China reacted to the controversial remarks by two now-suspended BJP functionaries against Prophet Muhammad, expressing the hope that the incident can be properly handled. Beijing, which itself faces serious allegations of a mass crackdown on Uygur Muslims in the volatile Xinjiang province, said, China always believes that different civilisations and religions should respect each other and live together as equal.

We have noted relevant reports and hope that the situation will be handled properly, Chinese Foreign Ministry spokesman Wang Wenbin told a media briefing responding to a question from the official Chinese media here on the protests triggered by the comments made by the BJP leaders.