Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Tuesday brushed aside an outcry from human rights activists to receive an award from the Gates Foundation in New York for his efforts to end open defecation. The decision to honor the Indian leader provoked several withering op-eds and the ire of three Nobel prize winners, citing rising attacks against minorities under Modi’s tenure, while British-Asian actors Jameela Jamil and Riz Ahmed who had been due to attend dropped out. The Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation said it respected the critics’ views but defended its decision, saying sanitation is a neglected issue and India’s program can serve as a model for other countries.
