Deoband (UP): Reaching out to Muslims, Home Minister P Chidambaram on Tuesday said a nation can ignore its minorities only at its peril and pointed out that it was the duty of the majority community to protect them.
`A nation can ignore its minorities only at its peril...We must always remember that pluralism is our inheritance and strength. It was the duty of the majority to protect the minority. Due to the acts of a few, we have allowed diversity to become differences,` he said.
Speaking at the 30th general session of the Jamiat Ulama-i-Hind here, he said, `We cannot view Islam as an alien faith because this is the land of your forefathers, this is the land of your birth. It is a matter of our pride that Islam exists in India along with other major religions`.
