Remarks on prophet didn’t crop up in bilateral talks between Jaishankar and Iranian counterpart: MEA
A day after Iran claimed National Security Adviser (NSA) Ajit Doval assured its Foreign Minister of dealing firmly with offenders who made remarks against Prophet Mohammad, Iran pulled out the related “readout” while India said the issue didn’t crop up in talks between Minister of External Affairs S Jaishankar and his Iranian counterpart Hossein Amir-Abdollahian.
The “readout” issued late on Wednesday said the issue of remarks was raised during the meeting between Doval and the Iranian Foreign Minister.
The statement said the NSA reaffirmed the Indian Government’s respect for Prophet Mohammad, saying offenders will be “dealt with, at the Government and related levels, in such a way that others will learn a lesson”.
Responding to the queries about the NSA’s reported assurance, MEA Spokesperson Arindam Bagchi said he didn’t like to react to what transpired between two senior dignitaries. “My understanding is that what you are referring to in a readout has been pulled down (by Iran),” he said.
When asked if the issue of the controversy from the offensive comments against the Prophet came up during the meeting between Jaishankar and the Iranian Foreign Minister, Bagchi said, “My understanding is that this issue was not raised during that conversation.”
On Wednesday, Iran praised India for their respect for the Prophet and historical co-existence between various faiths. The Iranian Minister tweeted late on Wednesday, “Pleased to meet PM Modi, FM Jaishankar and other Indian officials to advance our bilateral strategic dialogue. Tehran and New Delhi agree on the need to respect divine religions and Islamic sanctities and to avoid divisive statements. Determined to bring relations to new heights.”
“Abdollahian hailed the Indian people and Government for their respect for the divine faiths, especially the Prophet Mohammad and also for the religious tolerance, historical coexistence, and friendship among followers of various religions in the country,” the Iranian statement said.
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Iran pulls out readout of Doval’s ‘assurance’
The Iranian Minister called for attention to the sensitivities of Muslims, adding “Muslims are satisfied with the stance of Indian officials in dealing with the culprits.”
It said Abdollahian raised the issue of the “negative atmosphere” triggered by “disrespectful” comments on the Prophet.
It is the first visit to India by a senior Minister of a member nation of the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) after the controversial remarks triggered anguish in the Arab World.
Also, Abdollahian’s visit came days after Iran joined Kuwait and Qatar in summoning the Indian ambassadors over the remarks against Prophet Mohammad.
Since then, several countries, including Saudi Arabia, United Arab Emirates (UAE), Indonesia, Pakistan, Afghanistan, Jordan, Bahrain, Maldives, Malaysia, Oman, Iraq and Libya, denounced the comments.
The visiting Foreign Minister also called on Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Wednesday. During talks with his counterpart S Jaishankar, the issue of Ukraine and the situation in Afghanistan came up.
Meanwhile, Bagchi reiterated New Delhi’s stand on the remarks and said they do not reflect the views of the Government. “We have made it pretty clear that tweets and comments do not reflect views of the government,” he said.
“This has been conveyed to our interlocutors as also the fact that action has been taken by the concerned quarters against those who made the comments and tweets. I do not have anything additional to say on this,” he said.