Nupur Sharma's remarks on Prophet Mohammad: How Arab media reported the controversy

Nupur Sharma remarks on Prophet Mohammad: The Modi government is facing strong condemnation from the Arab world after objectionable remarks made by now suspended BJP spokespersons Nupur Sharma and Naveen Kumar Jindal over Prophet Mohammad. On Sunday, Qatar, Kuwait and Iran summoned respective Indian ambassadors over the matter, stressing the importance of respecting all religious beliefs. The Indian envoys conveyed to them that the tweets and remarks do not in any manner reflect the view of the Government of India and also informed them that stern action has already been taken against party leaders.

The BJP on Sunday suspended its national spokesperson Nupur Sharma and expelled its Delhi media head Naveen Kumar Jindal as the row over their alleged derogatory remarks against Prophet escalated with protests from some Muslim countries. However, action against the said leaders has not silenced voices from the Muslim-dominated countries and their respective media outlets too.

Newspapers in Saudi Arabia, Pakistan, Turkey, and other Muslim nations published strong reactions against Nupur Sharma's comments on Prophet Mohammad. 

In Pakistan, newspapers covered the matter extensively

Pakistan daily Dawn published a report on comments made by both Nupur Sharma and Naveen Kumar Jindal while also reporting condemnation from Pakistan's President and Prime Minister.

Referring to the President's statement, Dawn wrote, "President Alvi has said that such remarks indicate the growing trend of Islamophobia in India, which is home to millions of Muslims."

The newspaper quoted the President as saying that Modi's India is trampling on the religious freedom of all its minorities and oppressing them under radical Hindutva. Such Islamophobic remarks and subsequent non-punishment of such people is a serious threat to the protection of human rights.

The Pakistani newspaper, The Express Tribune has written in a report that India is being targeted by many countries for the remarks of the BJP spokesperson.

Many countries have summoned Indian ambassadors and expressed displeasure over the matter. The newspaper wrote, 'BJP on Sunday suspended its spokespersons Nupur Sharma and Naveen Jindal from the membership of the party following their Islamophobic remarks. However, Pakistan and other Islamic countries said that this is not enough.

UAE

The UAE newspaper Khaleej Times has published Nupur's suspension in a report. The newspaper wrote, "The Bharatiya Janata Party on Sunday suspended its national spokesperson Nupur Sharma from the party after making alleged remarks against minorities. There is strong opposition to the comment. The party has also expelled Naveen Kumar Jindal, head of the Delhi BJP media wing, for allegedly making offensive remarks."

Turkey

Turkey's state-run news agency TRT World has written in a report that since Modi came to power in 2014, fanatical Hindu mobs have beaten to death several Muslims and Dalits on suspicion of consuming beef or transporting them.

The TRT report further read, "Extreme right-wing groups have targeted Muslims over love jihad. This is a theory to target Muslims. They were accused of spreading Covid-19. Hindutva-mob... is targeting Muslims who offer Jummah prayers...."

Meanwhile, more countries have joined Arab states to condemn remarks about Prophet Mohammad amid widespread calls on social media for boycott of Indian products.

The report also mentioned the hijab controversy,  targeting Muslim fruit and vegetable sellers and mutton sellers.

The Turkish news agency further wrote, "During the Hindu festival in early April, pro-Hindu mobs pelted stones at mosques in many areas... the crowd played religious songs in loud voice outside the mosques. Hindu saints, known for their anti-Muslim rhetoric, call for caste cleansing of Indian Muslims."

Qatar's Al Jazeera on Nupur Sharma controversy

Al Jazeera has also published a detailed report regarding this entire controversy.

"This controversy has increased the anger of social media users in Arab countries. People are calling for the boycott of Indian products on social media. Users are condemning the growing hatred against Islam and Muslims and accusing India of following in the footsteps of France and China in promoting Islamophobia," Al Jazeera reported.

Al Jazeera also wrote that in April, the US Commission on International Religious Freedom (USCIRF) urged the US State Department to place India on the list of "countries of special concern" for religious freedom for the third year in a row.

Diplomatic storm struck against India's ruling BJP, reports Al Jazeera

Al Jazeera writes on the issue that a diplomatic storm has struck against the ruling party BJP.

Al Jazeera also reported that Prime Minister Narendra Modi's party has shown the two leaders way out of the party who made controversial remarks.

The report also talked about violence in Uttar Pradesh's Kanpur and arrest demands against Nupur Sharma.

India calls ruling party spokesperson 'fringe', Arab Times reports

The newspaper Arab Times, which comes out of Kuwait, has published this news prominently.

It wrote that the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Kuwait summoned the Indian Ambassador on Sunday and expressed deep objection to the controversial statements of BJP leaders in writing.

Kuwait has welcomed BJP's action against Nupur Sharma and Naveen Kumar but demanded a public apology on behalf of him, the newspaper mentioned.

The ministry said that such a statement clearly shows that these people are not aware of the peaceful nature of Islam and the role of Islam in building civilizations and nations, including India.

Bangladesh

Bangladeshi newspaper, The Daily Star has reported that Qatar's Foreign Ministry summoned the Indian ambassador over the matter. The newspaper carried reports of how Arab world nations have reacted to the controversy.

Bangladeshi media also reported action taken by BJP against its leaders Nupur Sharma and Naveen Kumar Jindal.

Saudi Arabia

Saudi Arabia's newspaper Arab News has included sharp remarks from countries like Pakistan, Qatar, Kuwait, etc. in one of its reports.

Dubai

The Dubai-based newspaper Gulf News has written, "A few days after the controversial statement made by BJP leaders on Prophet Mohammad, the party on Sunday condemned the statement and suspended its spokesperson Nupur Sharma and expelled Delhi BJP leader Naveen Kumar Jindal from the party."

The newspaper writes that many FIRs have been registered in Mumbai regarding Nupur Sharma's statement. Violence broke out in Kanpur, Uttar Pradesh after Nupur Sharma's statement on June 3, in which 29 people have been arrested.

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