India on Monday strongly rejected Pakistan’s allegations of mistreatment of religious minorities, asserting that Islamabad lacks the moral authority to comment on such matters given its own record. Responding to remarks from Pakistan’s Foreign Office, New Delhi said attempts to highlight alleged incidents in India cannot mask Pakistan’s well-documented history of systemic discrimination and persecution of minorities.
The response came after Pakistani Foreign Affairs spokesperson Tahir Andrabi urged the international community to take note of what he described as incidents targeting religious minorities in India, including claims of Christmas-related vandalism and attacks on Muslims. India dismissed these accusations outright, calling them misleading and politically motivated.
Addressing media queries, the spokesperson of India’s Ministry of External Affairs said the remarks from Pakistan were rejected unequivocally. The spokesperson stated that allegations coming from a country with an abysmal human rights record carry little credibility. According to India, Pakistan’s victimisation of minorities belonging to various faiths is a widely acknowledged reality, and finger-pointing at India does nothing to change that fact.
India also underlined that isolated incidents, when they occur, are dealt with through constitutional mechanisms and the rule of law. New Delhi reiterated that its democratic institutions ensure protection for all communities, and attempts to portray India as intolerant are part of a repeated narrative pushed by Pakistan at international forums.
The latest exchange is part of a continuing war of words between India and Pakistan over internal and regional issues. Pakistani media reports cited past incidents, including the 2015 Dadri violence case, to accuse India of shielding perpetrators. India countered by stating that such references ignore Pakistan’s own unresolved issues related to forced conversions, attacks on minority places of worship, and legal discrimination against non-Muslim communities.
Last month, India had similarly reacted sharply to Pakistan’s comments on the hoisting of the sacred flag at the Ram Mandir in Ayodhya. At that time, India said Pakistan had no standing to lecture others while grappling with deep-rooted intolerance and repression at home. Pakistan had described the Ram Mandir event as an example of Islamophobia and heritage desecration, remarks that India termed baseless and intrusive.
Reiterating its position, India urged Pakistan to focus on addressing its internal human rights challenges rather than issuing what it called hypocritical statements on India’s domestic affairs. New Delhi maintained that genuine concern for minority rights must begin at home, and empty rhetoric cannot replace meaningful action.
