texts were being desecrated.

In June, a mob attacked 20 Christian families in Odisha after they refused to convert to Hinduism. The attacks left eight people hospitalized, yet police intervention was reportedly non-existent.

Surveillance and the “Secret Police”

The inclusion of RAW is what makes this truly explosive. RAW is the “invisible hand” of Indian sovereignty. To label an active intelligence agency of a major trade partner as a terrorist-adjacent entity is practically unheard of in modern diplomacy.

But the evidence has become too loud for Washington to ignore.

The report paints a picture of a government that has moved beyond its borders to silence dissenters. It cites a pattern of intimidation, digital surveillance, and lethal force used against activists in the West. It’s a bold, perhaps reckless, shift in India’s foreign policy that is now hitting a brick wall in the U.S. capital.

In April 2025, three gunmen attacked Hindu tourists in Kashmir, killing 26. While the perpetrators were reportedly seeking revenge, the Indian government seized the aftermath to justify the deportation of religious minorities it considers “illegal” migrants. In May, authorities detained 40 Rohingya refugees, including 15 Christians, who were transported into international waters and forced to swim to the Burmese shore with nothing but life vests.

The Legal War on Minorities

The legislative assault is just as fierce. Throughout the year, the government targeted houses of worship to bring them under state control. In May, the Indian Parliament passed the Waqf Bill, which adds non-Muslims to the boards managing traditionally Muslim land endowments. This includes mosques, seminaries, and graveyards.

The response was immediate and bloody. Deadly protests erupted in West Bengal, leaving three dead. While the Supreme Court eventually suspended key provisions of the bill, the damage was done. The message was sent: your sacred spaces are no longer yours.

Furthermore, 12 out of 28 states now maintain anti-conversion laws. In 2025, these laws were strengthened to include life imprisonment as a possible punishment. These aren’t just words on paper. In October, police arrested a U.S. citizen, James Watson, along with two Indian nationals, accusing them of converting Hindus to Christianity in Maharashtra. They were charged with “hurting religious sentiment.”

The government also continued to wield antiterrorism laws—specifically the Unlawful Activities Prevention Act (UAPA)—to imprison those advocating for minority rights. Figures like Umar Khalid and Sharjeel Imam have remained in prison for five years without trial.

The Washington Vice

The Biden-Trump transition and the shifting landscape of American politics have only complicated the situation. In February 2025, President Trump hosted Prime Minister Modi for an official state visit where religious freedom was conspicuously absent from the public discussion. By April, Vice President JD Vance met with Modi to discuss trade, even as tensions over the Kashmir attack spiked.

However, the USCIRF’s recommendation puts the administration in a tightening vice. On one hand, the U.S. needs India to counter China’s influence in the Indo-Pacific. On the other, they are staring at a federal report accusing their partner of running hit squads in the U.S.

The “shared values” rhetoric that usually defines these summits is starting to look like a facade.

A Forward-Looking Crisis

If the State Department actually follows through on these recommendations, the fallout will be permanent. You can’t just go back to business as usual after calling your partner’s intelligence agency a criminal enterprise.

The commission is also urging the U.S. Congress to reintroduce and pass the Transnational Repression Reporting Act. This would require annual reporting of acts by the Indian government targeting religious minorities within the United States. It would also enforce Section 6 of the Arms Export Control Act to halt arms sales to India based on acts of intimidation against U.S. citizens.

Delhi’s response has been predictably sharp. They’ve dismissed previous USCIRF findings as biased and “motivated.” Yet, the weight of a federal recommendation is different this time. It’s no longer just about words on a page; it’s about the legal framework of the U.S. foreign

https://rootsalert.com/spain-blocks-us-from-using-its-soil-to-hit-iran/policy.

The ball is now in the State Department’s court. They have to decide if geopolitical strategy outweighs the blood on the floor. If the ban and the “Country of Particular Concern” designation go through, the rift between the world’s two largest democracies might become unbridgeable.

Watch the coming weeks closely—the silence from the State Department will be just as telling as a public statement.