Thus, the BJP government acquiesced to the demand of Hindutva outfits that girls wearing hijab should not be allowed to attend government schools and colleges.This is the latest move by the BJP-led state government against the minorities. In the name of not allowing any religious symbols in the dress of students, the right of Muslim girls to get an education is being denied. The series of statements made by ministers, MPs and MLAs make it clear that Muslims are being targeted for their religious identity and will be treated as second class citizens and denied the equal rights provided under the constitution.This was brazenly expressed by Pratap Simha, MP from Mysore-Kodagu, who declared: “You can wear hijab, burka,… and go to a Madarassa”.The hijab issue should not be seen in isolation from the overall context of what is happening in Karnataka. Since the BJP came back to power by toppling the Congress-JD(S) coalition government in 2019, it has gone about assiduously to impose the Hindutva agenda on the state.It adopted a stringent law against slaughter of all forms of cattle in 2020, which was basically aimed against the Muslim minority, many of whom are in the cattle trade and selling of meat.This was followed by the so-called Protection of Right to Freedom of Religion Bill 2021 which, in the name of fighting forcible conversion, is targeting the Christian community and interfaith marriages.On the ground, vigilantes who attack social mixing of young men and women of different faiths have become more brazen and grown in the coastal districts.It is a big irony that the very department which has ordered that hijabs cannot be worn in pre-university colleges is the very same department which called for a week-long performance of ‘Surya namaskar’ to commemorate the 75th year of independence in colleges across the state.
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