'Go to New Delhi & see for yourself': US on health of democracy in India under PM Modi

India is a vibrant democracy and anybody who happens to go to New Delhi can see that for themselves, said the White House as it dismissed concerns over the health of democracy in the country under Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

The statement comes mere days ahead of PM Modi’s state visit to the US.

‘India is a vibrant democracy’

Asked by a reported if Biden administration is “at all concerned about the health of democracy in India?” John Kirby, Coordinator for Strategic Communications at the National Security Council in the White House, said: “India is a vibrant democracy. Anybody that, you know, happens to go to New Delhi can see that for themselves. And certainly, I would expect that strength and health of democratic institutions will be part of the discussion.”

He further said, “Look, we never shy away. And you can do that with friends. You’re supposed to do that with friends. You never shy away from expressing concerns that we might have with anyone around the world. But this (State) visit is really about advancing what is now and what we hope will be a deeper, stronger partnership and friendship going forward.”

India a strong partner of US

Kirby said India is a strong partner with the US on many levels.

“You saw that in Shangri-La Secretary (of Defence, Lloyd) Austin announced some additional defence cooperation now that we’re going to pursue with India. Of course, there’s an awful lot of economic trade between our two countries. India is a member of the Pacific Quad and a key friend and partner with respect to Indo-Pacific security,” he said.

“I could go on and on and on. There are innumerable reasons why India certainly matters, not just bilaterally between the two of our nations, but multilaterally on very many levels. And the president is looking forward very much to having Prime Minister Modi here to talk about all those issues and to advance and deepen that partnership and that friendship,” Kirby added

US President Joe Biden and First Lady Jill Biden will host Prime Minister Narendra Modi for the official state visit, which will include a state dinner, on June 22.

With inputs from PTI

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