India Tomorrow

LUCKNOW, SEPTEMBER 10---Muslim girl students at a college in Firozabad town of Uttar Pradesh are being prevented to enter the college premises if they are in `hijab’ or `burqa’, a form of Muslim dress used by Muslim women all over the world to cover themselves from head to toe.

The situation aggravated on Monday when principal Bhaskar Rai of SRK College wielding stick in his hand stood at the main entrance of the institution and drove away the `hijab’-donning girls. He is also alleged to have used humiliating language while asking the Muslim girl students not to enter the college premises in `hijab’.

The Principal and college administration is, however, defending its undignified action behind the pretext of implementing the dress code. When confronted by mediapersons, the principal said a drive to check dress was going on and only those Muslim girls who were not wearing dress were sent back. However, he did not say anything about why was he wielding stick in his hands and what was the need to use crude language for the Muslim female students even if they were not wearing dress.

Even District Magistrate Chandra Vijay Singh tried to brush the matter under the carpet and avoided to act on the matter, saying ``it is internal matter of the college’’. However, he told mediapersons that he would ensure that the management was questioned on this issue.

A city resident Qazi Ishaq Gora, expressing anger, told media that the action of the college management ``is not acceptable’’.

He said, ``This is an insult to Muslim girl students. The girl students in `hijab’ should have been allowed to enter the college and provided a place where they can remove their `hijab’ and go to their classrooms and put on `hijab’ again while going back to their homes. If someone is not found in college dress, then she should be sent back. But sending them away from outside the college without confirming whether they are in college uniform or not, is not proper. It is also not at all acceptable for the college principal to stand at the gate holding a stick and send the `hijab’ clad girls away’’.

Meanwhile, the police have been deployed outside the college. On Tuesday, they asked the Muslim girls to remove their `hijab’ at the local bus stand before coming to the college.