By Aarti Tikoo Singh

New Delhi, Dec 17 (IANS): India on Tuesday rejected the resolution adopted by Pakistan's National Assembly on India's Citizenship Amendment Act and reorganisation of the erstwhile Jammu & Kashmir state, reiterating that the issues are an internal matter of the country.

Describing it as a "poorly disguised" effort to divert attention from Pakistan's "appalling treatment and persecution of its own religious minorities," the government in a statement issued by the Ministry of External Affairs said that the demographics of Hindu, Christian, Sikh or other faiths in Pakistan speak for themselves.

In a scathing attack, the ministry said that it was "laughable" that the National Assembly of Pakistan, which itself passed discriminatory legislation against religious minorities, was pointing fingers at others.

New Delhi said that the resolution was an attempt by Pakistan to "further its false narrative on the issue of Jammu & Kashmir and Ladakh." It seeks to provide justification for Pakistan's unrelenting support for cross-border terrorism in India, the government said.

"Pakistan would do well to remember that India is the world's largest democracy, that all its governments have been freely and fairly elected through universal adult franchise, and that all Indians irrespective of faith enjoy equal rights under the Constitution. We urge Pakistan to similarly aspire to these ideals," the statement said.

The government went on to explain once again that the Citizenship Amendment Act 2019 does not deprive anyone from his or her citizenship in India but grants citizenship to persecuted religious minorities from select foreign countries.