Ex-US religious freedom panel chief counters Obama's remarks on India, Defence Minister Rajnath Singh says...
1 min read 26 Jun 2023, 04:55 PM ISTFormer US President Barack Obama has faced criticism from top Indian politicians after commenting on India. Evangelical leader Johnnie Moore meanwhile suggested Obama should ‘compliment India’ more.
PremiumFormer US President Barack Obama's recent comments on India have sparked a war of words, with a slew of top politicians and leaders lashing out at the Democrat. Evangelical leader Johnnie Moore suggested Obama “spend his energy complimenting India" while Defence Minister Rajnath Singh urged the former leader to think about “how many Muslim countries he has attacked" on Monday.
“I think the former president should spend his energy complimenting India, more than criticizing India. India is the most diverse country in human history," said Moore - the former Commissioner of US Commission on International Religious Freedom.
Much like the United States, he added, it was not a perfect country. “But its diversity is its strength, and we should be complimenting the largest democracy in the world every chance that we can. Even in that critique, President Obama couldn't help but also compliment PM Modi, and I certainly understand why, having spent some time with him," he added.
Meanwhile Defence Minister Rajnath Singh asserted that India was the only country “which considers all the people living in the world as family members".
“He should also think about himself as to how many Muslim countries he has attacked," he added.
“He was commenting on Indian Muslims ... having bombed Muslim-majority countries from Syria to Yemen during his presidency. Why would anyone listen to any allegations from such people?" added Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman during a press conference on Sunday.
As Prime Minister Narendra Modi undertook a state visit to the US last week, Obama had spoken about the issue of the “protection of the Muslim minority in a majority-Hindu India" would be worth raising in Modi's meeting with U.S. President Joe Biden.
Obama told CNN that without such protection there was "a strong possibility that India at some point starts pulling apart".
(With inputs from agencies)
