நியூஸிலாந்து பிரதமர் இந்து மாநாட்டில் கலந்துகொண்டதற்கு முஸ்லீம்கள் கோபம்

நியூஸிலாந்தில் நடந்த இந்து மாநாட்டில் நியூஸிலாந்து பிரதமர் கலந்துகொண்டிருக்கிறார்.
இந்த இந்துமாநாட்டோடு விசுவ இந்து பரிஷதுக்கு தொடர்பு உண்டு என்று கூறி நியூஸிலாந்து முஸ்லீம்கள் கண்டனம் தெரிவித்துள்ளனர்.

Muslim anger over Prime Minister's Hindu meeting
Thursday, 24th May 2007. 3:55pm
By: Sam Forrest.
IT STARTED out as a gesture to the multi-faith character of New Zealand, but the Prime Minister’s visit to a Hindu meeting has sparked protests from Muslim groups.

Helen Clark attended the meeting in Auckland last week that was organised by the Hindu Council of New Zealand. However, the fact that it had links with the Vishwa Hindu Parishad, and that anti-Muslim views were expressed, has outraged the country’s Muslim population.

Now Muslim leaders are asking how the Prime Minister could have agreed to open the event, which had as its theme ‘the contribution of Hindus to the life of New Zealand.’

One of the complainants was Sapna Samant, a film maker, who said that while she had no problem with Hindus, the tone of the conference suggested that Indians who were not Hindus were not Indians at all.

Religious Intelligence reports that Hindus make up 79 per cent of the population of India, with Muslims coming next at 12.5 per cent. But in New Zealand it is claimed that Hindus make up the second largest religious group, and has grown by 65 per cent in the last five years.

A spokesman for the Prime Minister said: "She expresses no preference or endorsements of any faith, but always brings a message of the need for understanding, tolerance, and inclusion."

Adding that she attends religious events such as this frequently, it was pointed out that Ashraf Choudhary, a Muslim MP, was at the conference with the Prime Minister.

Meanwhile the Hindu Council of New Zealand defended the conference and denied that they were anti-Muslim. Their leader, Vinod Kumar said that while they were ‘morally’ linked to the VHP, there was no physical link.