Hijab row: Sikh girl asked to remove turban in Bengaluru college
Bengaluru (Karnataka), February 24: Amid the ongoing hijab controversy related to wearing of hijab in classrooms, an Amritdhari (baptised) Sikh girl was asked to remove her turban at Mount Carmel PU College here in accordance with the February 10 High Court's interim order.
The college authorities of Mount Carmel PU College asked the 17-year-old Sikh girl student to remove her turban to follow the High Court order. The authorities also mailed about it to her father. The girl was asked to remove her turban on February 16, but she did not agree. However, after G. Sriram, deputy director of PU Education visited the college and asked students not to wear hijab, they demanded that others who were wearing religious symbols too should not be allowed.
Meanwhile, the Shiromani Akali Dal (SAD) has written a letter to the Karnataka Chief Minister condemning the issue.
Advocate Harjinder Singh Dhami, president of the Shiromani Gurdwara Parbandhak Committee (SGPC), has also strongly objected to it.
Advocate Dhami said, "It will not be tolerated that Sikhs are forced to take off their turbans in their own country. It is an unconstitutional decision, which will never be accepted. Forcing anyone to take off their turban is a violation of Sikh traditions and principles."
The SGPC president also sought the intervention of Prime Minister Narendra Modi. He also urged the Karnataka Government to take stern action against the "perpetrators of this heinous act".
The hijab row in Karnataka
The hijab controversy erupted on January 1 at Government PU College in Udupi, where six female students claimed that they were not allowed to enter classrooms wearing hijab.
They started protest against college authorities, which soon snowballed into a statewide issue. Reports of similar protests emerged from other towns in Karnataka. These protests and counter demonstrations involving saffron scarves have since spread to other states.
Matter reaches court
Several petitions were filed in the Karnataka High Court on January 31 in which Muslim students sought the right to wear hijabs in classrooms under Article 14, 19 and 25 of the Constitution of India. The court heard it for the first time on February 8.
Also Read | Air India's special flight lands at Delhi airport with over 240 passengers from Ukraine
The High Court, in its interim order pending consideration of all such petitions, last week restrained all students from wearing saffron shawls, scarves, hijab and any religious flag within the classroom.
Current situation
Even after the Karnataka High Court interim order, the controversy refuses to die down as some students remain adamant to be allowed to attend classes with hijab.
Also read | Russia-Ukraine war: All you need to know about impact on Indian kitchens, fuel prices
-PTC News
