The first Hindu congresswoman in the US, and Democratic Party presidential hopeful, Tulsi Gabbard’s praise for Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi have been a topic of debate in America.

Although Gabbard has maintained that her objective is to maintain strong bilateral ties between US and India, and that she is not a Hindu nationalist, she has not escaped criticism for supporting a government accused by many of facilitating persecution of religious minorities.

In an interview with The Intercept, Gabbard was asked if she disputed that minorities were being targeted or if she admired Modi in spite of this. The five-time Hawaiian congresswoman replied that she did not deny that groups like Muslims and Christians were being attacked and added that she “did not pretend to support or approve of or endorse all the practices of the ruling party in India.”

Watch the full interview below.