India, Arun Jaitley said, is the "most liberal democracy in the world".
India's tolerance can be gauged by the fact that not only there is space for dissent but also fake dissent, Union finance minister Arun Jaitley told NDTV today.
The minister's remark came as the debate on intolerance started raging again following the comments of actor Aamir Khan. Mr Jaitley refused to speak on what he called "individual comments".
But he said, "India's liberal tradition is evidence to the fact that we not only have space for dissent but also great space for fake dissent... Are we in a position to take action against those who have voiced manufactured dissent?"
In a democracy there will be people who do not maintain the best standards of public discourse. They can be advised to desist, the minister said.
"If someone associated with my party does it -- at the level of PM and the party president and I have asked them to quieten down. Similarly, those who have a differing view should do the same," he added.
India, the minister said, is the "most liberal democracy in the world" - the exception being during the Emergency. Drawing a comparison between the verbal attacks made in France and Germany in the aftermath of the terror strikes in Paris, he said the situation here is much better.
The comments of Aamir Khan has caused a huge controversy, with a section of his fans and colleagues hitting out at the actor.
The government, too, had reacted sharply, with Union minister Venkaiah Naidu saying, "Some people are misleading and some people are misled. Who comes in which category, I do not want to say."
Incidents like attacks on rationalists, a mob killing over beef-eating rumours and controversial statements by central ministers have been held up by opposition parties and a section of civil society as examples of intolerance under the current regime.
In protest, a number of authors and artistes have returned their awards, which too, has been criticised.