Row over hijab a conspiracy not controversy: Kerala Governor Arif Khan

The governor said it was not a question of choice but whether a person would follow the regulations, dress code of an institution or not.
Kerala Governor Arif Mohammed (Photo | EPS)
Kerala Governor Arif Mohammed (Photo | EPS)

THIRUVANANTHAPURAM/NEW DELHI: On the second consecutive day, Kerala Governor Arif Mohammed Khan came out in support of the educational institutions in Karnataka which banned wearing hijab (headscarf) as part of uniform by girl students.

The comments of Governor Khan turned out to be words of relief for the Union government which is facing flak from international community over the alleged attempts to impose hijab ban inside campuses.

On Saturday, the Ministry of External Affairs expressed displeasure over the “motivated comments” on the country’s internal issues as a response to comments by the US ambassador-at-large for international religious freedom and the Pakistan government.

Terming the ongoing hijab row a “conspiracy”, not “controversy”, the governor said it was not a question of choice but whether a person would follow the regulations, dress code of an institution or not. Noting that Muslim girls are doing “so well” everywhere and so they need encouragement, Khan said they do not need to be pushed down.

“Suppose we accept the argument that hijab is intrinsic and essential, then, surely (sic) they will be aware that they can’t pursue any career after completing education. The result will be they will become disinterested in pursuing education. Evil practices like triple divorce were banned. This (hijab row) is another attempt to push the girls back to homes. Don’t allow this to happen,” Khan told reporters in New Delhi. On Friday, Khan said there were instances of women refusing to wear hijab in the early history of Islam.

The governor’s remarks haven’t gone down well with the Muslim League leadership. IUML acting state president Sadiqali Shihab Thangal said that nothing more could be expected from the governor. “Governor Arif Mohammed Khan had started uttering such comments long before. He had said Islamic Sharia law should be banned in India during 1980. Hijab issue need not be considered as a religious one,” he told reporters in Malappuram.

Congress leader and MP K Muraleedharan said the Kerala governor has accepted ‘RSS style’ by dumping ‘secular style’. “We are hearing that some high positions are waiting for him. But, nobody should stoop to this level for such positions. It is unfortunate that he is making such comments. His attempt is to divide society,” Muraleedharan told reporters.

The recent controversy over hijab started at the end of December when a few girl students in hijabs were denied entry into a government pre-university college in Udupi in Karnataka. To counter this, some Hindu students turned up wearing saffron scarves.

(with inputs from agencies)

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