Former U.S. President Barack Obama has come under heavy criticism over his remarks on Muslims in India.

Mr Obama had said in an interview that the country may “start pulling apart” if the rights of minorities were not protected.

The U.S. ex-president was responding to a question on how current president Joe Biden should engage with “illiberal democrats.”

Narendra Modi, Indian Prime Minister, was, however, in the U.S. on a state visit at the time of Mr Obama’s remark.

Mr Modi’s three-day visit was marked by a ceremonial welcome to the White House, a lavish state dinner and the signing of several crucial deals.

The prime minister also addressed a joint session of the U.S. Congress.

However, Mr Obama’s remarks, made in an interview with CNN’s Christiane Amanpour, aired before the Congress address, were widely reported in India.

Ms Amanpour referred to the “threat to democracy” from so-called “illiberal democrats” before referring to Mr Modi as one.

“How should a President engage with those kinds of leaders, either in the naming of them or in the dealing with them?” She asked.

Mr Obama said it was “complicated”, before referring to his own experience dealing with allies who may not have run “ideally democratic governments” but with whom relations had to be maintained for a number of reasons.

He added that it was “appropriate” for the U.S. president, when possible, to challenge “trends that are troubling” either in public or private.

“If the president meets with Prime Minister Modi, then the protection of the Muslim minority in a majority Hindu India – that’s something worth mentioning.

“If I had a conversation with Prime Minister Modi, who I know well, part of my argument would be that if you do not protect the rights of ethnic minorities in India, then there is a strong possibility that India at some point starts pulling apart”, the former U.S. president.

But leaders of India’s governing party have lambasted Mr Obama for these comments.

Nirmala Sitharaman, the Indian finance minister, who also is from the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), said she was “shocked” by Mr Obama’s comments.

“When Mr Modi was campaigning in the US – and by campaigning I mean speaking about India – a former US president was speaking about Indian Muslims,” Ms Sitharaman said.

She added that the U.S. had bombed Muslim-majority countries including Syria and Yemen while Mr Obama was in power.

Also, Defence Minister Rajnath Singh, on Monday, reacted, saying that India has never discriminated against people on the basis of their religion.

“People should try to understand India’s secular character,” Mr Rajnath said.

He explained that people commenting on India’s minority rights should “also think about how many Muslim countries they have attacked.”

Mr Obama and the U.S. government have not publicly commented on the remarks.

During a joint conference attended by Mr Biden, Mr Modi also said that there was “no space for any discrimination” under his government, in response to a question on the rights of Muslims and other minorities in India.