Hijab controversy well-planned plot, says Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi

Union Minister for Minority Affairs, Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi, on Sunday, said that the Hijab controversy is a well-planned conspiracy.

"Hijab controversy is a well-planned conspiracy. One mindset-- how to stop the education of Muslim girls, is behind it which will not succeed. Many people are saying that it is their constitutional right. But what about your duties?", the BJP leader Mukhtar Abbas Naqvi said today.

The BJP leader highlighted that one cannot deny the dress code of educational institutions.

"The 'Soormas' of constitutional rights should talk about their duties also. They cannot deny the dress code of educational institutions. The constitution talks about both things--rights and duties," Naqvi said.

The Hijab protests in Karnataka began in January this year when some students of Government Girls PU college in the 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.

Meanwhile, the Karnataka High Court also appealed to the student community and the public at large to maintain peace and tranquillity while hearing various pleas challenging a ban on hijab in the state.

The Karnataka High Court on Friday uploaded the interim order passed in the petitions challenging the Hijab ban in colleges in the state. The hearing of the petitions will continue on February 14.

( With inputs from ANI )