WASHINGTON: A US government panel renewed calls Monday to blocklist India over religious freedom, saying that treatment of minorities has continued to worsen under Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

The US Commission on International Religious Freedom offers recommendations. Still, it needs to set policy, and there is little expectation that the State Department will accept its stance on India, a growing US partner.

The State Department each year lists countries where it sees particular concern on religious freedom, with the prospect of sanctions without improvement.