India rebuts Dutch concerns on press freedom, says criticism stems from lack of understanding of democracy. Photo: AFP.
India has strongly reacted to the remarks on India’s press freedom by Dutch Prime Minister Rob Jetten. Reacting to the comments, New Delhi said such concerns arise from a “lack of understanding” about India’s history, democracy, and cultural diversity. Secretary West Sibi George, on Saturday, during Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s visit to the Netherlands, strongly defended India ‘s democratic system, diversity and minority after a journalist representing a Dutch newspaper raised concerns over press freedom and treatment of minorities. The exchange took place, as the journalist questioned the absence of a joint press interaction and raised concerns about press freedom and minority rights, including those of Muslim and smaller communities.
Responding firmly, Sibi George said the concerns stemmed from a “lack of understanding”, stressing India ‘s civilisational depth and pluralism.
“Let me come to the other questions which we have received about press freedom and minorities and all in India. Let me tell you from my experience. We face these questions basically because of the lack of understanding of the person who asked the question,” he said.
Describing India as a civilisational state, he added, ” India is a country of 1.4 billion people, the largest populated country in the world, a country of civilisation of more than 5,000 years old. It’s a diverse country.”
Highlighting religious diversity, he said, “There is no other country in the world where four religions have originated: Hinduism, Buddhism, Jainism, and Sikhism. These religions originated in India and continued to flourish in India.”
He further stated, ” India has all the major religions in the world came to India. Jewish religion was in India for more than 2,500 years. Continuously coexisted. India is perhaps only one of those very few countries where the Jewish population never faced persecution. This is the beauty of India “, adding that multiple faiths have historically flourished in the country.
On minority communities, he noted, “Today, Christianity is more than 30 million Christians in India. Christianity came to India much before it came to Europe. And it flourished in India. This is the beauty of India. Islam came to India during the time of Prophet Mohammad himself and flourished in India.”
Defending India ‘s democratic framework, he said, “Today we are 1.4 billion people, diverse, living in peace and harmony. And a democratically elected government where peaceful transition of power happens.”
On freedom of expression, the India n diplomat added, “Everyone has the freedom of expression, freedom of press in the country. And that makes our democracy a very noisy democracy. And we are proud of that.”
Referring to electoral participation, he said, “Recently we had elections. You know you were you need to know what was the level of participation, more than 90 per cent of the electorate voted. This is the beauty of India. It’s a vibrant democracy.”
On economic progress of the country, he said, “We are the largest, fastest growing large economy in the world, 8 per cent growth for the last 25 years…without compromising on our democratic principles.”
Emphasising inclusivity, George said, “We are 1/6th of the total population of the world, but not 1/6th of the problems of the world. This is the beauty of India, which makes us proud… Every minority thrives. When we became independent, the minority population in India was 11 per cent. Now it is more than 20 per cent. Name a country where the population of minorities have gone up. “
Highlighting linguistic diversity, he said, “There are 22 official languages. If you take an India n currency, there are 22 languages written in it.”
George added, “I would invite also you to visit India and see for yourself how India lives, how thriving an economy it is, the vibrant democracy it is.”
(With inputs from ANI)
Zubair Amin is a Senior Journalist at NewsX with over seven years of experience in reporting and editorial work. He has written for leading national and international publications, including Foreign Policy Magazine, Al Jazeera, The Economic Times, The Indian Express, The Wire, Article 14, Mongabay, News9, among others. His primary focus is on international affairs, with a strong interest in US politics and policy. He also writes on West Asia, Indian polity, and constitutional issues. Zubair tweets at zubaiyr.amin
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