Indians have the freedom to practice their faith and there is no growing intolerance between religious communities, the country’s minority affairs minister said in an interview published yesterday amid spurts of religious riots in various parts of the country.
Religious clashes broke out during a procession in New Delhi on Saturday, injuring several people, including six policemen, police officials said, days after similar violence in three other Indian states.
Minority Affairs Minister Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi, who is part of Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s Hindu nationalist government, told The Economic Times newspaper that “fringe elements, who are unable to digest the peace and prosperity in the country, try to defame India’s inclusive culture and commitment.”
In recent weeks, small-scale religious riots have broken out between the majority Hindu and the minority Muslim community during religious processions in some parts of the country.
Some university students in the capital New Delhi fought on campus over non-vegetarian food being served in the hostel.
“It is not the job of the government to tell the people what to eat or not. Every citizen has freedom in the country to eat food of their choice,” Naqvi said.
In recent years, the rule of Modi’s Bharatiya Janata Party has emboldened hardline religious groups.
India’s opposition parties publicly voiced concern on Saturday that multi-faith India, dominated by Hindus but with sizeable minorities, is becoming less tolerant under Modi’s regime.
Meanwhile Indian police arrested 14 people in connection with the violent clashes in New Delhi, police said in a tweet yesterday.
Rapid Action Force (RAF) personnel deployed to secure a residential area walk along a street in Jahangirpuri area in New Delhi yesterday, after clashes broke out between members of two communities.
