Hate Speech: Would India be able to protect its secular constitution?

Indian foreign minister Subrahmanyam Jaishankar denounced U.S. President Joe Biden‍‍`s comment that "xenophobia" was halting the South Asian nation‍‍`s economic growth, The Economic Times reported on Saturday.

"Xenophobia" commonly means ‘hatred for outsider’ or sometime ‍‍`hatred for Muslims,‍‍` earlier this week, US president Joe Biden had said  is retaining economic growth in China, Japan and India, as he stated migration has been good for the U.S. economy.

Though the Biden administration is facing challenges in keeping American Muslims pleased regarding the country’s continued support to Israel amid the ongoing atrocities on Gaza strip months ahead of the US Presidential election, reportedly Muslim leaders declined the White House’s iftar party last month.

"One of the reasons why our economy‍‍`s growing is because of you and many others. Why? Because we welcome immigrants," Biden said at a fundraising event for his 2024 re-election campaign and marking the start of Asian American, Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander Heritage Month.

The International Monetary Fund (IMF) forecast last month that growth in Asia‍‍`s three largest economies would slow in 2024 from the previous year, while they projected the U.S. face 2.7%, slightly stronger than its 2.5% previous year.

Jaishankar claimed that India‍‍`s economy "is not faltering" and that it has historically been a society that is very open, at a round table hosted by The Economic Times on Friday.

"That‍‍`s why we have the CAA (Citizenship Amendment Act), which is to open up doors for people who are in trouble ... I think we should be open to people who have the need to come to India, who have a claim to come to India," Jaishankar commented, insisting the recent law facilitates immigrants who have escaped coercion from neighbouring countries to become citizens.

What is CAA
 

Reuters said that The CAA fast-tracks citizenship for oppressed Hindus, Parsis, Sikhs, Buddhists, Jains and Christians who fled to India before Dec. 31, 2014 from Muslim-majority Afghanistan, Pakistan, and Bangladesh due to religious persecution.

Muslim groups, opposition parties and rights activists accused the law of discriminating against Muslims and undermining India‍‍`s secular constitution. The law spurred criticism as it does not include Muslims fleeing Buddhist-majority Sri Lanka and Myanmar.

In Indian states such as Assam in the east, CAA has evoked concerns about increased migration from neighbouring Bangladesh, which has been a flashpoint in the region for decades.

On the other hand, some Muslims in Assam and West Bengal are in panic that the law, combined with a proposed National Register of Citizens, could be used to announce them as illegal immigrants from Bangladesh and withdraw their citizenship.

Modi‍‍`s Speech targeting Muslim?  

Amid Indian national election, Prime Minister Narendra Modi said that while the leading opposition Congress party was in ruling, “they said Muslims have the first right over the country’s resources” in late April at a rally in the state of Rajasthan. He also said that if it returns to power, the party will gather the majority‍‍`s wealth and distribute it among those who have more children.

India‍‍`s opposition Congress party has lodged a formal complaint with the Election Commission over a weekend speech delivered accusing this to be direct violation of election law and threat to the county secular balance.