MEA rebukes OIC statement as "motivated and misleading"

The Ministry of External Affairs slammed the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) as being communal while responding to the OIC's recent remarks terming the Hijab row as a growing trend of Islamophobia besides seeking UN intervention into the issue.

New Delhi: The Ministry of External Affairs on Tuesday called the statement of the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) on the hijab row "motivated and misleading." The ministry in its official statement also accused the OIC Secretariat of having a communal mindset. We have noted yet another motivated and misleading statement from the General Secretariat of the OIC on matters pertaining to India," MEA's official spokesperson Arindam Bagchi said in the statement.

Bagchi said that India deals with issues "in accordance with our constitutional framework and mechanisms, as well as democratic ethos and polity." "... the OIC Secretariat does not allow for a proper appreciation of these realities," the statement added. Bagchi, once again, warned the Jeddah-based organisation against letting its platform be used by vested interests for anti-India propaganda.

"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,” the MEA statement said. The OIC on Tuesday had expressed deep concern over recent public calls for genocide of Indian Muslims by Hindutva proponents in Haridwar, incidents of harassment of Muslim women on social media sites as well as the recent hijab row in Karnataka wherein Muslim girl students were banned from wearing Hijab to schools.

"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," OIC had said in its statement.The OIC called upon the international community to take action and also 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."

Speaking to ETV Bharat, India’s ex-ambassador J.K Tripathi said, “OIC has no right as an organization to comment on the internal matters of any country. Secondly, even if OIC is commenting, it should be objective and should not be ‘selective’. OIC is saying nothing about the treatment of Uyghurs Muslims in China but it is condemning India without knowing the facts”.

Tripathi further said, "In Pakistan, it (hijab row) is being condemned as an attempt by Muslim fanatics to widen the rift between the two communities, while OIC is trying to pass judgment over the treatment of Muslims in India. Therefore, it is highly objectionable and should be refuted and rejected."

In a series of tweets, the OIC General Secretariat called upon the international community, especially the UN mechanisms and Special procedures of the human rights council, to take necessary measures in this regard. However, India is yet to react to the statement issued by OIC.

This is not the first time that the Muslim body has tried to interfere in India’s internal affairs. Earlier, India slammed the OIC for digging into the issues concerning the situation of Muslims in India, along with the Jammu and Kashmir dispute. New Delhi has warned the organisation several times to not allow its platform to be subverted by vested interests such as Pakistan to interfere in India’s internal affairs or to carry out propaganda against the country.