Calcutta:
Western countries feel they have influenced the world for 200 years and India does not conform to their idea of being complacent, External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar said on Tuesday. Remarks from him were made on the different allegations made against India by the US and Canada.
Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau earlier this year alleged the Indian government’s role in the murder of Khalistani terrorist Hardeep Singh Nijjar on Canadian soil. India denied the accusation.
The US, on the other hand, claimed last year that it had thwarted an Indian plot to kill Gurpatwant Singh Pannun, a US-based Sikh separatist. In this case, India formed an inquiry panel to analyze the inputs.
In the context of such allegations, Jaishankar pointed to an “old habit” of Western countries of influencing the world.
“They want to influence us because many of these countries feel that they have influenced this world for the last 70-80 years. Western countries really feel that they have influenced the world for the last 200 years, as you would expect from someone who has been in that position of abandoning these old habits so easily”, asked the Minister of Foreign Affairs.
Jaishankar also joked that countries that have to go to court to decide the outcome of their elections are now “giving you a lecture on how to conduct your elections”.
Ultimately, they are seeing an India that is “in some sense not compatible” with the image they have of what India should be, he said.
“In some cases, Western media outlets have openly supported candidates and political parties in the country. They do not hide their preference. They will damage your reputation, they will present a rating and bring you down,” Jaishankar added.
This story originally appeared on Ndtv.com read the full story
