Nevada (US), May 12 : The Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) of India "has conveyed its deep concern to the Australian High Commission in New Delhi, asking that all concerned be apprised of the Indian religious sensitivities in the matter".

In a press release on its website dated May 11 in New Delhi, it further said: "The issue was similarly, taken up by our Consulate General in Sydney with the fashion designer."

Hindu statesman Rajan Zed, in a statement in Nevada (USA) on Thursday welcoming this action of India Government, said that inappropriate usage of Hindu deities and concepts for commercial or other agenda was not okay as it hurt the devotees. Symbols of any faith, larger or smaller, should not be mishandled.

Zed, who is President of Universal Society of Hinduism, pointed out that Australian Government, New South Wales Government, Hewlett-Packard, Intel, etc., who were said to be some of the partners this year of "Rosemount Australian Fashion Week" where a model with Goddess Lakshmi image on swimwear appeared, should reconsider the partnership in the future in view of its inability to halt the trivialization of highly revered Goddess Lakshmi.

MEA release added: In the recently concluded Rosemount Australian fashion week in Sydney, a designer Ms. Lisa Burke, had displayed certain swimwear costumes carrying Indian religious images inappropriately. The designer has promptly apologized `to the Hindu community' and assured that the range has been withdrawn and will never be available for sale in any stockists or retail outlet anywhere in the world and has stopped production of the swimwear in question.

The release calls it an "inadvertent misuse of Indian religious images". S. M. Krishna is India's External Affairs Minister; E. Ahamed and Preneet Kaur are Ministers of State; and Nirupama Rao is Foreign Secretary.
(ANI)