US Raising 'Human Rights in India' is Like the Pot Calling the Kettle Black Any attempt by the Biden administration to flex its muscles or rake up human rights could prove highly counter-productive (Image: Reuters)

The 2+2 Foreign and Defence ministers meeting between India and the US finally got concluded. This wasn’t business as usual. The meeting was held in the shadow of the Russia-Ukraine war and growing differences between New Delhi and Washington, D.C. over the ongoing crisis. The US wants its ally, India to say and do certain things about Russia’s war against Ukraine. On the other hand, India insists on retaining autonomy over its foreign policy decisions and acting as per its own geopolitical interests. Therefore, the meeting was held under a rather uncomfortable backdrop with the two allies trying to make some progress despite a fundamental difference in their approach to the Ukraine crisis.

So, when India’s Defence Minister Rajnath Singh and External Affairs Minister Dr. S. Jaishankar met their US counterparts- Defence Secretary Llyod Austin and Secretary of State Antony Blinken, there were some traditional remarks about increasing cooperation and engagement. However, there were also some unsubtle attempts at flexing muscles and intimidation. Blinken, for instance, suggested that the US was “monitoring some recent concerning developments" in India, including “a rise in human rights abuses by some government, police, and prison officials".