New Delhi: Major Muslim organisations, including All India Muslim Personal Law Board, Jamaat-e- Islami Hind and All India Milli Council, on September 8 protested against the Indian government's invitation to Israeli Prime Minister Ariel Sharon.

Accusing Sharon of being a "war criminal", the organisations in a statement alleged that the visit "provided symbolic support for violence and expansionism which Sharon personifies and for the Zionist objective to occupy the whole of Palestine and push out the Palestinians."

Terming the visit as an "official seal on the reversal of India's traditional support for the Palestinian people", they claimed there could be no meeting point between India- a secular democracy and Israel- "a racist theocracy".

"We protest Sharon's visit because it cannot be rationalised except in terms of the envisaged strategic alliance between the USA, India and Israel", the statement, also signed by the All India Muslim Majlis-e- Mushawarat, Jamaat Ulama-e-Hind and the Jamiat Ahl-e-Hadith, said.

PTI