Washington: Amid sharp reactions from several Muslim countries over BJP leaders’ controversial remarks against Prophet Mohammed, UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres’ spokesman Stephane Dujarric said that “they firmly promote respect and tolerance for all religions”.
The spokesman made the above remark in response to a question posed by a Pakistani journalist.
The journalist had asked about the UN Secretary General’s reaction to the controversial remarks made against Prophet Mohammed by former BJP national spokesperson Nupur Sharma and the party’s Delhi unit’s media in-charge Naveen Kumar Jindal being condemned by several Muslim countries. ”I’ve seen news related to this, but I haven’t seen these comments either,” Dujarric said at a regular press meet on Monday. But in spite of this, I can tell you that we strongly promote a sense of respect and tolerance towards all religions, he added.
The controversial remarks against Prophet Mohammad were opposed by several Muslim countries, following which the BJP suspended Nupur Sharma and expelled Jindal from the party. After Qatar, Iran and Kuwait, Indonesia, Saudi Arabia, Bahrain and Afghanistan on Monday joined the ranks of countries that condemned the controversial remarks against prophet Mohammed and the importance of respect for all religious beliefs.