India has slammed United Nation's Resident Coordinator Renata Lok-Dessallien's comments on Hathras and Balarampur cases, calling them "unwarranted comments" and since the investigation process is still underway any "unnecessary comments by an external agency are best avoided."
The Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) in a strongly-worded statement said, "UN Resident Coordinator in India should be aware that these cases have been taken extremely seriously by the government," reminding the top UN diplomat in Delhi that, "Constitution guarantees equality to all citizens of India. As a democracy, we have a time-tested record of providing justice to all sections of our society."
The UN resident coordinator had issued a statement on Sunday, saying, it is "profoundly saddened and concerned" at the continuing cases of sexual violence against women and girls in India.
The statement said, "Steps being taken by the Government of India to strengthen safety measures for women and girls are welcome and urgent" and "we support the Prime Minister's call for strict action against the culprits" but said, "entrenched social norms and behaviour of men and boys that lead to gender-based violence must be addressed."