India has criticised former vice-President Hamid Ansari for his allegations on the deteriorating human rights conditions in India by calling out the “biases and political interests of the participants (of the event).”
“India is a robust and vibrant democracy. It does not require certification from others. The claim that others need to protect our Constitution is presumptuous and preposterous. The track record of the event organisers is as well-known as the biases and political interests of the participants,” MEA spokesperson Arindam Bagchi asserted in a statement.
In a virtual discussion organized by the Indian American Muslim Council, ex-VP Ansari and four US lawmakers (all belonging to the Democratic Party) has targeted the Indian government for its alleged discriminatory policies and practices of targeting people belonging to the minority community and alleged the rise of Hindu nationalism. “In recent years, we have experienced the emergence of trends and practices that dispute the well-established principle of civic nationalism and interpose a new and imaginary practice of cultural nationalism…. It wants to distinguish citizens on the basis of their faith, give vent to intolerance, insinuate otherness, and promote disquiet and insecurity,” ex-VP Ansari alleged.
Also read| India bought Pegasus spyware from Israel in 2017 as part of a defence deal: Report
“As the Indian government continues to target the practices of minority faiths, it creates an atmosphere where discrimination and violence can take root. In recent years, we have seen an uptick in online hate speeches and acts of hate, including vandalised mosques, torched churches, and communal violence,” Senator Ed Markey said. “Regrettably, today, the world’s largest democracy is seeing backsliding, human rights under attack and religious nationalism. Since 2014, India has fallen from 27 to 53 on the Democracy Index. And Freedom House has downgraded India from free to partly free,” Andy Levin alleged. Freedom House is a non-profit, majority U.S. government funded organisation which conducts research on human rights and democracy in countries across the world.
“There have been a lot of problems with the issue of religious authoritarianism and discrimination taking place in India …So we want to make sure that India stays on the path of respecting religious liberty, freedom, pluralism, toleration and dissent for everybody,” another lawmaker Jamie Raskin argued.
Law Minister Kiren Rijiju also criticised Ansari’s statement, saying that India is completely safe for the minority communities. “What Hamid Ansari ji said is wrong..I belong to a minority community and I can proudly say that India is safest nation. Minorities facing trouble in any of our neighboring countries prefer to seek refuge in India because India is safe. Let’s be grateful to our great nation,” Minister Rijiju tweeted.
Also read| Nation needs contribution of girls & women in defence: PM Modi
