India has rejected Netherlands Prime Minister Rob Jetton’s talk about decreasing media freedom, religious and minority rights in India. During PM Modi’s visit to Netherlands, the MEA official said that the country has a vibrant democracy, which guarantees freedom of speech to everyone. He said that these concerns arise from lack of understanding.

Sibi George, Secretary in the Ministry of External Affairs, said, ‘We face such questions actually because of the lack of understanding of the person asking the question.’ He told that India is a part of 5 thousand years old civilization and emphasized on the cultural, religious and linguistic diversity of the country.

All religions should flourish in India: MEA official

He said, ‘India is a country of 140 crore people, the most populous country in the world. A country with a civilization more than 5000 years old. It is a different kind of country. There are different types of people in culture, there are different types of people in languages, there are different types of people in food, there are different types of people in religion. There is no other country in the world where four religions have started. Hindu, Buddhist, Jain and Sikh, these religions started in India and are flourishing in India even today.
He further said, ‘Judaism existed in India for more than 2500 years. Stayed together continuously. India is probably one of the very few countries where the Jewish population never faced persecution. Christianity came to India soon after Jesus Christ. Continued to flourish in India. Islam itself came to India during the time of Prophet Mohammad and flourished in India.

Gave this answer to the question on democracy

The conversation took place when a Dutch journalist questioned the absence of a joint press conference during PM Modi’s two-day visit to the Netherlands and raised concerns about press freedom and the rights of minorities, including Muslims and small communities. Referring to the recent assembly elections held in many areas of the country, the diplomat said that India is a ‘vibrant democracy’ where peaceful transition of power is a special thing. He said, ‘Recently, elections were held here. You know, you need to know what the level of participation was. More than 90% voters voted. This is the beauty of India.

Population of minorities in India has doubled: MEA

Responding to the Netherlands, India said that when we became independent, the minority population in India was 11 percent. Now it is more than 20 percent. Name any country where minority population has increased? You will not find this (anywhere else) except India.