Tolerance is in India's DNA: Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi

NEW DELHI: Tolerance is in India's DNA and painting criminal incidents with communal colour is akin to helping criminals, Union minister Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi said today.

"Such" incidents divert attention from the real issues in hand, he said adding those involved in those cases were being dealt with iron hand.

"Tolerance is in the DNA of our country and its culture. Intolerance is unacceptable to each section of the society.

"Secondly, such incidents (being reported as cases of lynching) are purely criminal ones. If you paint the criminal incidents with communal colour, it is akin to helping criminals," he said.

The minister said India never treaded the path of a "Talibani mindset" (a fundamentalist political movement in Afghanistan) and will not do so in future, too.

"Those who talk about intolerance, NGOs and other organisations, they should look at other countries to know the conditions of minorities living there," he said.

There are six notified minority communities in the country namely Muslim, Christian, Sikh, Buddhist, Parsi and Jain.

He reiterated that the Narendra Modi-led government at the Centre is committed to take the country on the path of inclusive growth.

"We are committed to ensure the agenda of destruction does not dominate the agenda of development," he added.