India a strong and functioning democracy: US

WASHINGTON: Supporting the rights of the people of India to protest peacefully over corruption, the United States has said that the country is a functioning and a strong democracy.

"The rights of Indians to protest peacefully over corruption or whatever they see fit to protest over, that's well within their rights and we support that. That's part of a functioning democracy," the State Department spokesman, Mark Toner said yesterday.

"Indeed, we do view India as a functioning democracy, a strong democracy that has the institutions to look at these kinds of matters internally, domestically and to address them," Toner said.