By NNN-Bernama,
New York : Underlining that India is a democracy with a “proud record” on human rights, a top Indian minister has said New Delhi would look into alleged cases of violations of civil liberties in Kashmir.
“We also have our own domestic institutions including a free press, NGOs of various sorts, the National Human Rights Commission as well as a number of bodies that look into various allegations of human rights abuse,” Shashi Tharoor, the Indian Minister of State for External Affairs, told Press Trust of India (PTI) here.
In response to Pakistan’s allegations of human rights violations in Kashmir (northern city) at various international forums, Tharoor noted that India did not need to be reminded of its responsibility to take care of its citizens.
The Congress Party Member of Parliament from Thiruvananthapuram said every human rights abuse anywhere in India that is reported internationally has first been uncovered by an Indian usually by an Indian acting on behalf of civil society or the media or an NGO or sometimes the government.
“The important thing is how you respond to them and the government is proud of its record in saying if violations occur we will investigate, we will suspend police officers culpable, we will prosecute without fear or favour,” asserted Tharoor.