India on Tuesday rejected the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation’s (OIC) criticism of alleged harassment of Muslims in the country and accused the grouping of having a “communal mindset” and spreading “nefarious propaganda”.
External affairs ministry spokesperson Arindam Bagchi responded to OIC’s criticism a day after the group of 57 countries expressed deep concern over what it said were “public calls for genocide of Muslims” at the Dharam Sansad in Haridwar last December, harassment of Muslim women on social media and a ban on headscarves for Muslim students in Karnataka.
Bagchi accused the OIC general secretariat of issuing “yet another motivated and misleading statement” on matters pertaining to India and said: “Issues in India are considered and resolved in accordance with our constitutional framework and mechanisms, as well as democratic ethos and polity.”
He added, “The communal mindset of the OIC Secretariat does not allow for a proper appreciation of these realities. OIC continues to be hijacked by vested interests to further their nefarious propaganda against India.”
As a result, Bagchi said, OIC has “only harmed its own reputation”.
{{/usCountry}}As a result, Bagchi said, OIC has “only harmed its own reputation”.
{{/usCountry}}Though the Indian side didn’t name any specific OIC member, the reference to “vested interests” in such statements is usually seen as a reference to Pakistan.
OIC’s general secretariat had said in its statement that the “continued attacks targeting Muslims and their places of worship, the recent trend of anti-Muslim legislations in different states and rising incidents of violence against Muslims on flimsy pretexts...are indicative of the growing trend of Islamophobia”.
It had called on the world community, especially UN mechanisms and Special Procedures of the Human Rights Council, to take necessary measures, and called on India to ensure the safety and security of Muslims and to bring the “instigators and perpetrators of acts of violence and hate crimes against them to justice”.
Police at Haridwar in Uttarakhand registered a case after videos of the three-day Dharma Sansad, held during December 17-19, caused a furore since several seers participating in the event had called for violence against minorities. Five former chiefs of staff of the armed forces and more than 100 prominent citizens also condemned speeches made at the meeting in Haridwar.
On Saturday, India had rejected criticism by foreign countries of the Karnataka government’s ban on Muslim girls attending schools wearing headscarves as “motivated comments” on the country’s internal matters, and said the matter is being examined by the state high court.
The Bharatiya Janata Party-led government in Karnataka recently banned Muslim girls from attending classes in headscarves, sparking protests in parts of the state that led to the closure of schools.
India currently has close ties with several leading members of OIC, including Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates, but has traditionally bristled at any criticism of the country’s affairs by the grouping.