Girls in Karnataka want both hijab and education: ‘Won’t be allowed to go to school if we do not wear hijab’

Say their parents would not send them to schools if they give up the hijab

The girl students, protesting against restrictions on attending classes wearing hijab, said they would not be allowed to study if they decide not to wear hijab. A couple of girls, who spoke to mediapersons in Hassan on February 18, said their parents would not send them to schools if they give up the hijab.

“We are following the dress code. How will the veil on our heads affect others? We are appealing to college authorities to allow us in because we want education. Our parents will not allow us to go to college without hijab,” said a student of Government PU College for Girls in Hassan.

The college staff had asked girls with hijabs to sit in a separate room, instead of sending them home. “We were in a separate room with no teaching, while our other classmates were attending classes. Why should we not attend classes? If we are not allowed to attend classes, how can we appear for exams? We want both exams and hijab,” said one of the girls echoing the sentiment of the group.

Protests against restrictions on hijab continued outside several schools while many students who had staged protests for the last couple of days remained at home. A few students of Karnataka Public School at Shiralakoppa in Shikaripur taluk marched around the school carrying placards proclaiming ‘Hijab is our right’.

Shivamogga Lok Sabha member B.Y. Raghavendra, in a media conference in Shivamogga on February 18, blamed Popular Front of India, SDPI and CFI for the unrest across Karnataka over the hijab issue. “The PFI should be banned for its involvement anti-social activities,” he said.