A row over wearing of purdah by a group of students of C.K. Nair Memorial Arts & Management College at Padannakkad here resulted in a student unrest, following which classes were indefinitely suspended on Thursday. The issue began after four students of final year BA English Literature defied the college authorities and attended classes wearing purdah.
Principal A.C. Kunhikannan warned them against flouting college guidelines and asked them to adhere to the prescribed dress code.
However, the girls, hailing from Padanna, refused to heed the warning and came to the college wearing purdah on Wednesday. There was commotion on the campus after the authorities resolved to take action against the students and the classes were suspended.
A sizeable number of students are said to have barged into the Principal’s cabin asking him to resume the classes after students belonging to the Muslim Students Federation (MSF) and the pro-INL National Students League (NSL) decried the college authorities’ move to bar the girls from attending the classes.
In another development, Youth Congress leader Sajith Mouvval and KSU district president Noel Tomin Joseph condemned the stance of the college authorities while the Students Federation of India (SFI) urged the college authorities to make uniform mandatory for the students. A tense situation prevailed on the campus on Thursday after a group of MSF and NSL workers attacked SFI workers, following which the Principal declared indefinite suspension of classes. The tense situation was defused in the presence of police personnel from Kanhangad.