New Delhi, January 2: The Minister of External Affairs (MEA), in its press briefing on Thursday, reiterated that the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA) is an internal matter and India would not be influenced by criticism from a select-few nations. The MEA statement comes amid criticism from Turkey, Pakistan and Malaysia over the law to naturalise non-Muslim refugees in India ahead of the proposed nationwide NRC exercise to crackdown on illegal immigrants.

The Foreign Ministry claimed that it has taken cognisance of apprehensions raised by international groups and a few countries, adding that New Delhi - through its embassies and High Commissions - have shared its perspective on the issue with all friendly nations. Imran Khan Fires Fresh Salvo Against 'Hindu Supremacist' Modi Govt Over CAB Passage, Draws Parallels With Nazi Germany.

"We did reach out to countries across all geographical regions, we did write to our missions to share our perspective on Citizenship Amendment Act and National Register of Citizens with the host government," MEA spokesperson Raveesh Kumar said.

Kumar, on being asked by reporters about the deferment of Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe's visit due to the anti-CAA stir in Guwahati, said the Indian side has reached out to their counterparts in Tokyo to finalise a new date for his summit with PM Narendra Modi.

"We are in touch with the Japanese side, we do hope that very soon we will come to finalisation of the date," Kumar said, adding that India-Japan summit has not been cancelled but only postponed.

Update by ANI

The MEA spokesperson said that the Indian government is hopeful of a positive response on matters internal to New Delhi from most of the Muslim-dominated nations. On reports of Saudi Arabia considering to call an Organisation of Islamic Conference (OIC) meeting on the extensive communication clampdown in the Valley, Kumar said there is no confirmation on the move year. "The reports are entirely speculative. We are not aware about any such meetings of OIC on India related matter," he said.

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Jan 02, 2020 04:56 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).