Kuwait:  Al-Ardiya Co-Operative Society store workers piled Indian tea and other products into trolleys in a protest against comments denounced as Islamophobic. A Kuwaiti supermarket pulled Indian products from its shelves even as Iran became the latest Middle Eastern country to summon the Indian ambassador as a row grew on Monday over a BJP official remarks about the Prophet Mohammed.

At the supermarket just outside Kuwait City, sacks of rice and shelves of spices and chilies were covered with plastic sheets. Printed signs in Arabic read: We have removed Indian products.

Saudi Arabia, Qatar and other countries in the region, as well as the influential Al-Azhar University in Cairo, have condemned the remarks by a spokeswoman for the BJP, who has since been suspended. Nasser Al-Mutairi, CEO of the store said to the media that we, as a Kuwaiti Muslim people, do not accept insulting the Prophet. An official at the chain said a company-wide boycott was being considered.

BJP spokeswoman Nupur Sharma’s comments have sparked furore among Muslims. Ms Sharma’s remarks during a televised debate last week were blamed for clashes in Uttar Pradesh and prompted demands for her arrest. Anger spread overseas to Muslim countries about the remarks.