Karnataka hijab row: Outsiders have no right to comment on internal issues, says MEA

Amid the Karnataka hijab row, the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) on Thursday said outsiders have no right to comment on India's internal issues.

"This is not a matter for the Ministry of External Affairs. Being an internal matter of India, any comment on it by an outsider or another country is not welcome," NDTV quoted MEA spokesman Arindam Bagchi as saying.

He said India has a constitutional mechanism, judicial system and democratic ethos. "This gives us a framework to find solutions to such things. And this issue is sub-judice. Karnataka High Court is looking into it," he added.

"Outsiders have no right to comment on internal issues and matters relating to India's constitution and its people," Bagchi further said.

This comes after the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) in a statement had spoken about “continued attacks targeting Muslims and their places of worship, the recent trend of anti-Muslim legislations in different states and rising incidents of violence against Muslims on flimsy pretexts” in India.

Meanwhile, the MEA in a statement had slammed the OIC for its "motivated" comments against India.

"We have noted yet another motivated and misleading statement from the general secretariat of the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation on matters pertaining to India," Bagchi said.

"The communal mindset of the OIC secretariat does not allow for a proper appreciation of these realities. The OIC continues to be hijacked by vested interests to further their nefarious propaganda against India," Bagchi said.

"As a result, it has only harmed its own reputation," he said.

Earlier, Manchester United midfielder Paul Pogba and Nobel Peace Prize laureate Malala Yousufzai had also spoken about the hijab row.

Published on: Thursday, February 17, 2022, 06:35 PM IST