ISLAMABAD – Pakistan on Monday strongly condemned the campaign of violenceand targeted attacks against Muslims by fanatic Hindu mobs in variousIndian states.
The Foreign Office said the recent despicable attempt to hoist the saffronflag at Jahangirpuri’s Jamia Masjid in New Delhi where Muslims were waitingto break their fasts, revealed the gravity of the state-sanctioned hysteriaand hatred in India against Muslims.
The Hindu mobs indulged in derogatory sloganeering, playing of provocativemusic and the brandishing of weapons by the procession of Hanuman ShobhaYatra with impunity, it said.
“This incident has rekindled the horrific memories of Delhi pogrom ofFebruary 2020 which was aimed to discriminate, dispossess and dehumanizethe Muslim community,” the FO statement said.
The Foreign Office said the Ram Navami riots, which spread out across manyIndian states had shone a spotlight on the precipitous slide of India intoa ‘Hindu Rashtra’.
“Harrowing scenes of demolition of houses, businesses and shops belongingto Muslims and the vandalization of mosques by local authorities in MadhyaPradesh and Gujarat reveal the deep penetration of Hindutva ideology intothe fabric of Indian state and society,” it said.
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The FO said Pakistan noted with deep regret the rapidly increasing trend inIndia of using religious processions of the Hindu community to fan communalhatred and instigate anti-Muslim violence.
“Even more alarming is the fact that the local authorities that wereevidently complicit in the fear-mongering have launched a concertedcampaign against the Muslims on the pretext of crackdown against ‘allegedrioters’,” it said.
The FO said Pakistan called upon the government of India to transparentlyinvestigate the incidents of widespread violence and intimidation againstMuslims and their places of worship and make demonstrable efforts toprevent such incidents from recurring in future.
“We also call upon the international community, particularly the UnitedNations and relevant international human rights and humanitarianorganizations to hold India accountable for its gross and widespread humanrights violations against minorities, particularly Muslims,” the FO said.
