Hours after Amnesty International declared that it would halt operations in India and alleged a witch-hunt, the government said "human rights cannot be an excuse to defy the law of the land." "Amnesty is free to continue humanitarian work in India, as is being done by many other organisations. However, India, by settled law, does not allow interference in domestic political debates by entities funded by foreign donations. This law applies equally to all and it shall apply to Amnesty International as well," the government said in a statement on Tuesday.