Kashmiri female students of Bengaluru’s Sri Soubhagya Lalitha College of Nursing alleged they are forced to miss classes after the chairman of the college denied them entry for wearing the hijab and burkha. The college is affiliated with the Rajiv Gandhi University of Health Sciences.
According to the Jammu and Kashmir Students Association, which highlighted the issue, the Kashmiri students are denied entry into the classrooms, stopped from attending lectures and practical sessions and also threatened to cancel their admission for their religious attire.
A week ago, the college chairman stormed into the class and ordered all students wearing hijab or burkha to leave immediately.
When told that there was no such rule in the Constitution over religious attire in educational institutions in India, the college chairman reportedly snapped back, “This is our college, only our rules apply.”
The students were further told that the step was taken after receiving several complaints about the presence of hijab and burkha on the campus.
According to the Jammu and Kashmir Students Association, the chairman allegedly claimed that “hijab and pardah are not allowed for medical students anywhere in the country, not even in Kashmir.”
He reportedly went on to state that “no article or fundamental right is applicable in our college,” and argued that patients might feel “fear” upon seeing students in hijab, a remark the association condemned as an “absurd, Islamophobic stereotype aimed at erasing students’ identity.”
On July 15, JKSA president Nasir Khuehami wrote a letter to the Karnataka chief minister Siddaramaiah highlighting the blatant discrimination over religious attire and Islamophobic statements made by a higher college official.
“It is heartbreaking and enraging in equal measure that students from a conflict-affected region, who left their homes and came to Karnataka in pursuit of higher education and opportunity, are now being subjected to such humiliation and trauma. The psychological and emotional toll is immeasurable,” the letter read.
“Forcing students to choose between their faith and their future,” he said, “is an unconscionable violation of both law and humanity,” it added, urging the Karnataka government to take swift action against the college.
-
Have a lot of followers get on Instagram? But don’t know how to make money from this? Read exactly
-
Apple May Launch M4 Macbook Air Update in Early 2025
-
England women bounce back strong at Lord’s, Level Series 1-1 Ahead of Decider
-
Scottie Scheffler Grabs Lead at British Open, McIlroy Stumbles
-
ENG vs Ind: 3 big reasons why Washington is not beautiful in the fourth Test, Kuldeep Yadav is the right choice. Read
