Hyderabad: A protest against the “fascist hooliganism and denial of rights of Muslim girls in Karnataka” will be held at the Ambedkar Statue, lower Tank Bund, on Tuesday, February 15, 4 pm onwards.
The protest has been organised by Secular Intervention, a city-based forum aimed at building a mass movement for the propogation of a secular worldview.
The protest that was scheduled to take place at Dharna Chowk, Indira Park has been moved to the Ambedkar statue, after approval from police officials.
The Hijab Row
The hijab controversy erupted and has been raging since January, after students of a pre-university college in Karnataka’s Udupi were prohibited from wearing headscarves (hijab), as part of their religious obligation, in the college premises. The issue blew up after Hindu students turned up to their colleges wearing saffron scarves in a protest against hijabi Muslims being allowed to wear headscarves.
The state was forced to form a committee to decide over the issue and prohibited the students from wearing any religious garment, including the hijab until a decision is reached.
However, a number of protests by saffron-clad students and Muslims around the state forced the state to shut down schools and colleges for a few days.
Currently, the Karnataka high court that is hearing a petition filed by a Hijabi student of a PU college in Udupi, has provided no temporary relief to the students so far.
Educational institutions that were shut down by the state were directed to reopen ensuring that the state’s diktat, which prevents any religious garment from being worn to the institutions, is strictly adhered to.
As the high court of Karnataka provides no temporary relief to Muslim students protesting against the state’s hijab ban, protests in support of the girls have erupted all over the country, and beyond.
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