India’s foreign minister refused to meet me. I won’t stop speaking out on human rights.

Pramila Jayapal, a Democrat, represents Washington’s 7th Congressional District in the House of Representatives.

I am proud to have lived my life in two of the world’s great democracies — as a citizen of India for almost 35 years, and today, as a proud American citizen and the first Indian American woman elected to the House of Representatives.

The United States and India — the world’s longest-running democracy and the world’s largest democracy — have shared a unique and important relationship for decades that has weathered disagreements and tensions on...