Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:

To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Affairs, what assessment he has made of the level of persecution of religious minorities in India.

The UK Government has a broad and deep partnership with the Government of India and we discuss all elements of our relationship. We remain committed to defending freedom of religion or belief (FoRB) for all and promoting respect and tolerance between communities. Where we have issues, we raise them directly with the Government of India, including at Ministerial level. The Minister for South Asia, Lord [Tariq] Ahmad of Wimbledon, regularly speaks to the High Commissioner of India. Human rights forms part of that dialogue. Our networks across India regularly meet religious representatives and have run projects supporting human rights.