"The political judgements of Freedom House are as inaccurate and distorted as their maps."
MEA spokesperson Anurag Srivastava  |  Photo Credit: ANI
New Delhi: The government on Friday strongly rebutted a Freedom House report downgrading India's status to a "partly free" country, calling it "misleading, incorrect and misplaced", and asserted that the country has well established democratic practices.
While the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting(MIB) stressed that the country treats all citizens equally without discrimination and that discussion, debate and dissent are part of Indian democracy, the Ministry of External Affairs(MEA) said India has robust institutions. The MEA also took a dig at the Democracy watchdog, saying India does not need "sermons", especially from those who cannot get their basics right.