MEA terms OIC statement on Hijab row 'motivated, misleading’

HT NEWS NETWORK

New Delhi, Feb 15: The Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) Tuesday said the statement of the General Secretariat of the Jeddah-based Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) pertaining to "continued attacks on Muslims in India" amid the Karnataka hijab row is "yet another motivated and misleading statement" coming from the OIC General Secretariat.

"We have noted yet another motivated and misleading statement from the General Secretariat of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) on matters pertaining to India," said MEA spokesperson Arindam Bagchi.

Bagchi added that the issues in India are considered and resolved in accordance with our constitutional framework and mechanisms, as well as democratic ethos and polity.

Further slamming the OIC General Secretariat, the MEA spokesperson said his "communal mindset 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, it has only harmed its own reputation.”

Earlier on Monday, the OIC expressed deep concerns over what it called "continued attacks on Muslims in India" and called upon the international community to take necessary measures.

In a statement, the OIC said: "The General Secretariat of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation expresses deep concern over recent public calls for genocide of Muslims by the 'Hindutva' proponents in Haridwar in the state of Uttarakhand and reported incidents of harassment of Muslim women on social media sites as well as banning of Muslim girl students from wearing hijab in the state of Karnataka.

"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 by 'Hindutva' groups with impunity, are indicative of the growing trend of Islamophobia."

Besides calling upon the international community to take action, the OIC further urged "India to ensure the safety, security and well-being of the Muslim community... and to bring the instigators and perpetrators of acts of violence and hate crimes against them to justice".

This is not the first time that the OIC has commented on India's internal matters.

The OIC had asked India to reverse its decision of scrapping Article 370, which gave special status to the erstwhile state of Jammu and Kashmir, during the sidelines of 76th UN General Assembly.

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