US State Department Spokesperson Ned Price condemned statements by Indian ruling party officials insulting the Prophet Muhammad.
Responding to questions at his daily press conference, Price said, “We condemn the offensive comments made by two BJP officials and we are pleased to see the party publicly condemning these comments. We regularly engage with the Government of India at senior levels on human rights issues, including freedom of religion or belief, and we encourage India to demonstrate respect for human rights.”
Price said that when US Secretary of State Antony Blinken was in New Delhi last year, he made it clear that human dignity, respect for human beings, equal opportunity and freedom of religion or belief are fundamental principles and core values of democracy.
Nupur Sharma, spokesperson of the ruling BJP in India, Naveen Kumar Jindal, BJP New Delhi Media Head, and Harshit Srivastava, one of the party’s youth policy leaders, had used insulting statements against Islam and the Prophet Muhammad.
While the ruling party was the focus of criticism due to the tension in question, it was reported that Sharma was dismissed from his post and New Delhi Media Head Naveen Kumar Jindal was expelled from the party for using insulting statements against Islam and the Prophet Muhammad.
Srivastava, one of the BJP’s youth politicians, was also detained in Uttar Pradesh state for his Twitter post.
