May 06, 2000
Honorable ABC
999th District
Any Town, ZZ 99999


Dear Sir/Madam:

It is with much pleasure that I write to you on behalf of the disadvantaged in India. I am writing to you as the President of Dalitstan, a non-profit organization founded about a year ago with the objective of helping the disadvantaged populations in India. Since its founding, Dalitstan has been educating the American public primarily through the Internet on issues relating to religious liberty and oppression in India. The motivation of this educational thrust has been the recent upsurge of anti-Buddhist, anti-Christian, anti-Dalit and anti-Moslem riots and crimes in the wake of Hindu party victories in Indian elections. The Hindu party, Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), supported by the extremist Hindu group, Rashtriya Swayam Sangh (RSS) has an apparently hidden agenda with the goal of promoting and enforcing wherever and however possible, one religion in India - Hinduism. As I write, this objective is being carried out in various ways, primarily through unprovoked and ruthless activities, and this, if left unchecked, could parallel the rise of Nazi anti-Semitism or recent intolerance in the Baltics.
In the face of such extreme injustice, I would like to request your support in influencing U.S. policy toward India in a way that acknowledges the atrocities inflicted on minority groups in that country. For your convenience, our web site, http://dalitstan.org, contains up to date information on the evils inflicted against Christians and other minority religions in the predominantly Hindu country. Please permit me to comment briefly on a few issues.
Three issues have surfaced as primary areas of concern as we have become more informed about the religious injustices practiced in India. First, whereas over a million Indian Hindus are allowed freedom to worship according to their beliefs in over 1,000 temples in the U.S., it is ironical that Indian Christians and Muslims are not given the same level of freedom to worship according to their conscience in their own country. Secondly, the financial support provided through some organizations to extremist Hindu organizations in India by Hindus residing in the U.S. serves as further arsenal in their bid to coerce people of other faiths to practice Hinduism. Nonetheless, it appears that such contributions qualify as tax-deductible gifts to charity even though they are in essence used to support atrocities against minority groups in the country.
The final issue has to do with humanitarian assistance to India through general developing country assistance provisions. There is a serious concern that most of the funds earmarked for development and humanitarian purposes never reach their intended objective. Rather, some ruling officials manage to divert the funds towards popular extremist groups that in turn cause various hardships to the disadvantaged population. This calls for more strict guidelines for disbursement of funds given to India and other such countries to ensure that the intended use of the assistance is met.
Honorable Congressman, I am confident that you will provide your support in promoting legislation that accounts for the adversities facing minority groups in India. I look forward to communicating with you further on this issue and hope that your support will bring relief to multiplied millions in India.


Sincerely,


Helen Heklund
President, Dalitstan
Email Id: president@dalitstan.org
Web Site http://dalitstan.org