By The South Asia Times report

JEDDAH, Saudi Arabia:  The Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) on Monday strongly condemned India and its ruling party leaders who insulted to Holy Prophet Muhammad (PBUH).

“The General Secretariat of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation strongly condemned & denounced the recent denigration of Prophet Muhammad by an official of #India's ruling party. These cases of defamation are part of a growing spate of hatred & defamation of Islam in India.” Said the Muslim bloc in a statement.

OIC is the second largest inter-governmental organization after the UN with 57 Muslim states. 

The Muslim bloc slammed India and its systematic practices against Muslims in the Hindu majority South Asian country, particularly in light of a set of decisions to prohibit the use of hijab in educational institutions in some Indian states, including demolition of Muslims' properties and growing violence against them.

“The General Secretariat calls on the international community, in particular, the United Nations mechanisms and the Human Rights Council's special measures, to take necessary measures to challenge practices targeting Muslims in #India," said the OIC. 

OIC also called on New Delhi to take decisive actions against those who insulted to Holy Prophet and address these incidents of defamation and all forms of insult to the noble Prophet and Islam and to bring those who incite and perpetrate violence against Muslims to justice and hold those behind them accountable.

“It also calls on the Indian authorities to ensure the safety, security and well-being Muslims in #India and protect their rights as well as religious and cultural identity, dignity and places of worship,” said OIC. 

Meanwhile, the Independent Permanent Human Rights Commission (IPHRC) also endorsed the condemnation, outrage expressed by the OIC & Intl’ HR community over defamatory remarks made by leadership of India’s ruling BJP against the Prophet Muhammad(PBUH).

“Such sacrilegious acts of hate speech, reflective of India’s toxic Islamophobic Hindutva ideology, amounts to advocacy of religious hatred that incites hostility as well as wilful insult to religious sensitivities of billions of peace loving Muslims around the world,” said the human rights body of OIC in a statement. 

“OIC-IPHRC considers that these manifest acts of prejudice with impunity have only led to a vicious cycle of discrimination, marginalisation and increased violence against religious minorities in India.

“OIC-IPHRC urges the UN & intl’ HR community to pressurise India to squarely counter Islamophobia and blasphemous speech, prosecute those involved without impunity and deal with its systematic and systemic persecution of Muslim minority,” it’s added.

The President of the Two Holy Mosques Sheikh Abdur Rahman As Sudais and Council of Senior Scholars of Saudi Arabia also strongly condemned the statements made by the spokeswoman of the Indian Bharatiya Janat Party against Allah’s Messenger Prophet Muhammad, peace and blessings be upon him.

"The statement stressed that such a heinous act does not represent respect for religions, and that those who did such an act did not read in the biography of the Prophet, may Allah prayers and peace be upon him.

The Saudi government also condemned India and the ruling party leaders for their derogatory remarks against the Holy Prophet.

“The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia expresses its condemnation and denunciation of the statements made by the spokeswoman of the Indian Bharatiya Janata Party, which insult the Prophet Muhammad, peace and blessings be upon him,” said in a statement, issued by the Foreign Ministry. 

Its added that Saudi Arabia affirms its permanent rejection of any prejudice to all religious figures and symbols and reaffirms its position calling for respect for beliefs and religions.