India reacts angrily to Malaysian PM's criticism of controversial citizenship law

NEW DELHI/KUALA LUMPUR: India has reacted angrily to Malaysian Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad's criticism of the controversial citizenship act that is set to render a huge number of Muslims stateless.

It summoned the Malaysian ambassador and recorded its protest against PM Mahathir's comments on the contentious Citizenship (Amendment) Act, 2019, or the CAA.

Its foreign ministry stated in a statement according to India Today that he had issued "factually inaccurate" remarks on its "internal" matters and that Malaysia should "refrain from commenting on internal developments in India, especially without a right understanding of the facts".

Also read: Pakistan urges world to take notice of India’s 'dangerous steps'

Earlier, the Malaysian premier had questioned the CAA's "necessity" and asked why was such a law required when everyone had "together as citizens without any problem". 

"People are dying because of this law," he had said during the Kuala Lumpur Summit, which aimed to “do something” to improve the lives of Muslims and overcome Islamophobia.

Malaysia provided shelter and citizenship to those coming from India and China, "even when they do not qualify", and all of those folks were part of the government, Mahathir said. However, it is disappointing to see India sidelining Muslims in such a manner.

Read more: India's Modi claims citizenship law not anti-Muslim

"But I am sorry to see India, which claims to be a secular state, now taking action to deprive some Muslims of their citizenship," he said.

Had Malaysia done what was being done in India, the world knows what would have happened — it would have created chaos everywhere, undermined stability, and impacted everyone.

"Of course, if we do that here, you know what will happen. There will be chaos, instability, and everybody will suffer," the Malaysian PM had noted.

COVER IMAGE: Malaysian Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad (L) in Petaling Jaya, Malaysia, May 10, 2018, and Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi (R) in Ahmedabad, India, April 23, 2019. REUTERS/Lai Seng Sin and Amit Dave/Files

Related:

Hundreds arrested in India during days of protests over citizenship law

Viral video appears to show Indian police religiously profiling Muslims

Finger-wagging women become Indian protest symbols