The Hijab debate which started off at PU College in Udupi, Karnataka has travelled miles to reach the northeastern state of Tripura. The Muslim students at a government school made similar demands. Some girls started wearing hijabs in school and in protest, the Hindu students started wearing saffron clothes. When the administration barred students from following their respective religious practices, the Muslim students vandalised the headmaster’s office. This led to communal tensions in the area, and as of now, the situation is under control.
As per the media reports, the incident unfolded in the government-run Koroimura Higher Secondary School in the Sepahijala district of Tripura. Recently, the Muslim students studying at the school started flouting the uniform code and started wearing Hijab compulsorily.
With no action by the school administration, from August 3, the Hindu students (Boys) in the school started wearing saffron kurtas in protest. This brought the matter to light and the headmaster of the Koroimura Higher Secondary School, Priyatosh Nandi, had to intervene.
She urged the students to follow the dress code as prescribed by the school administration. And drop the religion-inspired dress code in the school. Which the Hindu students raised alarm and said, the rules should be equal for everyone. If Hindu students are not allowed to wear saffron dresses, Muslims should also drop the Hijab.
“These students asserted they will wear school uniform provided all the students come to the institute in proper school uniform,” informed the headmaster.
Nandi told the media, “After a meeting with teachers, I recently directed all students to attend school wearing proper uniform. However, girl students from the minority community said they cannot follow this directive as wearing hijab is a religious belief.”
With rising protests from the Hindu side, the Muslim students from class 10 reached the headmaster’s office and vandalised it in protest.
Notably, the same student who led the protest at the Headmaster’s office was thrashed by a group of people when he stepped outside the school premises. The accused, who is said to be a resident of Prabhurampur, was admitted to a nearby health centre. The development was confirmed by Jyotishman Das, the Assistant Inspector General (AIG) of Police (Law & Order).
As of now the situation in the town is under control. The Sepahijala police have dismissed claims of communal attack on the Muslim student and warned against spreading misinformation.
“A specific case in this regard has been registered and an investigation is in progress. It is clarified that the incident is in no way related to any religious issue,” it said in a statement.
What was 2022 Karnataka Hijab row?
At the beginning of February 2022, a dispute pertaining to school uniforms was reported in the Indian state of Karnataka, when some Muslim students of a junior college who wanted to wear hijab to classes were denied entry on the grounds that it was a violation of the college’s uniform policy which was also followed by the other religion students as well.
Over the following weeks, the dispute spread to other schools and colleges across the state, with groups of Hindu students staging counter-protests by demanding to wear saffron scarves.
On February 5, the Karnataka government issued an order stating that uniforms must be worn compulsorily where policies exist and no exception can be made for the wearing of the hijab. Several educational institutions cited this order and denied entry to Muslim girls wearing the hijab.
Petitions were filed in the Karnataka High Court on behalf of the aggrieved students. On February 10, the High Court issued an interim order restraining all students from wearing any form of religious attire. In March, the Karnataka High Court upheld the decision barring students from wearing Hijab or any other religious symbols in schools.
In June 2023, Organiser visited a town in Madhya Pradesh, Damoh where Hindu students studying at a private school were forced to recite Surah-Al-Fatiha and wear Hijab as a mandatory dress code. The state administration had to intervene and shift the students to different schools after a poster from the school went viral on social media. The owners of the school, all Muslims face charges of the Madhya Pradesh Freedom of religion Act and the matter is still subjudice.
