February 21, 2022

OIC and India.

~Preet.

In the wake of the Karnataka hijab debate, India has slammed the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) for being "communal minded."

The OIC has asked the UN Human Rights Council to take "appropriate measures" to address the problem of Muslim girls in Karnataka schools being told they cannot wear the headscarf. The Organization of Islamic Cooperation also asked India to "guarantee the safety, security, and well-being of the Muslim community while safeguarding their way of life."

India maintains that it is a democracy, and that domestic matters are addressed in accordance with the country's constitutional structure and mechanisms, as well as its democratic spirit and politics.
India also chastised the OIC for being "communal oriented" and "hijacked by entrenched interests," a poorly veiled jab at Pakistan.

With 57 member nations, the OIC is the second biggest international organisation after the United Nations.
It is the Muslim world's unified voice. In the spirit of fostering worldwide peace and harmony among all peoples, it strives to promote and protect the interests of the Muslim world.

Following an incident of arson at the Al-Aqsa Mosque in Jerusalem by a 28-year-old Australian in 1969, the Organisation of the Islamic Conference was created by the First Islamic Summit Conference in Morocco in September 1969 to marshal the Islamic world.

India had been invited to the founding meeting in Rabat in 1969 as the country with the world's second biggest Muslim population, but was humiliatingly removed at Pakistan's request. India stayed out for a variety of reasons, including the fact that it did not want to join an organisation based on religion. There was a concern that under a grouping, developing bilateral ties with individual member nations would be put under strain, particularly on matters like Kashmir.

Bangladesh, which hosted the 45th session of the Foreign Ministers' Summit in 2018, proposed that India, which is home to more than 10% of the world's Muslims, be granted Observer status, but Pakistan objected. India has been confident in riding over any declaration by the grouping after forming tight connections with heavyweight members such as the United Arab Emirates and Saudi Arabia. India has repeatedly said that J&K is an "integral part of India" and that the problem is "strictly domestic to India," and that the OIC has no jurisdiction over the region.

India made its first visit as a "guest of honour" at the OIC Foreign Ministers' Meeting in 2019.
This first-time invitation was considered as a diplomatic coup for India, especially in the wake of the Pulwama assault, when tensions with Pakistan were at an all-time high.

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