Time to acknowledge religiophobia against all the religions, rather than single out just one – Ruchira Kamboj
India’s Permanent Representative to the UN slams Pakistan’s resolution regarding ‘Islamophobia’ (hatred of Islam) in the UN
New York (USA) – “While the issue of Islamophobia is undoubtedly significant, we must acknowledge that other religions are also facing discrimination and violence. Allocating resources solely to combat Islamophobia, while neglecting similar challenges faced by other faiths, might inadvertently perpetuate a sense of exclusion and inequality”, slammed India while speaking on the UN resolution on ‘Measures to Combat Islamophobia’ tabled by Pakistan. The resolution was passed with 115 countries voting in favour. No country opposed it; but 44 countries including India, Brazil, France, Germany, Italy, Ukraine, and Britain abstained from the voting.
Increasing attacks on religious places like gurdwaras, monasteries (muths) and temples
Ruchira Kamboj said, “It is crucial to recognise that Hinduism, with over 1.2 billion followers, Buddhism with more than 535 million and Sikhism with over 30 million followers worldwide, are all subject to religiophobia. It is time that we acknowledge the prevalence of religiophobia, rather than single out just one. Clear evidence shows that over decades, followers of non-Abrahamic religions have also been affected by religiophobia. This has led to the emergence of contemporary forms of religiophobia, particularly anti-Hindu, anti-Buddhist and anti-Sikh sentiments. The contemporary forms of religiophobia are evident in the increasing attacks on religious places of worship such as gurudwaras, monasteries (muths) and temples.”
India also slams Pakistan for mentioning Shriram Mandir and CAA
Pakistan’s Ambassador to the United Nations, Munir Akram, also mentioned the pranapratishtha ceremony of Shriram Mandir in Ayodhya and the implementation of the Citizenship Amendment Act (CAA). Objecting to this, Kamboj said, “It is unfortunate indeed to witness this delegation’s limited and misguided perspective on matters relating to my country. One final point concerns a delegation (and its remarks) that, much like a broken record, remains sadly stagnant while the world progresses.”
| Editorial Perspective
It is a fact that ‘Jihadi terrorism’ is perpetrated worldwide by the followers of Islam. Therefore, the anger against Islam and Muslims is increasing all over the world. In this situation, why don’t Islamic countries, their organisations or Muslims come forward and oppose Jihadi terrorism ? |