Udupi hijab row: Students stick to demand

Udupi: The six students of government girls PU college in Udupi district have turned down the suggestion of the college development committee that they opt for online classes if they are adamant about wearing hijab (Islamic headscarf) in the classroom.

The girl students have been boycotting classes for the last four weeks as the college authorities refused permission for them to wear hijab inside classrooms.

Addressing reporters in Udupi on Thursday, the students, who are staging the protest, said wearing hijab is their constitutional right and they are not willing to attend online classes which is ‘discriminatory.’

Asked about other girls from the community attending classes without hijab, they said girls are not coming forward as they are scared of the problems they may face.

Education and rights are equally important, they said.

Udupi MLA Raghupati Bhat, also chairman of the college development committee, had on Wednesday said the education department had ordered a status quo on the dress code in classrooms.

A high-level committee has been constituted by the department to study the dress code in colleges in other states. If they are persisting with their demand, they can choose online classes, he had said.