NEW DELHI, Feb 11 (Agencies): Amidst the controversy in southern Indian state of Karnataka over the ban on the Hijab, some Muslim families in northern Indian state of Rajasthan have alleged that a private college in the Jaipur district has asked their children to attend classes without Hijab.
Jitendra Singh, a police officer in the area confirmed that the college administration told the girls to leave their hijab at home and attend classes in uniform following which they informed their parents who then raised the issue with the college authorities.
The police upon receiving the information reached the college to pacify the situation.
The incident took place at a time when all eyes are on Karnataka where a major row has erupted over the ban on Hijab at campuses by a number of colleges following an objection by Hindu rightwing mobsters who demanded that if Muslim girls were allowed to cover their heads then they should also be allowed to wear saffron-coloured shawls.
The Muslims girls have mounted a defiant resistance against the ban as they have moved the court apart from holding demonstrations. The issue has attracted widespread attention with political leaders and activists coming out in support of the girls.
Pakistan also summoned the Indian Charge d’affaires Suresh Kumar to the Foreign Ministry on Wednesday and expressed extreme concern over the ban on female students wearing a Hijab in Karnataka, and growing Islamophobia in India.
According to a statement by the Pakistan’s MFA issued in Islamabad, Kumar was asked to convey that banning students from wearing headscarves was a reprehensible act. It added that the Indian government must ensure the safety of Muslim women in India, referring to the video of a student in Hijab, who was harassed Hindutva rightwing mobsters in her college in the town of Mandya.
In Jaipur, in the meanwhile, the police claimed that the issue was resolved through talks as the parents were convinced about college rules.
