India on March 15 strongly trashed the criticism against the Citizenship (Amendment) Act (CAA), including by the United States, and said “vote-bank politics” should not determine views about a “laudable initiative” to help those in distress.
Rejecting the charges made by the U.S. State Department, the Ministry of External Affairs spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal said “Lectures by those who have a limited understanding of India’s pluralistic traditions and the region’s post Partition history are best not attempted.”
“As regards the U.S. State Department’s statement on the implementation of the CAA, we are of the view that it is misplaced, misinformed and unwarranted,” the MEA spokesperson said at his weekly media briefing.
The CAA, 2019 is in keeping with India’s inclusive traditions and long-standing commitment to human rights, he added.
“The Act grants a safe haven to persecuted minorities belonging to the Hindu, Sikh, Buddhist, Jain, Parsi and Christian communities from Afghanistan, Pakistan and Bangladesh who entered India on or before December 31, 2014,” Mr. Jaiswal said.
India, on March 11, notified the Citizenship Amendment Rules, 2024 four years after the law was passed. The legislation facilitates citizenship to undocumented people belonging to Hindu, Sikh, Buddhist, Parsi, Christian and Jain community from Pakistan, Bangladesh and Afghanistan, the rules state that the applicants will have to provide six types of documents and specify “date of entry” in India.
During a daily briefing, U.S. State Department Spokesperson Matthew Miller said the country was “concerned” about the notification and will “closely monitor” how it is implemented.
The U.S. State Department had said “India’s constitution guarantees freedom of religion to all its citizens. There are no grounds for any concern on treatment of minorities. Vote bank politics should not determine views about a laudable initiative to help those in distress.”
(with inputs from PTI)