The Hijab controversy in Karnataka has received a lot of attention in recent weeks. On January 1, this year, some female Muslim students at a Pre-University College (PUC) in Udupi attempted to enter their class while wearing a Hijab. The headmaster forbade the girls from attending classes because they were dressed in Islamic robes. He pointed out that there had never been a problem, and that it rendered the concept of uniform superfluous.
In this article, we’ll go over some relevant information to analyze this whole discussion and show how the premises on which the conclusions are based are without merit and contradict the same principles that they claim to defend.
The Islamic idea of Hijab
This whole Hijab debate is not a new one, since there have been countless terrible occurrences linked to it all across the world. Hijab is an Islamic idea that Muslim women cannot show their faces and must remain under the veil. The argument that it is a ‘choice’ is a joke. Countless women in Islamic countries have been murdered or jailed for it. ‘Liberal’ feminists argue often that it is a choice, but they will never speak about the brutal murders and honour killings of women who try not to remain under the veil.
Heartbreaking. Today in Iran; This man is holding his 17 yr old wife’s head after beheading her. She had fled to Turkey to be safe but was forced back.
— Masih Alinejad 🏳️ (@AlinejadMasih) February 5, 2022
In Iran, a father who beheaded his 14 yr old daughter got 8 yr prison but a woman who removed her hijab got 24 years.#LetUsTalk pic.twitter.com/oPy5gIY2Gn
Hijab is not clearly defined in the Islamic sacred book, the Quran, despite its deep roots in Islamic history. It is frequently a cultural and personal idea rather than a theological one. Chapter 24, verses 30 and 31; Chapter 33, verses 32 and 33; and Chapter 33, verses 53 and 54 of the Quran provide insight on the veil and essential themes regarding modesty, respect, privacy, and humility.
The struggle of Muslim women and protest against Hijab
Muslim women throughout the globe have been opposing the Hijab as a veil to cover their bodies. Afghan women have been opposing the Taliban’s new Hijab requirement since the Taliban took control in Afghanistan and enforced it on women. The wearing of a hijab in public has been a very contentious subject for a long.
The atrocities that Muslim women face whether due to Hijab or Triple Talaq are not hidden to anyone. Masih Alinejad, an Iranian lady, was detained by morality police at the age of 19 for not wearing a Hijab, held in prison without trial, and finally told by a court that it had enough evidence to have her executed. Another Iranian lady, Nasrin Sotoudeh, has been held since June 2018 and convicted to a total of 38 years in prison on nine accusations, including “encouraging prostitution,” in connection with her work defending women arrested for peacefully opposing obligatory Hijab.
Global viewpoint of Muslim women scholars
Several Muslim women from various socioeconomic backgrounds have spoken out against the Hijab compulsion. According to Asra Q. Nomani, a former Georgetown professor, and Hala Arafa, a retired program review analyst at the International Bureau of Broadcasting, these justifications for Hijab and modesty are part of conservative Muslims’ well-funded effort to dominate modern societies.
“This modern-day movement spreads an ideology of political Islam, called “Islamism,” enlisting well-intentioned interfaith do-gooders and the media into promoting the idea that “hijab” is a virtual “sixth pillar” of Islam, after the traditional “five pillars” of the shahada (or proclamation of faith), prayer, fasting, charity and pilgrimage.” they wrote in an opinion piece in TWP.
Liberal apologists’ not-so-liberal viewpoints
The support that this row has received from self-proclaimed ‘liberals’ is alarming. Their endorsement of the current controversy is nothing but an effort to incite hatred and target the government, for stating that the uniform and dress codes mandated by educational institutions must be obeyed. It’s worth mentioning that these liberal feminists routinely turn a blind eye to the open intolerance and hatred peddled against non-Muslims in India and across the world, but rush to shout at any incident which involves the Hindu culture. They keep seeking ways to enforce the Islamist views and practices in liberal democracies have never joined feminist developments in Iran, Saudi. The women struggling for their basic rights in Islamic countries never get any support from these self-proclaimed ‘liberals’.
Hijab in educational institutions
Schools and colleges are spaces that are designed and designated to impart education in the best way possible. They are a sort of consecrated place with some pre-requisites for both learners and the teachers. If one has to keep learning, one has to adhere to the rules and regulations set up by the institution.
The wearing of school uniforms is an integral aspect of the educational process. Wearing a school uniform also gives each student a sense of belonging to the institution. As studies suggest, students who wear school uniforms develop an appreciation for and respect for the tradition, as well as a desire to preserve its sanctity. By fostering a sense of belonging to their school, school uniforms also help to bring students together. Insisting on wearing something other than the standard uniform is not only demeaning, but it also demonstrates the audacity to disobey the institution’s regulations.
This obstinate insistence on wearing a hijab in a state-funded institution holds no merit. A state that seeks the welfare of all without discrimination is not obligated to endorse any individual’s or group’s personal beliefs.
The imposition of beliefs
Girls fighting for the right to wear a hijab in schools and universities is not something to be taken lightly. It must be emphasized that it is an attempt to impose one’s beliefs on others. No one disputes the right to wear a hijab or a burqa at a Madrassa, but wearing them in a public school, where pupils from various socioeconomic backgrounds and religions study in the same room, is not justifiable.
Furthermore, the parents and mentors of the protesting girls have lost their credibility to support them. Nobody is unaware that Maulvis, who preach Islam to these individuals, have been involved in open plots to assassinate people who have done nothing except insist on practising their faith, and that too in private space! The most recent incident is the murder of Kishan Bharwad in Gujarat.
The girls protesting and justifying their protest are choosing to be ignorant of how this Hijab is a symbol of Islamic fanaticism and female subjugation. It has come up as an effort to justify certain Islamists’ unwillingness to assimilate into mainstream culture and follow the laws of the state.
Such attempts to impose beliefs must be abandoned from the outset. People who advocate allowing such things in educational institutions must understand that education must be provided impartially and without discrimination. As such the government never prevents individual choice of attending a madarsa. If the students prefer Islamic practises over education, they are free to join madarsas, as MP Pratap Simha said recently.
