No let-up in hijab row, students stage protests

Shyam Sundar Vattam | NT

Even as a three-judge bench of the Karnataka High Court continued the hearing of a bench of petitions on the hijab controversy, students continued to defy the interim order staging dharnas in front of colleges while demanding permission to attend classes on Friday.

Many students even boycotted the preparatory examinations and practical classes. The row took a new turn when a Physical Education teacher of Indi Government Degree College prevented a student with a bindi on her forehead from entering the classroom. This resulted in an argument between the student and teacher. Later, a wordy duel ensued between the college lecturer and degree student creating confusion in the college campus.

A few students of two PU colleges in Athani and Nandaghad in Belagavi district entered the college with saffron shawls and were stopped at the main gate by cops and the college staff. They later entered the classes after removing the shawls.

In Chitradurga, around 50 students of a college came wearing the hijab and were stopped at the main gate by the cops. They argued with the police and college staff which led to a tense situation. As many as 15 students of a commerce college in Gangavati taluk of Koppal district did not attend the examinations. The controversy is still raging in Uttara Kannada district despite the imposition of prohibitory orders. The students of a para-medical college staged a dharna outside the college after being denied entry into the campus with headscarves.

In Ramanagar, more than 30 students of a PU College in Magadi taluk, held a protest demanding permission to attend classes with hijab. Boy students tooo participated in the protest and extended their support. The police had to deploy additional forces to maintain law and order.

In Yadgir, a few students quarrelled with the college authorities for pasting the copy of the court’s interim order at the college and staged a protest. They returned home after some time. The students of a junior college in Kolar kept away from the institution after being told about the court’s interim order.