No locus standi: India on US religious freedom report
Economic Times
June 23, 2019
No locus standi: India on US religious freedom
report
The Indian Constitution guarantees fundamental
rights to all its citizens, including its minority communities, Raveesh Kumar
said.
NEW DELHI: India Sunday rejected a US religious
freedom report, saying it sees no locus standi for a foreign government to
pronounce on the state of its citizens' constitutionally protected rights.
In its annual 2018 International Religious Freedom
Report, the State Department alleged Friday that mob attacks by violent
extremist Hindu groups against minority communities, particularly Muslims,
continued in India in 2018, amid rumours that victims had traded or killed cows
for beef.
Responding to media queries on the report, Ministry
of External Affairs Spokesperson Raveesh Kumar said: "India is proud of
its secular credentials, its status as the largest democracy and a pluralistic
society with a longstanding commitment to tolerance and inclusion."
The Indian Constitution guarantees fundamental
rights to all its citizens, including its minority communities, he said.
It is widely acknowledged that India is a vibrant
democracy where the Constitution provides protection of religious freedom, and
where democratic governance and rule of law further promote and protect
fundamental rights, Kumar asserted.
"We see no locus standi for a foreign
entity/government to pronounce on the state of our citizens' constitutionally
protected rights," he said.
Comments
Post a Comment