India on Tuesday, 17 December, strongly rejected a resolution adopted by Pakistan National Assembly on the amended citizenship law, calling it a “poorly disguised effort” to divert attention from Islamabad's "appalling treatment" and "persecution" of its own religious minorities.
In a statement, the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) said the resolution makes references to matters which are entirely internal to India.
"We categorically reject the resolution," it said, adding that Pakistan Parliament's action was “laughable” and the neighbouring country should engage in serious self-introspection instead of making false accusations.
The ministry said the resolution was a thinly-veiled attempt by Pakistan to further its "false narrative" on the issue of Jammu and Kashmir and Ladakh.
“It seeks to provide justification for Pakistan's unrelenting support for cross-border terrorist activities in India. We are confident that such attempts will fail,” it added.
What Did the Resolution Say?
Pakistan's Parliament on Monday unanimously passed a resolution terming India's citizenship amendment law against the bilateral agreements and asked New Delhi to revoke the "discriminatory" clauses in it.
The resolution – moved in Pakistan National Assembly by Education Minister Shafqat Mahmood – said the Citizenship Act was "against international norms of equality and non-discrimination and International Human Rights Law".
The MEA said the resolution "intentionally" mischaracterises the objectives of the new law, asserting it gives citizenship to foreigners from selected countries who are persecuted religious minorities.
"It does not take away the citizenship of any Indian irrespective of her or his faith," it said.
“It is laughable that the National Assembly of Pakistan, that has itself passed discriminatory legislation against religious minorities, should point fingers at others. We call upon Pakistan to engage in serious self-introspection rather than to falsely accuse others of what they themselves are guilty of.”MEA
"Pakistan would do well to remember that India is the world's largest democracy, that all its governments have been freely and fairly elected through universal adult franchise, and that all Indians irrespective of faith enjoy equal rights under the Constitution," the MEA said.
Imran Khan Peddling Familiar Falsehoods: India on Pak PM's Comments at Refugee Meet
The MEA on Tuesday also dismissed as "falsehoods" Pakistan PM Imran Khan's comments at a global refugee conference that millions of Muslims could flee India due to “clampdown” in Kashmir and enactment of the amended citizenship law.
In a sharp reaction, MEA spokesperson Raveesh Kumar said Khan has once again "peddled familiar falsehoods" at a multilateral platform to advance his "narrow" political agenda by making gratuitous and unwarranted remarks on matters entirely internal to India.
In his address at the Global Refugee Forum (GRF) in Geneva, Khan came down hard on India for scrapping special status of Jammu and Kashmir as well as on the amended citizenship law.
"It should now be clear to the entire world that this is an established pattern of his (Khan) habitual and compulsive abuse of global forums," the MEA spokesperson said.
"It has been the unfortunate experience of most of Pakistan's neighbours that actions by that country have had adverse consequences next door," he added.
Rejecting Khan's criticism of the citizenship law, Kumar said, "Over the past 72 years, the Islamic Republic of Pakistan has systematically persecuted all of its minorities, forcing most of them to flee to India."
"Moreover, Prime Minister Khan wishes the world forgets what his Army did in 1971 to the people of the erstwhile East Pakistan. Pakistan must act to protect and promote the rights of its own minorities and co-religionists," the MEA spokesperson said.
The Citizenship Amendment Act seeks to provide citizenship to non-Muslim religious minorities from Pakistan, Afghanistan and Bangladesh who arrived in India till 31 December 2014 to escape religious persecution.
(This story has been edited for length and clarity.)
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