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Girls denied entry to Moradabad college for wearing burqa
Professor says dress code for students has been implemented and anybody who refuses to follow it will be barred from entering the campus; former SP MLA’s statement sparks row
LUCKNOW Controversy erupted after a few girl students of Hindu College, Moradabad, were denied entry into the campus on Wednesday for wearing a burqa despite the prescribed uniform code for students here. A group of girls alleged that the college administration compelled them to remove the burqa at the entrance gate.
On Thursday, there was a scuffle between a group of students and Samajwadi Chhatra Sabha (SCS) volunteers over the said issue.
College professor AP Singh said the dress code for students here had been implemented and anybody who refuses to follow it will be barred from entering the campus. Subsequently, members of the SCS submitted a memorandum to include the burqa in the college’s dress code and allow the girls to attend their classes wearing it.
But the college administration remained adamant on sticking to the uniform code for students. A video of the scene from the Hindu college went viral on social media. The uniform code for students was implemented in the college in January.
Former Samajwadi Party MLA Zameer Ullah Khan’s statement added fuel to the controversy. He stated: “Those who oppose burqa should be paraded naked to teach them a lesson. There should be no ban on burqa and whoever imposes the ban, first parade them naked.”
In January 2022, a similar situation arose in Karnataka when the massive Hijab protests broke out, where some students of Government Girls PU College in Udupi district of the state alleged that they had been barred from attending classes. During the protests, some students claimed they were denied entry into the college for wearing hijab.
Following this incident, students of different colleges arrived at Shanteshwar Education Trust in Vijayapura wearing saffron stoles. The situation was the same in several colleges in the Udupi district.
The pre-University education board had released a circular stating that students can wear only the uniform approved by the school administration and no other religious practices will be allowed in colleges.
The matter was then taken to the Karnataka high court, which dismissed various petitions challenging a ban on hijab in education institutions and said that wearing hijab is not an essential religious practice of Islam.
However, when taken to the Supreme Court, the apex court on October 13, 2022 pronounced a split verdict in the Karnataka Hijab ban case. Inputs from ANI
