No outreach on CAA, foreign diplomats warn: India fast losing friends
More than a fortnight after the Citizenship (Amendment) Act came into force and triggered nationwide protests, there is growing unease within the capital’s foreign diplomatic community over the BJP-led NDA government’s moves. The diplomats have publicly maintained that the CAA is an “internal issue”. However, when The Indian Express spoke to ambassadors and diplomats from at least 16 countries, across all continents, over the last few days on the new law and the protests, they expressed “concern” at the situation.
The other key takeaway was this: The government held several briefings for them on various issues it had described as “domestic” – Pulwama attack, Balakot airstrike, revocation of Article 370 in Jammu and Kashmir, and even the Ayodhya verdict. But it has not briefed them even once on the CAA and its ramifications. …
“With each passing day, the government’s position is getting weakened, as these images are not going away. And the action against the protesters and the latest reports of torture and intimidation are giving more credence to the view that the government is intolerant of criticism and dissent,” an ambassador from a European country said.…
SEE ALSO:
- A $45 Billion Bet on Narendra Modi’s India Is Unwinding (Sep 17, 2019, Bloomberg)
https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2019-09-16/a-45-billion-bet-on-narendra-modi-s-india-is-rapidly-unwinding - Muslims Rallying In Support Of Citizenship Amendment Act. A FactCheck (Dec 31, 2019, Boom Live)
https://www.boomlive.in/fake-news/muslims-rallying-in-support-of-citizenship-amendment-act-a-factcheck-6445 - Do not come to Assam, Prime Minister Narendra Modi told (Dec 30, 2019, Deccan Chronicle)
https://www.deccanchronicle.com/nation/current-affairs/301219/do-not-come-to-assam-prime-minister-narendra-modi-told.html - All Assam Students’ Union members baton-charged for showing black flags to CM Sarbananda Sonowal (Jan 2, 2020, Times of India)
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/articleshow/73067836.cms
