Vedike protests against hijab ban in Ramakunjeshwara College

Mangalore Today News Network

Udupi, July 19, 2012: The Komu Souharda Vedike organized a protest in front of the Udupi Taluk Office against the hijab ban imposed in Ramakunjeshwara Degree College in Ramakunj in Uppinangady. The vedike also submitted a memorandum to the governor through the tahsildar. 

G. Rajashekar, president of the Komu Souharda Vedike, said that the ban on hijab imposed by the college is unconstitutional as the Indian Constitution gives every citizen of India the right to follow his/her religion and customs. The ban on hijab, therefore, violates the rights of Muslim students to wear hijab. 

He urged the chancellor of the Mangalore University to request the college administration to take back its ban and allow Muslim students to wear head scarves in class. 

In her address, Wafa Sultana of Girls’ Islamic Organization in Karkala said that Islam is not against women’s empowerment, but Muslim women wear hijab because it protects them from molestation. Clarifying that the Muslim community is not against uniforms, she said that colleges must allow them to wear hijab in the campus.