Dubai, United Arab Emirates (CNN) – A spokeswoman for the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party in India, Nupur Sharma, justified her “offensive” statements to the Prophet Muhammad, and indicated that they came in response to insulting “God Shiva”, stressing that she was withdrawing statements unconditionally. Al-Azhar Al-Sharif issued a statement in which it considered insulting the Prophet and his wives “obscene and flagrant ignorance” and “terrorism.”
After her abuse of the Prophet Muhammad resulted in clashes in parts of India and the summoning of New Delhi’s ambassadors to Qatar and Kuwait, Sharma wrote on her official Twitter page: “I have participated in a number of debates on TV channels over the past few days that have witnessed abuse and disrespect for our God. Mahadev…”.
The spokeswoman for India’s ruling party added: “I could not tolerate the continuing abuse and disrespect for our God Mahadev and said some things in response. If my words offend or hurt the religious sentiments of anyone, here I am and unconditionally withdraw them, it was not my aim Hurt anyone’s religious feelings,” she said.
On the other hand, Al-Azhar issued a statement saying that it rejects the statements of the Indian official against the Prophet Muhammad and his wife Aisha, and said in his statement: “Insulting the Messenger of Islam and his wives is obscenity and flagrant ignorance of the comparative science of religions and the history of the prophets and messengers,” as he put it.
And the largest Islamic religious authority in Egypt added in its statement by saying: “Al-Azhar Al-Sharif expresses its strong condemnation and denunciation of what the official spokesperson for the Bharatiya Janata Party in India published on its Twitter page of insulting and immoral speech about the Messenger of God Muhammad ﷺ and his wife, the Mother of the Faithful, the pure and purified Lady Aisha, and what his words revealed of the flagrant ignorance of the history and biography of the prophets and messengers, and how they represented the highest peaks of morals, virtues and morals, and that God protected them from falling into vices and what pure and upright souls hate.
Al-Azhar continued by saying: “Al-Azhar, while considering what this ignorant, reckless person to the greats of humanity said as absurdity of the saying that is repeated from time to time by every hater of Islam and Muslims, it affirms at the same time that such behavior is the real “terrorism” itself, which can enter the world. As a whole, it is in deadly crises and wars, and hence the international community must confront firmly, valiantly and forcefully to stop the dangers of these abusers,” he said.
Al-Azhar added in its statement: “What some political officials resort to recently about insulting Islam and its noble Prophet, the prophet of chastity, literature and purity, to win the support of votes in party elections, and inflame the feelings of their followers against Muslims – is an explicit call to extremism and spreading hatred and sedition among followers of different religions and beliefs. This is something that can only be issued by advocates of extremism and supporters of hatred and sedition, and the enemies of the policy of dialogue between followers of different faiths, civilizations and cultures,” as he put it.
Al-Azhar concluded its statement by saying: “Once again, the civilized world today has to stand by the likes of these traffickers in religions and gamblers with the highest human values in the stock market of elections and politics,” he said.
It is noteworthy that the ruling party in India had suspended Sharma from work as a result of his statements and stressed that her position does not reflect the party’s position in general on religions.