FM Sitharaman
Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman, responding to the negative Western “perception” of India at an event in Washington, has claimed that Muslims in India are doing much better than the Muslims living in Pakistan.
FM Sitharaman attends spring meetings of IMF & World Bank
On Sunday, the finance minister arrived in the United States capital Washington, in order to attend the spring meetings of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) and World Bank. She also chairs the second G20 finance ministers and central bank governors meeting under the Indian presidency.
While responding to a question on perceptions affecting investment in India or capital flows at the Peterson Institute for International Economics (PIIE), FM Sitharaman said, “I would think the answer for that lies with those investors who are coming to India, and they have been coming. And as somebody who is interested in receiving investments, I would only say, come to have a look at what’s happening in India, rather than listen to perceptions being built by people who have not even visited on the ground and who produce reports.”
#WATCH | "Union Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman responds to a question on 'violence against Muslims' in India and on ‘negative Western perceptions' of India pic.twitter.com/KIT9dF9hZC
— ANI (@ANI) April 11, 2023
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FM responses to negative Western “perception” of India
During the event, when she was asked about there being widespread reporting in the Western media about MPs in the opposition party losing status, and about Muslim minorities in India being subjected to violence by the PIIE president Adam S Posen, the union finance minister said, “India has the second-largest Muslim population in the world, and that population is only growing in numbers. If there is a perception, or if there’s in reality, their lives are difficult or made difficult with the support of the state, which is what is implied in most of these write-ups, I would ask, will this happen in India in the sense, will the Muslim population be growing than what it was in 1947?”
Washington DC | India has the second largest Muslim population in the world and that population is only growing in numbers. If there is a perception or in reality, their lives are difficult or made difficult with the support of the State which is what is implied in most of these… pic.twitter.com/6fVTzuTFG9
— ANI (@ANI) April 11, 2023
According to the news agency ANI, she quoted, “Violence prevails against Muhajirs, Shia and every other group you can name which is not accepted by the mainstream. I don’t know, Sunnis probably. Whereas in India you would find every strand of Muslims doing their business, their children getting educated. Fellowships are being given by the government.”
Basically, during the event, FM Sitharaman contrasted Pakistan with India by citing that she would take the name of Pakistan to make the contrast more definite and sharper. Despite declaring itself an Islamic country that promised to protect minorities, every minority group in Pakistan has dwindled in number and even some Muslim sects have been decimated.
