Kundapura: Despite the Karnataka government issuing an order making uniforms mandatory for students, Muslim students of Bhandarkar’s first-grade college came to college with hijabs and a few Hindu students come with a saffron shawl to the college.

The college management has allowed the Muslim students on campus but they have been send to separate classrooms without any lessons.

The hijab and saffron shawl row has spread all over Karnataka, Meanwhile, the petition seeking the wearing of hijab will take come for hearing in Karnataka High Court on Tuesday.

Bhandarkar’s first-grade college Principal Ramakrishna G.J. clarified that students have been allowed to inside the campus to avoid crowing outside the gates. The principal has reiterated that students have allowed entering classrooms only after they remove the hijab. But Muslim girl students have remained firm that they would not remove the hijab in class.

In another incident, the students wearing hijabs have sent at the Kalavara Varadaraj M Shetty Government First Grade College, Kundapur.

"We sent back the students back home. We had advised them to enter classes without the hijab. They refused. So we asked them to leave. We have requested them to wait for the High Court order tomorrow," said Usha Devi, Vice Principal.

However, she admitted that few students were the hijab and attend the classes earlier too. But we did not have a problem then, but she denied any pressure.

In the Vijayapura district of Karnataka, Shantheshwara PU and GRB College, many students entered wearing saffron scarves in a show of protest against their hijab-wearing fellow students.

College authorities across the state are eying on a High Court order on a petition seeking the wearing of hijab in classrooms. Till the order of the High Court, college

Hijab row spreads all over the state: Hijab controversy has first started in Government PU college in Udupi, where six students have remained firm in wearing hijab through college authorities refused for the same. Then row has spread to adjacent Kundapura and Byndoor taluk. Now several incidents have been reported in Vijapura, Mysuru, Kalaburgi, Tumakuru, Chikkamgaluru, Hassan, Sringeri, Bhadravati, and other parts of Karnataka.

Controversy gets religion line after a few students coming to college wearing a saffron shawl. Both BJP and Congress leaders are in a war of words over the Hijab issue.

Saffron party leaders who have come from organizations vehemently opposed the wearing of the hijab and asked Muslim students to go to Pakistan and Afghanistan. Few ministers in the Bommai cabinet openly stated that they will not allow Karnataka to become Taliban rule.

Ruling BJP has stood strongly in support of uniform-related rules being enforced by educational institutions, calling the headscarf, a religious symbol, while the opposition Congress has come out in support of protesting Muslim girls.

Bhandarkar’s college Muslim girl who was not allowed to attend the class for wearing hijab sad that

A Muslim girl student who was not allowed to attend the class for wearing hijab said that “We are not here for staging any protest or agitation, we are only demanding our right…hijab is our right. We are only asking to let us attend the classes with it, like we used to attend earlier. If we are suddenly asked to remove our hijab, how can we do it?” Another girl student claimed that hijab was a priority for Muslim girls, as it is a sign of their modesty.

“How can someone ask us to keep away our modesty… Are we saying those wearing saffron shawls should not wear it? Both hijab and studies are equally important for us. We want to complete our education while wearing hijab.” She said and refused to remove the hijab.

Further students have blamed the college authority for precipitating the matter, they questioned the Principal why college is suddenly asking us to remove the hijab, earlier we are allowed to wear it in classrooms”, students questioned.

Meanwhile, the Hindu students at a Udupi college said, if the institution allows Muslim women to wear hijab, they will also come wearing a saffron shawl.

Another student said that with the government order in place now, Muslim girls staging a protest near the college campus is not right. “It is causing a lot of inconvenience and problems for other students, who are attending classes by following the rules”.

Meanwhile, a member of the SDMC (School Development Monitoring Committee) of Kundapur government college, for which holiday was declared on Saturday, stated that they have decided not to allow students wearing either hijab or saffron shawls to attend classes.

“If students come with hijab or saffron shawl against rules, they will be allowed inside college premises and will be made to sit in a designated classroom, but will not be allowed to attend regular class,”, said SDMC member.

State govt banned hijab: But unfortunately, hijab row has spread to other educational institutions. The state government on Saturday evening issued an order making uniforms prescribed by it or managements of private institutions mandatory for its students at schools and pre-university colleges across the state.

In case a uniform is not prescribed by management committees, it has been ordered that students should wear dresses that go well with the idea of equality and unity, and does not disturb the social order, stated in the order.

Citing verdicts by Supreme Court and various High Courts, the government said, asking students not to come to schools wearing ‘headscarf’ or covering their head, is not in violation of Article 25 of the Constitution, and after examining the rules framed under the Karnataka Education Act 1983, the order has been issued.

The order making uniform mandatory came, even as the government has already directed the educational institutions to follow existing uniform-related rules, citing the Karnataka Education Act and rules, until the Court comes out with its order in this regard.

Opposition leader Siddaramaiah, accused the BJP and RSS of trying to create communal disharmony throughout the state in the name of hijab and claimed that the main agenda of the Sangh Parivar was to deny education to Muslim girls in the name of hijab.

“The Constitution has given the right to practice any religion which means one can wear any clothes according to their religion. Prohibiting hijab-wearing students from entering school is a violation of fundamental rights,” he said.

Primary and Secondary Education Minister B C Nagesh rubbished the allegations of Siddaramaiah, he said, “Some people who are against this country, as part of propaganda, are doing this. They are unable to digest India’s standing globally and the respect our Prime Minister is getting internationally.”

The ruling BJP’s state president and Member of Parliament Nalin Kumar Kateel said the government will not allow hijab at educational institutions and will take strict measures to ensure that things go as per rules of the school, and won’t let things become “Taliban like”, PTI reported.