PU colleges open but students boycott classes after told to remove hijab

Shyam Sundar Vattam| NT

The hijab row continued to affect the functioning of several schools and colleges across the state with heated arguments witnessed between students , their parents and school authorities over wearing the hijab in classrooms.

The Karnataka high court had on Friday last said that students should not come to classes wearing religious dress till the court came up with its verdict on petitions filed by Muslim students challenging the uniform dress code in educational institutions. A few parents however demanded that the college authorities show the copy of the interim order of the high court against the wearing of hijab as well as saffron shawls by students. In some places, students argued with college authorities and demanded that they must be allowed to attend classes with headscarves. When the authorities refused to heed their demand, the students raised the slogan ‘hijab is our right’ and staged a dharna. They returned home after the police arrived at the spot.

In Bengaluru, students in several colleges came wearing the hijab only to be prevented by the college managements. In Maharani College, students were allowed to attend classes with the headscarves on since the college does not have a uniform dress code. The principal said senior officials of the department concerned had asked principals of colleges which do not have a dress code to allow students with headscarves.

Meanwhile, the police took several Congress workers into custody when they tried to support parents in sending their wards into a college in Malleswaram. They were taken to the police station for violating prohibitory orders.

In Shivamogga, Tahsildar N.G.Nagaraj has declared a holiday for three colleges in the wake of the hijab row. Besides, prohibitory orders under Sec 144 of CrPc have been clamped in a 200 metre radius of all schools/colleges in the district till February 19. The students of DVS PU College urged college authorities to allow them to attend classes with the hijab which was refused by the authorities. Agitated over this, over 25 students boycotted the classes and returned home.

In Udupi, over 15 students came to Dr G Shankar Government First Grade College for Girls with the headscarves but were told to enter the classes after removing the hijab. Following a tense situation, several other PU colleges were also given a holiday.

The Women’s College run by Mooru Savira Mutt in Hubballi was closed indefinitely after some students came to college wearing the hijab. When the college staff stopped them at the main gate, the students along with their parents resorted to a protest in front of the college. Realising the gravity of the situation, the college management decided to close down the institution indefinitely.

In Sirsi town, hijab wearing students of MES College who were stopped at the college main gate, went home boycotting classes. Similar incidents were reported from Yadgir, Gowribidanur, Ballari, Davangere, Vijayapura, Mysuru, Mandya, Kolar, Chikballapur, Kalaburagi, Hassan, Chitradurga, Kodagu, Bagalkot and Tumakuru. It was a common scene to see parents waiting for the children to take them back home after they boycotted classes.

In Tumakuru, over 30 students took out a procession from JC Road to Ashoka Road to protest against the denial of the right to wear hijab. The police had a tough time controlling the agitating students.