ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s Foreign Minister Bilawal Bhutto-Zardari on Sunday telephoned the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) secretary-general Hissein Brahim Taha and discussed with him the recent “Islamophobic actions” by the ruling dispensation in India, the Pakistani foreign office said.
The development came amid a crackdown by Indian authorities on Muslim demonstrators protesting insulting remarks against Prophet Muhammad (Peace Be Upon Him) by two officials of India’s ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP).
The BJP said it had suspended one official and expelled the other, but protests continued in the South Asian country where Muslims took to streets to raise their voice against the derogatory remarks. Clashes erupted after police shot dead two protesters in the eastern city of Ranchi after a demonstration that followed a Friday prayer congregation.
While the Pakistani foreign office described the footage of Indian forces opening fire on unarmed protesters as “horrific beyond belief,” Bhutto-Zardari told the OIC secretary-general the derogatory remarks by high-ranking BJP officials had deeply hurt the sentiments of Muslims around the globe.
“The conversation focused on the series of Islamophobic actions by the ruling dispensation in India, in particular the derogatory remarks against Prophet Muhammad (Peace be upon Him) made by two senior officials of the Bhartiya Janata Party (BJP),” the Pakistani foreign office said in a statement.
“He (Bhutto-Zardari) strongly condemned the high-handed treatment by the Indian authorities of the peaceful protests after Friday prayers over the derogatory remarks, which was the latest manifestation of the Indian government’s ongoing persecution of Muslims.”
The foreign minister urged the OIC and its member states to step up their efforts to protect the life, dignity, property, culture, heritage and religious freedoms of Indian Muslims.
“The OIC Secretary General expressed deep concern over the insulting remarks, as well as the unending plight of Indian Muslims,” the Pakistani foreign office said further. “OIC was sensitive to the growing trend of Islamophobia and the need to take collective action to combat it.”
Both sides decided to remain in contact to explore “avenues of combatting Islamophobia in India and mitigating the sufferings of Indian Muslims,” it added.
