MANGALURU: With headscarf issues creating problems at the Pompeii College in Karnataka‘s Aikala on Wednesday, the college authorities have decided to allow students to wear only the prescribed uniform.
This comes after pictures and videos of students wearing saffron shawls in the campus went viral. The college is at Kinnigoli, about 30 km from Mangaluru.
Purushothama KV, principal of the college, said that it has been decided to allow students to wear only the prescribed uniform, thus indicating that headscarves (hijab) or saffron shawls will not be allowed.
He said that the college organised a coordination committee meeting on Thursday. The meeting was attended by the leaders of both the communities (representatives from a mosque committee and BJP leaders), old students, members from the governing council, representatives from the joint director’s office, police department and panchayat. The decision of the governing council that met early during the day was conveyed to the members. Those who attended the meeting agreed with the college’s decision that only prescribed uniforms will be allowed.
The principal said that Muslim students have been wearing the headscarves inside the classroom since five years and nobody had raised an issue. However, all of a sudden on Tuesday about 34 students came wearing saffron shawls, without submitting any memorandum or request to the principal or the management. “When I questioned them, like if they had any holy reasons (Sabarimala pilgrimage) for wearing the shawls, they said, if Muslim students are wearing headscarves, we will wear the saffron shawls. They did not give any scope to discuss the issue,” he said.
Following this, an emergency meeting of the governing council was held, and then the meeting of the stakeholders. It is learnt that the local organisations are supporting the students. A Bajrang Dal leader had allegedly warned the college that Hindus should be allowed to wear saffron shawls, if Muslims are allowed to wear headscarves. The classes were conducted as usual with students wearing saffron shawls and headscarves. The college has around 335 students.
It may be recalled that a similar incident was reported in Chikkamagaluru after a section of the students in a degree college in Koppa came to the campus wearing saffron scarves on Monday. On December 31, the government PU college for girls in Udupi was witness to headscarf controversy after six II PUC students, supported by the Campus Front of India, accused the principal of not allowing the students to wear the headscarf inside the classroom. They claimed that students from other religions are allowed to wear bindi and bangles.
This comes after pictures and videos of students wearing saffron shawls in the campus went viral. The college is at Kinnigoli, about 30 km from Mangaluru.
Purushothama KV, principal of the college, said that it has been decided to allow students to wear only the prescribed uniform, thus indicating that headscarves (hijab) or saffron shawls will not be allowed.
He said that the college organised a coordination committee meeting on Thursday. The meeting was attended by the leaders of both the communities (representatives from a mosque committee and BJP leaders), old students, members from the governing council, representatives from the joint director’s office, police department and panchayat. The decision of the governing council that met early during the day was conveyed to the members. Those who attended the meeting agreed with the college’s decision that only prescribed uniforms will be allowed.
The principal said that Muslim students have been wearing the headscarves inside the classroom since five years and nobody had raised an issue. However, all of a sudden on Tuesday about 34 students came wearing saffron shawls, without submitting any memorandum or request to the principal or the management. “When I questioned them, like if they had any holy reasons (Sabarimala pilgrimage) for wearing the shawls, they said, if Muslim students are wearing headscarves, we will wear the saffron shawls. They did not give any scope to discuss the issue,” he said.
Following this, an emergency meeting of the governing council was held, and then the meeting of the stakeholders. It is learnt that the local organisations are supporting the students. A Bajrang Dal leader had allegedly warned the college that Hindus should be allowed to wear saffron shawls, if Muslims are allowed to wear headscarves. The classes were conducted as usual with students wearing saffron shawls and headscarves. The college has around 335 students.
It may be recalled that a similar incident was reported in Chikkamagaluru after a section of the students in a degree college in Koppa came to the campus wearing saffron scarves on Monday. On December 31, the government PU college for girls in Udupi was witness to headscarf controversy after six II PUC students, supported by the Campus Front of India, accused the principal of not allowing the students to wear the headscarf inside the classroom. They claimed that students from other religions are allowed to wear bindi and bangles.
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