India has firmly dismissed Pakistan's recent accusations regarding alleged attacks on religious minorities within its borders, accusing Islamabad of hypocrisy given its own dire human rights record. 

The retort came from the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal on 29 December 2025, who labelled the claims as baseless and highlighted Pakistan's longstanding failures in protecting its minorities.

The exchange was triggered by remarks from Pakistan's Foreign Ministry spokesperson Tahir Andrabi, who called on the international community to address what he termed "incidents targeting religious minorities" in India.

Andrabi specifically pointed to supposed Christmas-related vandalism, attacks on Muslims, home demolitions, and the high-profile case of Muhammad Akhlaq, alleging state complicity in shielding perpetrators.

Jaiswal rejected these assertions outright, stating that they emanate from "a country whose abysmal record on this front speaks for itself." He underscored that Pakistan's "horrific and systemic victimisation of minorities of various faiths" stands as a well-documented reality, impervious to deflection through finger-pointing.

Pakistan's history of minority persecution is marked by recurrent violence, discriminatory legislation, and societal exclusion. Religious minorities, including Ahmadis, Christians, and Hindus, have faced mob attacks, forced conversions, and restrictive blasphemy laws that often incite further hostility.

The Ahmadiyya community, in particular, endures state-sanctioned discrimination, declared non-Muslim by constitutional amendment in 1974 and subjected to ongoing legal and social marginalisation. Blasphemy accusations frequently target Ahmadis, leading to arrests, violence, and extrajudicial killings.

Christians in Pakistan have suffered repeated communal riots, with the 2009 Gojra incident in Punjab serving as a grim example. Mobs torched Christian homes and churches, killing at least eight people, including women and children, amid allegations of blasphemy that later proved unsubstantiated.

Hindu minorities, concentrated in Sindh province, grapple with temple desecrations and forced conversions, especially of young girls. In 2020, a Hindu temple in Khyber Pakhtunkhwa's Karak district was demolished by a mob, highlighting the precarious status of minority worship sites amid rising extremism.

Sikhs and other smaller faiths also report kidnappings, land grabs, and violence, compounded by inadequate state protection. International bodies like the United States Commission on International Religious Freedom have consistently designated Pakistan a "Country of Particular Concern" for these systemic abuses.

India's rebuttal aligns with its broader diplomatic stance, frequently invoking Pakistan's internal failures to counter external critiques on human rights. New Delhi maintains that such accusations from Islamabad lack credibility and serve primarily as deflection from its own domestic challenges.

This latest diplomatic spat underscores enduring tensions between the nuclear-armed neighbours, exacerbated by issues like cross-border terrorism and Kashmir. India's emphasis on Pakistan's record aims to refocus global attention on verifiable patterns of minority oppression in the latter.

As the rhetoric intensifies, both nations continue to leverage international forums to shape narratives on religious freedom. For India, the response reinforces its position that Pakistan's moral authority on such matters is severely compromised.

Based On ANI Report