The United States Commission on International Religious Freedom said on Wednesday that it was “deeply concerned” about Bhagwat’s presence in the country and called for targeted sanctions against RSS members and government officials it considers complicit in violations of religious freedom. The recommendation specifically included withdrawing the visa issued to Bhagwat and preventing him from entering the United States in future.
The intervention marks a sharper step from the commission’s position last week, when its leadership urged the US administration to consider sanctions against RSS members rather than extending high-level meetings or diplomatic courtesies to the organisation’s leaders. Bhagwat arrived in the United States on August 25 as part of an overseas outreach programme during the RSS centenary year.
USCIRF accused RSS-linked groups of involvement in violence against Christians, Dalits, Muslims and Sikhs and argued that religious freedom conditions in India had deteriorated. Chair Asif Mahmood said violence and incitement were being used to target minority communities and urged the administration to examine measures against individuals it believes are responsible for abuses.
The commission is an independent, bipartisan federal advisory body created by Congress to monitor freedom of religion or belief internationally and make policy recommendations to the president, secretary of state and lawmakers. Its recommendations do not themselves revoke visas, impose sanctions or determine US immigration policy. Such measures would require action by the federal government.
New Delhi has strongly rejected the commission’s criticism. External Affairs Ministry spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal last week described USCIRF as biased and accused it of repeatedly making disparaging and inflammatory statements about India. The government has consistently disputed allegations that its policies discriminate against religious minorities and maintains that constitutional protections apply to citizens irrespective of faith.
The controversy has intensified around Bhagwat’s scheduled appearance at the Universal Oneness Celebration in New York on August 29. The programme is being organised by the AHEAD Forum, or American Hindus for Engagement and Dialogue, with more than 200 Hindu-American organisations participating. Organisers expect several thousand people and have presented the gathering as an event centred on unity, cultural heritage, interfaith understanding and the principle of Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam, or “the world is one family”.
The RSS has rejected allegations of intolerance and portrays itself as a cultural and social organisation focused on Hindu unity, volunteerism, education, disaster relief and community service. Supporters of Bhagwat’s visit argue that engagement offers an opportunity to explain the organisation’s philosophy to overseas audiences and challenge what they regard as inaccurate portrayals of its work.
Opposition to the New York programme has extended beyond USCIRF. New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani said he did not support the event, while acknowledging that the city might lack jurisdiction to cancel a privately organised gathering. He criticised what he described as the RSS’s exclusionary political vision and contrasted it with his understanding of India as a pluralistic and secular republic.
Civil rights and interfaith groups have also pressed the venue to reconsider the programme, while supporters have defended the organisers’ right to hold it. The disagreement has turned Bhagwat’s visit into a wider debate within the diaspora over religious freedom, Hindu identity, political pluralism and the extent to which disputes surrounding the RSS in India should shape its reception abroad.
Bhagwat’s trip forms part of a broader outreach programme that also includes Canada and Britain. The RSS, founded in 1925, is marking its centenary and has sought to expand interaction with overseas communities while addressing criticism of its ideological influence. The organisation has long exercised considerable influence within the wider Sangh Parivar network, while its critics argue that Hindutva politics has contributed to growing pressures on minorities.
