Hijab-wearing lecturer quits after being denied entry

A teacher at a pre-university college in Karnataka's Tumakuru has quit her job, alleging the institute's authorities asked her to take lectures without wearing a hijab.

The teacher, who has worked as a guest lecturer at Jain Pre-University College Tumakuru for the last three years, termed the restrictions on hijab "undemocratic" and added that she had delivered lectures wearing the headscarf all this while.

"For the last three years, I have been a guest lecturer in Jain PU College. In these three years, I have had no trouble at all. But yesterday morning, our principal sir told us not to wear a hijab or represent any religious symbols and that they had orders. For the last three years, I have been wearing a hijab while conducting classes. This (restriction) was against my self-respect so I have resigned on my own. I am not going to work without a hijab," Chandini, the guest lecturer, said in a 42-second video message, which has gone viral on social media.

HT cannot independently verify the authenticity of the video.

She has tendered her resignation. "I condemn your undemocratic act," her hand-written resignation letter, seen by HT, dated February 16 read.

Several attempts to contact the college principal for comments went answered.

Chandini is reportedly the first faculty member to have resigned over the controversy around restrictions on wearing a hijab at educational institutions.

The controversy first broke out in early January when eight Muslim students at the Government Pre-University College in Udupi alleged that they were denied entry to classrooms after they started wearing headscarves. It led to a nationwide debate. Schools and colleges were closed for about a week and large gatherings were banned in parts of the state amid huge protests.

The Karnataka high court is hearing multiple petitions regarding the hijab row. In an interim order last Thursday, the high court said: "we request the state government and all their stakeholders to reopen the educational institutions and allow the students to return to the classes at the earliest. Pending consideration of all these petitions, we restrain all the students regardless of their religion or faith from wearing saffron shawls (Bhagwa), scarfs, hijab, religious flags or the like within the classroom, until further orders."

In Tumakuru's Empress College, the institution's authorities on Friday filed a police complaint against students for violating prohibitory orders. This is the possibly the first instance of college authorities filing a police complaint against students who have been demanding to be allowed inside the premises and classrooms wearing a hijab.

Meanwhile in another incident, a boy with vermillion on his forehead was allegedly stopped from entering a state-run PU college in Indi taluka of Vijayapura district, about 524 km from Bengaluru.

In a video, the student, who did not reveal his identity, could be seen questioning a college official about why he was being stopped from entering the college.

"You are questioning even the vermillion, which is the basis of our religion," he is heard saying in Kannada.

"There were protests everywhere else, but we did not want to add to communal tensions and did not wear saffron shawls or anything else. But vermillion is the basis of our religion… When sir questioned me, it was then that we wanted to know why," the student is heard saying. HT cannot independently identify the authenticity of the video.

Students from even degree colleges, where uniforms have not been prescribed, have been denied entry by their respective administrative authorities.

In Udupi's Milagres College and Government First Grade College, Kavoor, even Muslim male students stayed away from classes to express solidarity with their classmates who have been protesting against being denied entry with hijab.

A day before pre-university and degree colleges were scheduled to reopen (February 15), Dr CN Ashwathnarayan, Karnataka's minister for higher education, said the ban on hijab will not be applicable in most degree colleges as there is no uniform in most of them.

"In degree colleges, whoever wants to wear it, can wear it. There are no restrictions in degree colleges and whoever wants can wear it. But in schools and PU colleges where uniforms have been prescribed," Narayan had said.