India’s ruling Bharatiya Janta Party (BJP) continued to receive flak over the weekend over its national spokesperson’s blasphemous remarks against Prophet Mohammad (PBUH), on Monday.
BJP’s national spokeswoman Nupur Sharma and Delhi media operation head Naveen Jindal were reported by the media to also have been expelled from the party.
Sharma’s remarks had come during a televised debate, whereas Jindal had tweeted them out, in a Twitter post has now been deleted.
Following the backlash, Sharma posted on Twitter that she had said “some things in response to comments made about a Hindu god but it was never an intention to hurt anyone’s religious feelings”.
“If my words have caused discomfort or hurt religious feelings of anyone whatsoever, I hereby unconditionally withdraw my statement,” she added.
Saudi Arabia’s condemnation
Saudi Arabia’s government responded harshly to the comments made by the official of the Modi-led government, calling for the suspension of the spokesperson.
The Ministry of Foreign Affairs for Saudi Arabia expressed “condemnation and denunciation of the statements made by the spokeswoman of the Indian Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), insulting the Prophet Muhammad peace be upon him.”
The office called for “respect for beliefs and religions” and reaffirmed “its permanent rejection of prejudice against the symbols of the Islamic religion and refuses to prejudice all religious figures and symbols.”
Qatar demands apology
India’s ambassador in Doha, Deepak Mittal, was ordered to Qatar’s foreign ministry as an apology was demanded.
In an effort to boost trade ties, India’s Vice President Venkaiah Naidu was on a visit to the Gulf nation while the country demanded India apologise for Islamophobic remarks.
Mittal received and official protest letter from the ministry which stated, “Qatar is expecting a public apology and immediate condemnation of these remarks from the government of India.”
“Allowing such Islamophobic remarks to continue without punishment constitutes a grave danger to the protection of human rights,” and “will create a cycle of violence and hate,” the document read.
India’s ambassadors to Kuwait was also summoned on Sunday to receive an official protest letter over the derogatory comments.
OIC issues condemnation
The Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) also condemnaed the BJP official’s remarks.
In a statement released, the second-largest intergovernmental organisation in the world, after the United Nations, stated that, “The General Secretariat of the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation expresses its strong condemnation and denunciation of the recent insults issued by an official in the ruling party in India towards the Prophet Muhammad, Peace Be Upon Him.”
Cairo reacts
Al-Azhar Al-Sharif University in Cairo also criticised the BJP official’s behaviour calling it “a real terrorist action that helps to push the entire world to devastating crises and bloody wars.”
The varsity implored the international community to “to firmly ward off such threats.”
Al-Azhar established that the recent wave of political defamation of Islam was an outright call for extremism, hatred and conflict amongst religions.
Remarks ‘totally unacceptable’
Pakistan’s foreign ministry also issued a statement in response to the “highly derogatory remarks” made by the official.
The statement read, “These totally unacceptable remarks have not only deeply hurt the sentiments of the people of Pakistan but of billions of Muslims around the world.”
“BJP’s attempted clarification and belated and perfunctory disciplinary action against these individuals cannot assuage the pain and anguish they have caused to the Muslim world,” the ministry said.
Former prime minister Imran Khan also strongly condemned the remarks, accusing the Modi government of “deliberately following a policy of provocation and hatred towards Muslims in India including inciting vigilante violence against them.”
BJP’s response
The ruling Hindutva party on Sunday “strongly denounced” the “insult of any religious personalities of any religion.”
In a statement, the party maintained that, “The Bharatiya Janata Party is also strongly against any ideology which insults or demeans any sect or religion. The BJP does not promote such people or philosophy.”
Quoting the Indian Constitution, the statement upheld that every citizen has the right to pratice his/her religion, however, the statement did not directly reference the Islamophobic remarks or mention the sanctioning of the two party officials.