The Hijab issue has again grabbed headlines with some Hindu students protesting against their Muslim classmates for wearing hijab.
The protest happened in Mangaluru where students of Mangalore University protested outside the campus on Thursday alleging that the college authorities have failed to implement the Karnataka High Court’s verdict that wearing of hijab is not an essential part of Islam.
One of the students speaking in the video says, “There was a PTA meeting where many parents complained to the management of not following the HC’s verdict. But nothing was done. Around 40 Muslim students have been wearing Hijab and they are not stopped by the college management. That’s why we are protesting outside the college campus.”
Background of 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, on 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 on 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.
The Karnataka high court has been hearing a petition filed by a Hijabi student of a PU college in Udupi, and for a long time did not provide any temporary relief to the students.
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 provided no temporary relief up to date, protests in support of the girls have erupted all over the country, and beyond.
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