- India rejects Pakistani President's remarks on threats to Muslim sites as absurd
- Pakistan has no right to comment on India's internal matters, says foreign ministry
- India highlights Pakistan's poor human rights record and minority victimisation
India has rejected the remarks by Pakistani President Asif Ali Zardari about alleged threats to Muslim sites in India as "absurd" and a "deliberate political attack" born out of hatred.
Reacting strongly to Zardari's comments on India, the foreign ministry has once again reminded Islamabad that it has no locus standi to speak on its neighbour's internal matters.
"India categorically rejects the unwarranted comments made by the President of Pakistan. He has, in any case, no locus standi to comment on matters that are internal to India," said foreign ministry spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal.
Jaiswal pointed out the irony that Pakistan itself has an "abysmal" human rights record.
Read: Pakistan's President Admits He Was Advised To Move To Bunkers During Op Sindoor
"These comments are particularly absurd given Pakistan's own abysmal record on human rights, which is a matter of global commentary. Pakistan's long history of systematically targeting and victimising minorities across various faiths is notorious," he said.
Over the years, non-governmental organisations (NGOs) and watchdogs in Pakistan have flagged continued religion-based violence, especially against Hindus and the Ahmadiyya community. Blasphemy-related violence against religious minorities, fostered in part by government persecution and discriminatory laws, continues unabated in Pakistan, notes the HRW.
Zardari's remarks, Jaiswal concluded, appear to be politically driven by the country's policies of bigotry and hatred.
Read: "Bleeding India By Thousand Cuts": UN Envoy Slams Pakistan For Terrorism
"Given this reality, the President's remarks can only be read as a deliberate political attack, driven by Pakistan's national policies of bigotry and hatred," the senior official added.
The response was to Zardari's comments on X about an alleged demolition threat to historic Masjid Ganj Shaheeda in Varanasi and other Muslim sites across India. New Delhi maintains that Islamabad should not interfere in India's domestic issues and has repeatedly rejected its comments on such matters.
