Sunni Jam-Iyyathul Ulama Central Committee Secretary S P Hamza Sakhafi and Udupi Khazi and Sunni Jam-Iyyathul Ulama Central Committee President Khazi M Abdul Hameed Musliyar Mani have called for a harmonious resolution to the controversy surrounding hijab.
They told mediapersons that they are not demanding a particular colour for headscarves. "Even the veil of the uniform can be used as a headscarf by the Muslim girl students,” one of said.
Sakhafi said, “The controversy is a conspiracy to suppress the individual freedom enshrined in the constitution. A small issue like the controversy over hijab that erupted in a college in Udupi was made to spread to the entire state. A few are making use of the situation for political mileage.”
“It was not an issue to be made into a controversy. Women have been using ‘pallu’ of their saree to cover their head in various parts of the country. It is not the Muslim women alone who wear it. It is mandatory for Muslim women to wear it as per Islam. Muslim students were wearing headscarves in educational institutions without any worry in the past,” he said.
“India is a country where people flaunt diverse religious symbols while maintaining communal harmony in the society by living unitedly. Students, irrespective of their caste and religion, were pursuing their education in schools and colleges. However, attempts are being made to sow the seeds of hate in the minds of students and divide them on the lines of caste and religion, which is condemnable,” he said.
Even the names of the children studying in educational institutions are diverse. Through the names, one will come across the religion to which he or she belongs. The contention that wearing headscarves amounts to discrimination and is against equality in the classroom is a childish argument, claimed Sakhafi.
He said that “the interim order of the High Court is applicable only to colleges where the College Development Committee has mandated a dress code or a uniform. Unfortunately, the order is misinterpreted and efforts are on to keep Muslim girl students out of the classrooms.”
Sunni Jam-Iyyathul Ulama Karnataka demanded action against such misinterpretation. “We have full faith in the judiciary and believe that the High Court’s judgement will be in favour of freedom enshrined in the Constitution. All the awakened citizens should unite to overcome division among the students in educational institutions in the name of religion and protect the constitutional rights,” he said.
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