New Delhi, Dec 10 (IANS): India has strongly rejected the US State Department’s remarks on the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA), asserting that it is an internal matter and the country has the sovereign right to frame its own policies.
In a statement on Monday, Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) spokesperson Raveesh Kumar said: “We have seen the statement by the US State Department. It is unfortunate that selective reading of the CAA has led to such observations.”
“The CAA is an internal matter of India and concerns the sovereign right of the Indian Parliament to make laws. It is violative of international law to pronounce on the internal affairs of another country and to interfere in matters that are essentially and traditionally within the domestic jurisdiction of sovereign countries,” he added.
Kumar further said that the CAA is a “humanitarian gesture” towards persecuted religious minorities from Pakistan, Bangladesh and Afghanistan, “who have been subjected to discrimination, persecution and violence for decades”.
“It is entirely in keeping with India’s long tradition of providing refuge to persecuted communities from all over the world,” he said.
The MEA spokesperson also pointed out that the CAA “does not affect the existing rights and privileges of any of India’s citizens, including Muslims”.
“It does not alter any provisions of the Constitution of India and does not abrogate any existing rights or privileges provided under the Constitution,” he said.
Kumar further stated that the US State Department’s observations are “based on a flawed understanding of the facts” and that they “lack proper appreciation of India’s sovereign right to determine its own democratic processes”.
“India will not be deterred from taking measures to protect its national security and the interests of its citizens,” he concluded.