Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Thursday took questions from reporters for the first time in his nine-year tenure, dismissing concerns about human rights and reports of discrimination against religious minorities like Muslims.
Modi met with U.S. President Joe Biden in Washington D.C., where the two took questions from reporters during a state visit aimed at beefing up ties between the two countries.
“What steps are you and your government willing to take to improve the rights of Muslims and other minorities in your country and to uphold free speech?” asked Wall Street Journal reporter Sabrina Saddiqui, who also asked about Modi’s commitment to democratic values.
“Democracy is in our DNA. Democracy is our spirit. Democracy runs in our veins. We live democracy,” Modi said in Hindi through a translator.
He added: “We have proved democracy can deliver. If there are no human values, no human rights, no humanity, it’s not a democracy. When we live in a democracy, there’s no place for discrimination. In India, there is no discrimination on the basis of caste or creed or age or any kind of geographical location.”
Modi did not, however, address religious discrimination – about which he was specifically asked.
His government has been accused by critics of fostering an environment hostile to India’s Muslim minority. He also steered clear of addressing specific complaints of crackdowns against political opponents.
Contrary to Modi’s claim, a Human Rights Watch report last year said that caste-based violence in India had been on the rise in recent years, particularly against members of the Dalit caste.
It also flagged what researchers called the “vilification” of and attacks on Muslims, as well as a growing risk of “politically motivated harassment, prosecutions, and tax raids.”
Biden described the India-U.S. relationship as “among the most consequential in the world.”
He was also asked about India’s human rights record and whether he raised the issue with Modi.
“The prime minister and I had a good discussion about democratic values. That’s the nature of our relationship, we can be straightforward with each other,” Biden said, adding that Washington’s human rights concerns with India cannot be equated with the concerns that they have with China.
“We (India and the United States) are both democracies and respect each other.”
The two leaders were also asked about their commitment to fighting climate change together.
According to CNN, Indian officials had insisted that the two leaders not take any questions but issue a joint statement instead. In the end, however, the American side prevailed, and the Indian delegation agreed to a compromise on the eve of Modi’s visit.
This is the first time Modi has fielded any questions at a press conference since taking office as prime minister in May 2014. In 2019, Modi attended a press conference at the headquarters of his party, the Bhartiya Janata Party (BJP), but did not field any questions.
All questions, instead, were answered by a senior party functionary sitting next to Modi.
Several prominent American voices have called on Biden to denounce the rise of Hindu nationalism in India and raise concerns about fears of a democratic backslide in the country.
This includes Vermont Democratic Senator and former presidential candidate Bernie Sanders.
“Prime Minister Modi’s government has cracked down on the press and civil society, jailed political opponents, and pushed an aggressive Hindu nationalism that leaves little space for India’s religious minorities. President Biden should raise these facts in his meeting with Modi,” Sanders has said.
Democratic Representatives Rashiba Tlaib, Ilhan Omar, Cori Bush and Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez said they were boycotting Modi’s address to Congress on Thursday afternoon.
“In 2005, Narendra Modi was denied a U.S. visa because of his violations of religious freedom, including his complicity in an anti-Muslim riot that left over 1,000 dead,” Ocasio-Cortez said in a statement.
“It’s shameful that Modi has been given a platform at our nation’s capital—his long history of human rights abuses, anti-democratic actions, targeting Muslims & religious minorities, and censoring journalists is unacceptable. I will be boycotting Modi’s joint address to Congress,” tweeted Rashida Tlaib.
Omar said she would be holding a briefing with human rights groups to discuss Modi’s record.
India’s rank on the Reporters Sans Frontiers press freedom index slipped to 161st place this year, after the government raided the BBC’s offices in India following coverage critical of the prime minister.
Earlier this year, Rahul Gandhi – India’s most prominent opposition leader and a staunch critic of Modi – was removed from Indian parliament after he was convicted in a defamation case.
Minority communities in India, particularly the nearly 172 million Indian Muslims, have faced increased attacks since Modi took office.
India has seen open calls for the ethnic cleansing of Muslims and Christians, which prompted the organization Genocide Watch to issue a ‘Genocide Alert’ for India. The U.S. Holocaust memorial museum also placed India at risk of a mass atrocity.
The organization Hindus for Human Rights wrote an open letter to Biden, urging him to “lead the fight against authoritarianism” and “take a stand publicly.”
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