Mangaluru: Pro-hijab students agitate in front of Uppinangady college

MANGALURU: A few pro-hijab students of Government First Grade College in Uppinangady staged a protest in front of their college on Saturday demanding that the authorities allow girl students to wear hijab inside classrooms. 

Meanwhile, anti-hijab students submitted a letter to Puttur MLA Sanjeeva Matandoor against the college principal alleging that he has failed to implement dress code rules strictly. In the letter, they alleged that the principal allowed girls to attend classes wearing hijab. 

However, classes were held as usual on Saturday. Matandoor said the College Development Committee (CDC) that met on Friday decided to strictly follow the court orders on dress code and lecturers have been given the responsibility to implement the same. A notice on the guidelines has been put up in the college notice board. 

He said those who protested on Saturday will be marked absent and legal action will be initiated if they try to disrupt classes. Stating that the college authorities have been asked to hold another round of talks with girls who are insisting on wearing hijab inside classes, the MLA hoped that the issue will settle down soon. Meanwhile, the joint director of the collegiate education department is likely to visit the campus on Monday.

Journalists protest
In Mangaluru, journalists staged a protest to condemn the Uppinangady police for filing a FIR against three journalists based on a complaint from pro-hijab students and also submitted a memorandum to Dakshina Kannada SP Rishikesh Sonawane. The students had filed a counter-complaint accusing journalists of trespassing into the college.