Friday saw the biggest South Asian street rallies yet in response to the remarks
\nPATNA
\nIndian police shot dead two Muslim protesters and arrested more than 130 others during street rallies sparked by the ruling party official\u2019s remarks about Prophet Mohammed (PBUH), authorities told AFP Saturday.
\nThere have been widespread protests in the Muslim world since last week, when a spokeswoman for Prime Minister Narendra Modi\u2019s Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) passed blasphemous remarks against the Holy Prophet (PBUH). In India and neighbouring countries, Muslims took to the streets in huge numbers after Friday prayers to condemn the remarks, with police firing on a crowd in the eastern Indian city of Ranchi.
\n\u201cPolice were forced to open fire to disperse protesters… resulting in the death of two,\u201d a police officer in Ranchi claimed when talking to AFP.
\nOfficers claimed that the crowd had defied their orders not to march from a mosque to a market and had thrown broken bottles and stones when police attempted to disperse the rally with a baton charge.
\nAuthorities cut internet connections in the city and imposed a curfew, with local resident Shabnam Ara telling AFP the atmosphere remained tense on Saturday.
\n\u201cWe are praying for peace and harmony,\u201d she said.
\nPolice in Uttar Pradesh fired tear gas to disperse at least one rally after several demonstrations were staged across the northern Indian state.
\nMost protests ended peacefully but \u201cdemonstrators in some cities threw stones at police and injured at least one officer\u201d, claimed Avanish Awasthi, a senior government secretary in the state.
\n\u201cWe will take strict action against those indulging in stone pelting and violence,\u201d Awasthi told reporters.
\nPrashant Kumar, a senior police officer in the state, told AFP that up to \u201c136 protesting miscreants\u201d had been arrested from six districts around Uttar Pradesh. Cities around India saw sizable demonstrations on Friday, with some crowds burning effigies of Nupur Sharma \u2014 the BJP spokeswoman whose comments set off the furore.
\nAuthorities also cut internet services for the weekend in several districts near the eastern megacity of Kolkata, after protesters blocked a railway line and mobbed a police station.
\nDiplomatic storm
\nSharma\u2019s remarks have embroiled India in a diplomatic storm, with the governments of nearly 20 countries calling in Indian envoys for an explanation.
\nSince coming to power nationally in 2014, Modi\u2019s government and the BJP have been accused of championing discriminatory policies toward Muslims.
\nHis government proposed a controversial law that granted citizenship to refugees in India, but not if they are Muslim, while state BJP governments have passed laws making it harder for Muslims to marry outside their religion.
\nThe foreign ministry last week rebuked US officials for what India termed \u201cill-informed\u201d and \u201cbiased\u201d comments made during the release of a religious freedom report that accused Indian officials of supporting attacks on minority worshippers.
\nSharma\u2019s comments sent the BJP into damage control, with the party suspending her from its ranks and issuing a statement saying it respected all religions.
\nFriday saw the biggest South Asian street rallies yet in response to the remarks, with police estimating more than 100,000 people mobilised across Bangladesh after midday prayers.
\nAnother 5,000 people took to the streets in Lahore, demanding that their government take stronger action against India over the comments.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Friday saw the biggest South Asian street rallies yet in response to the remarks PATNA Indian police shot dead two Muslim protesters and arrested more than 130 others during street rallies sparked by the ruling party official\u2019s remarks about Prophet Mohammed (PBUH), authorities told AFP Saturday. There have been widespread protests in the Muslim world […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":265816,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[6],"tags":[8453,5793,2636],"class_list":{"0":"post-265806","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-world","8":"tag-blasphemous","9":"tag-indian-police","10":"tag-protests"},"yoast_head":"\n