India will face int'l isolation because of NRC, CAA: Menon

New Delhi: India will face diplomatic isolation because of the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA) 2019 and the National Register of Citizens (NRC), former National Security Adviser and Foreign Secretary Shivshankar Menon said here on Friday. Calling it a "self-inflicted goal" which has "isolated" India, he maintained that the list of critical voices both at home and abroad is "pretty long".

Speaking at a press conference where a number of academicians discussed the adverse implications of the contentious law, which has led to nationwide protests, Menon said the move has resulted in India being "hyphenated" with Pakistan as an "intolerant" state.

He said the perception of India has changed after the law was passed.

Referring to Bangladesh home minister Asaduzzaman Khan's remarks where he said "let them fight among themselves" when asked about CAA and NRC, Menon said: "If this is how our friends feel, think of how happy this will make our adversary. "What we have achieved in the recent past is to hyphenate our image with Pakistan in a fundamental way, which is intolerant state."

He said: "What the world thinks matters more to us now than ever before. But we seem determined with actions like these (CAA) to cut off and isolate ourselves. That is no good to anybody," he said.