India on Monday hit out at the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) for its criticism of the country in the wake of the controversial remarks made against Prophet Mohammed by two BJP functionaries. External Affairs Ministry spokesperson Arindam Bagchi said India categorically rejects the OIC Secretariat's "unwarranted and narrow-minded comments" and asserted that New Delhi accords the highest respect to all religions.
The OIC has called on the international community, especially the United Nations and Human Rights Council, to take the necessary measures to address what it said were practices targeting Muslims in India. “It also calls on the Indian authorities to ensure the safety, security and well-being of the Muslim community in India and to protect its rights, religious and cultural identity, dignity and places of worship,” the OIC said.
"These abuses come in the context of the escalation of hatred and abuse of Islam in India and in the context of the systematic practices against Muslims and restrictions on them, especially in light of a series of decisions banning headscarves in educational institutions in a number of Indian states and demolitions of Muslim property, in addition to the increase in violence against them," the OIC stated.
The OIC, with a membership of 57 countries across four continents, is the second largest inter-governmental organisation in the world after the United Nations. The OIC describes itself as “the collective voice of the Muslim world”, and its objective is “to safeguard and protect the interests of the Muslim world in the spirit of promoting international peace and harmony among various people of the world”. The OIC has reserved its membership for Muslim-majority countries.
"The offensive tweets and comments denigrating a religious personality were made by certain individuals. They do not, in any manner, reflect the views of the Government of India," Bagchi said. He said strong action has already been taken against these individuals by relevant bodies.
The BJP has already suspended its national spokesperson Nupur Sharma while it expelled the party's Delhi unit media head Naveen Kumar Jindal for their controversial remarks following widespread anger in several Gulf countries over their comments.
Amid protests by Muslim groups over the remarks, the party had also issued a statement aimed at assuaging the concerns of minorities and distancing itself from these members, asserting that it respects all religions and strongly denounces the insult of any religious personality.
Bagchi said, "It is regrettable that OIC Secretariat has yet again chosen to make motivated, misleading and mischievous comments. This only exposes its divisive agenda being pursued at the behest of vested interests".
The MEA spokesperson was responding to media queries on the comments by the OIC.
"We would urge the OIC Secretariat to stop pursuing its communal approach and show due respect to all faiths and religions," he said.
Earlier, after Qatar condemned the BJP over the controversy surrounding two BJP spokespersons’ contentious remarks against Prophet Mohammed, three more Gulf countries — Iran, Saudi Arabia and Kuwait — followed suit. Slamming the remarks, the three countries issued summons to the Indian envoys on Sunday, June 5.
In order to defuse the diplomatic row, spokespersons of the Indian Embassy in Qatar and Kuwait said that the Ambassadors "conveyed that the tweets do not, in any manner, reflect the views of the Government of India. These are the views of fringe elements.”