Launching a scathing attack on the negative western “perceptions being built” about India, finance minister Nirmala Sithraman has said the Muslim population in India has been growing since Independence and the country has the second-largest Muslim population in the world while in Pakistan religious minorities have been decimated. “Those talking about perception should know that Muslim population in India has not dwindled between 2014 and 2023,” said the FM while taking part in a discussion.