Biden raised issues of ‘democratic governance’ during his meeting with Modi, White House official says – after Indian government demolishes slums to clean up New Delhi for G20 confab

President Joe Biden raised unspecified democracy issues as he sat down with Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, a White House official said — amid concerns about press freedom and democratic “backsliding.”

Chief Deputy National Security Adviser Jon Finer told reporters traveling with the president that Biden raised the highly charged topic during his first conversation with the Indian leader, who has been accused of rolling back democratic expression and guardrails even as he faces a built enormous popularity. .

The leaders of the major industrialized countries met in New Delhi on Saturday as nearly 130,000 police and paramilitaries stood guard in the city. Streets that are normally full of traffic are virtually empty and shops and restaurants are closed.

City authorities slums demolished located on public lands leading up to the event, as they try to pay off monkeys and stray dogs that line the streets.

Finer would not say whether Biden specifically brought up slum clearance when asked about it — after the White House released a detailed policy brief on the issues the two men discussed.

“What I am saying is that the kind of state of democratic governance, both in the world and in each of our countries, is a core facet of the US-India bilateral relationship, and both Prime Minister Modi and President Biden have said that, which this means that these issues are very high on the agenda in each of their conversations.

But he declined to say which areas they were actually delving into after issuing a 29-point joint statement.

Finer said he wasn’t going to say what was going on ‘topic to topic.’

Paragraph two of the statement said the leaders “reemphasized that the shared values ​​of freedom, democracy, human rights, inclusion, pluralism and equal opportunity for all citizens are crucial to the success our countries enjoy and that these values ​​strengthen our relationship.” ‘

Ishant Kumar, 10, son of Dharmender Kumar, who works as a clerk at Pragati Maidan, where the main venue of the G20 summit is located, stands next to his bulldozed house during a demolition drive by authorities in a slum near the upcoming summit venue in New Delhi, India, June 1, 2023

The White House was asked whether Biden raised the issue of slum clearance during his meeting with Modi

The slum clearance is part of a broader attempt by India to blindside world leaders. Stray dogs have also been removed from the busy streets of New Delhi. Authorities in the Indian capital went on a clean-up campaign as part of a beautification project

President Biden met with Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi at the start of his trip to India. The Indian government released a handout photo after the American press. The White House said India was disappointed that the Russian and Chinese leaders did not attend and pleased that Biden did

He said it would be “misleading” to specify what issues they might address.

“What I’m saying is the broad category of issues this falls under: Democratic governance in the United States and India was high on the agenda.”

That comment suggests that democracy issues within the US were on par with those in India. Modi has been accused of overseeing a “cult of personality” as he rolls back judicial independence and stokes religious divisions even as he maintains widespread popularity. Meanwhile, the US’s reputation for stability has been undermined by January 6 and political clashes as former President Trump faces multiple criminal trials.

In a briefing Thursday, NSC official Kurt Campbell warned against “lecturing” the rising power, asking for “a degree of humility given some of the challenges we’ve also faced in our own country.”