Hijab-clad students denied entry again to college in Karnataka

Muslim girl students who tried to enter a government preuniversity college at Kundapur in Karnatakas Udupi district wearing hijabs headscarves were again denied entry to the premises by authorities on Friday the third day since the issue surfaced in the institutionThe hijabclad students who came along with their parents pushed into the compound gate of the college despite a strict order given by the authorities that wearing hijabs will not be allowed as per the status quo on dress code issued by the state governmentThe girls parents also protested outside the college gate When they entered the premises a few Hindu boy students wearing saffron shawls started roaming around the place as a mark of protest The boys were soon asked to remove the shawls and attend classes in the collegeIn view of the tension police personnel from Kundapur station present at the gate sent the girlsrsquo parents away citing instructions from the government The girls however continued to remain near the gateMeanwhile a group of students of the government girlsrsquo PU college at Udupi where the hijab row first started last month have approached the additional deputy commissioner to resolve the issue at the earliest to create a suitable environment for education in the collegeIn their appeal the girls said the final examinations are nearing and the teaching process in the college is disturbed due to the presence of police and the media The district administration should take immediate action to solve the issue raised only by six students in the college they said in the appealThe issue started in early January at the government girlsrsquo preuniversity PU college at Udupi where six students attended classes wearing headscarves in violation of the dress code in classroomsThe college had allowed hijab in the campus but not inside the classrooms The students who protested against the directions were not allowed inside classes The girls continued their protest by sitting outside the classrooms for about a monthUdupi MLA and president of the college development committee K Raghupati Bhat held talks with the parents of the protesting girls who also insisted that their children be allowed to wear hijabsThe school authorities later categorically announced that hijabclad girls cannot be allowed inside the classrooms till an expert committee formed by the state government to study the issue comes out with its report The government also gave directions to schools to maintain the status quo on dress code in PU collegesOne of the six protesting students at the Udupi college has moved the Karnataka High Court on January 31 seeking interim relief to attend classes wearing the hijab till the issue is settledIn her petition the student submitted that wearing a hijab is her fundamental right guaranteed under Article 14 and 25 of the Constitution The high court is expected to hear the case on February 8The incident was followed by another one at the preuniversity college in Kundapur in the same district with the authorities disallowing 28 Muslim girl students from attending classes in the college wearing hijabs citing the government direction The girls later protested against the order outside the classes as wellThe issue turned worse when around 100 boy students of the college wearing saffron shawls on Wednesday protested against allowing girls wearing hijabs inside classroomsKundapur MLA and college development committee president Halady Srinivas Shetty who rushed to the college called a meeting of the girls and their parents to discuss the issue As the parents did not relent the meeting failed to reach a consensusHowever the authorities stuck to the position that the government direction will be followedThe girls who came to the college on Thursday also were stopped at the gate by college authorities The issue remains unresolved as the parents are insisting on their childrenrsquos right to wear headscarvesThis story has been sourced from a third party syndicated feed agencies Midday accepts no responsibility or liability for its dependability trustworthiness reliability and data of the text Midday managementmiddaycom reserves the sole right to alter delete or remove without notice the content in its absolute discretion for any reason whatsoever