Indian minister scoffs at Obama comment on protecting Muslims

FILE PHOTO: Indian Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman speaks during a side event on the G20 Finance Ministers and Central Bank Governors Meeting in Nusa Dua, Bali, Indonesia, 14 July 2022. Made Nagi/Pool via REUTERS/File Photo

NEW DELHI (Reuters) - India's finance minister has derided comments by former U.S. President Barack Obama that Prime Minister Narendra Modi's government should protect the rights of minority Muslims, accusing Obama of being hypocritical.

During Modi's state visit to the United States last week, Obama told CNN that the issue of the "protection of the Muslim minority in a majority-Hindu India" would be worth raising in Modi's meeting with U.S. President Joe Biden.