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India Ranked Among Nations With High Religious Restrictions

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India ranks among 25 countries with high religious hostilities and government restrictions, according to a Pew Research Center report. It scored the highest for religion-related harassment and government limits on religious practices in 2022.

India Among 25 Countries With High Religious Restrictions:

• Pew Research Center Report (2022):
  • India was ranked with the highest score for religion-related hostilities among 198 countries, scoring 9.3/10 on the Social Hostilities Index (SHI), indicating high levels of mob violence, harassment, and conflicts over religious conversions.
  • India also scored high on the Government Restrictions Index (GRI) with a score of 6.4/10, reflecting laws and policies that limit religious practices, beliefs, or grants unequal benefits to certain religious groups.
• Countries With High GRI and SHI Scores:
  • India is among the 25 countries with both high GRI and SHI scores, including Pakistan, Israel, Egypt, Sri Lanka, Nepal, and the Maldives.
  • The report found that 12% of nations had ‘high’ or ‘very high’ scores in both indices, indicating significant religion-related hostilities and government restrictions.
• Trends in Religious Hostilities:
  • The number of countries with high or very high GRI and SHI scores has increased over the years. In 2022, 30% of countries had high GRI scores, up from 20% in 2007.
  • Harassment by governments and interference in religious practices are widespread, reported in 94% and 86% of the countries respectively.
  • The report highlighted that government actions often align with social hostilities, indicating a pattern where stricter regulations coincide with higher levels of hostility toward religious groups.

Sources Referred:

PIB, The Hindu, Indian Express, Hindustan Times