US President Donald Trump avoids CAA, but discusses 'religious freedom, with PM Modi

India's Citizenship (Amendment) Act did not come up for discussion, when Prime Minister Narendra Modi and United States President Donald Trump met at Hyderabad House in New Delhi, although violent clashes over the controversial law just about 15 kilometres away claimed several lives and injured many.

Trump said that he had heard about the incidents (of clashes in North East Delhi) of “attacks”, but did not discuss it with Modi. “That's up to India,” he told journalists later, adding: “Hopefully, they are going to make the right decision for their people. That's really up to India”.

He, however, raised the issue of religious freedom with Prime Minister, who gave him “a very powerful answer”.

“We did discuss that. We discussed that. And, specifically (about) Muslims, and we also discussed (about) Christians.” US President said, when a journalist asked him if he had discussed the issue of religious freedom with Prime Minister of India. “I had a very powerful answer from Prime Minister. We talked about religious liberty for long period of time, and in front of a lot of people. And, I had a very very powerful answer (from Prime Minister).”

Speaking to journalists at his hotel just hours before wrapping up his two-day-long visit to Ahmedabad, Agra and New Delhi, Trump once even reiterated his offer to “mediate” between India and Pakistan to help resolve the issue of Kashmir.

“We talked a lot about it (dispute between India and Kashmir) today. I said I will do whatever I can do to help as my relationship with both gentlemen (Modi and Pakistan Prime Minister Imran Khan) is so good...Anything I can do to mediate, help, I would do. They (Pakistan) are working on Kashmir,” said the US President.

He, however, retracted it when another journalist asked him specifically on his offer to mediate between the two South Asian neighbours. “I did not say anything about that”.

The US President has been repeatedly indicating over the past few months his willingness to help India and Pakistan settle disputes, including the one over Kashmir. New Delhi strongly rejected his offers in the past – underlining that the 1972 Simla Agreement between India and Pakistan and the 1999 Lahore Declaration by the leaders of the two nations had left no scope for any third party to play any role in settling outstanding disputes between the two nations.

“Kashmir obviously is a big problem between India and Pakistan. They are going to work out their problem. They have been doing it for a long time,” US President said on the final day of his maiden state visit to India.

Trump had lauded religious diversity of India, when he and Modi had addressed a huge crowd at a newly-built stadium in Ahmedabad on Monday.

With at least 13 people being killed and many others injured in the violent clashes in North East Delhi between groups of people supporting and protesting the Citizenship (Amendment) Act on Monday and Tuesday, several journalists asked Trump if he had talked about the law during his interactions with Modi over the past two days.

He, however, repeatedly said that the issue had not come up for discussion between him and his host.

“We did talk about religious freedom. I will say that the Prime Minister was incredible and he told me that he wants people to have religious freedom. He told me that in India they have worked very hard to have great and open religious freedom, said the US President, adding: “If we look back and look at what's going relative to other places...they have really worked hard on religious freedom.”