The BJP has suspended Nupur Sharma and Naveen Kumar Jindal for derogatory comments about the Prophet.
Washington:
The United States on Thursday condemned comments by officials of the Indian ruling party about the Prophet Mohammed that have sparked a stir in Muslim countries.
“We condemn the abusive comments made by two BJP officials and we were pleased to see the party publicly condemn these comments,” State Department spokesman Ned Price told reporters.
“We are in regular contact with the high-level Indian government on human rights issues, including freedom of religion or belief, and we encourage India to promote respect for human rights,” he said.
Nupur Sharma, a spokeswoman for Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s Bharatiya Janata Party, made televised remarks about the Prophet Muhammad on May 26 that have sparked demonstrations across the Islamic world.
The comments sparked diplomatic protests in wealthy Arab states that typically have close ties with India. In Bangladesh, protesters have demanded a formal conviction against Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, a close ally of India.
To limit the damage, the BJP suspended both Sharma and Naveen Kumar Jindal, another figure in the party accused of inflammatory tweets about the Prophet Muhammad.
The United States has sought to deepen ties with India since the late 1990s, believing that the world’s two largest democracies have common interests, especially in the face of an emerging China.
However, the United States has on several occasions carefully expressed its concerns about human rights in India, as Mr Modi is accused of pursuing policies targeting the Muslim minority.
