Another Karnataka college asks girls to take off hijab to attend classes

Mangaluru: Another hijab row broke out at a government college in Kundapura, Udupi, after the management under the new state guidelines asked girl students not to come to college wearing hijabs.

When the girl students refused, several Hindu boys came to college wearing saffron shawls.

According to sources, 27 Muslim girls who study in the institute had been coming to the campus wearing hijab.

A meeting was also conducted by the management, along with the local MLA Haladi Srinivas Shetty and the parents of the students.

The meeting failed to arrive at a consensus as the parents insisted that their children have the right to wear 'hijab'.

A girl student's parent was heard saying, "We didn't discriminate. We sent our students during all the Hindu festivals. Why is that you are discriminating with our students?"

The authorities made it clear that students should stick to a uniform rule.

Shetty has now sought the intervention of the state Education Minister, B.C. Nagesh to handle the issue.

The Minister has clearly told the college authorities that students can come to the classrooms only in uniforms and neither hijab nor saffron shawls will be allowed.

However, Hindu Jagaran Vedike leader Jagadish Kukkehalli said that the Hindu students were ready to shun saffron shawls only if Muslim girls attend classes without hijab. If Muslim girls continue to wear the hijab, Hindu students will attend classes in saffron shawls, he added.

This is the third incident taking place in Karnataka, in the last month, over girl students wearing hijabs to schools or colleges.

Earlier, a government college in Udupi had banned students from wearing hijab inside the classroom and seven Muslim girls were denied entry.

Meanwhile, in Bhadravathi of Shivamogga district, students of Sir MV Arts and Commerce College came to the campus wearing saffron towels and demanded that the college administration should ban hijab.