Amid the increasing persecution of minorities in India under the Hindunationalist government of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, large crowds ofMuslims took to the streets in southern part of the country on Monday toprotest against the ban on hijab at schools.
The stand-off started in the Karnataka state after students at agovernment-run high school were told not to wear hijab last month. Theedict soon spread to at least two other educational institutions in thestate.
Sumayya Roushan, president of the Girls Islamic Organisation Karnataka,said at a press conference on Monday, “It’s discriminatory in nature andalso it’s against the rights that are provided under the constitution ofIndia.”
She said the ban violated “a personal choice that the students are entitledto, which doesn’t … harm any other person”.
Social media footage showed hundreds of people gathered on roads and wavingIndian flags in at least two towns in Karnataka, the latest in several daysof demonstrations held to condemn the bans.
One of the schools has since partially yielded, allowing its female Muslimstudents to attend class with a hijab but instructing them to sit inseparate classrooms, according to local media.
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Two other schools that had implemented a hijab ban declared a holiday andwere closed on Monday.
Modi’s right-wing Bharatiya Janata Party governs the Karnataka state andseveral prominent members have thrown their support behind the ban, whichhas been criticised by other political leaders.
“By letting students’ hijab come in the way of their education, we arerobbing the future of the daughters of India,” Rahul Gandhi of theopposition Congress party tweeted last week.
The state’s top court is expected to hear petitions on Tuesday and rule onwhether to overturn the bans.
