Reigniting the hijab issue in the Southern State, Karnataka
Education Minister MC Sudhakar defended the Congress-led State Government’s
decision to permit students to wear the hijab while appearing for competitive
and recruitment examinations.
Exams are being held by the Karnataka Examinations
Authority on October 28 and 29 to fill vacancies in five corporations.
“I think that the people who are protesting should
verify the guidelines of the NEET exam. I don’t know why are they making an
issue out of this… People are allowed to wear hijabs,” said Sudhakar.
According to the NEET guidelines on the dress codes,
candidates following a certain religion “are allowed to wear the customary dress
while appearing for the examination”.
His comments came after some pro-Hindutva groups warned
of holding protest demonstrations.
BJP legislator Yashpal Suvarna, who led the protests
against the hijab in educational institutions when the row first erupted in
Karnataka’s Udupi last year, urged the Congress Government to reconsider its
decision. He said the party will discuss the matter and take a decision.
“Hijab has been banned and the final decision is
pending before the Supreme Court. In such a situation, no government will have
the right to interfere. Sudhakar, being the higher education minister, must
respect the order and the law. It will be contempt of court,” Suvarna said.
It was not clear whether the government will also
extend the decision to school and college examinations.
The hijab controversy first erupted in January last
year when six students of the Government PU College in Udupi accused the
institute’s administration of not permitting them to enter the premise while
wearing the hijab. The Muslim girls protested outside the institute after being
denied the entry.
In retaliation, several Hindu students started
attending classes wearing saffron shawls in many educational institutions.
On March 15 last year, the Karnataka High Court
declared that wearing the hijab was not necessary in Islam and upheld the
February 5 executive order. The students moved the Supreme Court, which gave a
split verdict on the issue. The matter is now slated to be heard by a larger Bench.
NE Watch Desk
