As per a report by the Kashmir Observer, Aroosa Parvaiz, a Kashmiri student who had appeared in the class 12th exams of Jammu and Kashmir State Board of School Education, has been getting threats for not wearing hijab. The results of this exam were announced on 8th February 2022. She has topped the exam with 99.8 percent marks.
Soon after the announcement of the results, journalists published photos and videos of the top performer. As Aroosa Parvaiz was not wearing a hijab, Islamists started targeting and abusing her. Some of them even threatened her with rape and killing. While teaching her lessons of Islam, these Islamists have quoted the so-called struggle for the hijab by their fellow sisters in Karnataka.
While talking to the Kashmir Observer, Aroosa Parvaiz has said “These comments don’t matter to me but they’ve taken a toll on my parents. Wearing or not wearing Hijab doesn’t define one’s belief in their religion. Maybe, I love Allah more than they (abusers) do. I’m a Muslim by heart not by hijab.”
As the news was shared in various social media handles, the comment sections of the posts flooded with criticism and threats by the Islamists. A user named @onesoul-twoeyes has written that “Begairat… Pardah nai kia… Eski garden katt do…” which means “Shameless… She didn’t wear a veil… Slit her throat…”.
Another social media user with account name @hurricane_syed has written in a comment “Jo taleem aurat ke ser see chader or mard ke dil see khouf dur kreay esi taleem see anpad rehna beather hai” which means “it is better to be uneducated than getting the education that takes the scarf off a woman’s head and takes away the fear in a man’s heart”.
One user @Cyed_burhaan has posted that “in Karnataka the Muslim girls fight for hijab and in our Kashmir our sisters upload their photos without covering their faces. It is not permissible that women can show their faces in front of strangers. So fear God!”
Another user called Arif Teli has written that “shame on your dress code and also on your parents.”
Shabir Ali has written that “Indeed, she is failed. She doesn’t even know what is modesty. Rip to her parents who doesn’t feel any shame for her bad hijab.”
In Karnataka, burqa (full veil) clad people who identify themselves as students have been protesting since December last year claiming they have right to wear a hijab (headscarf) to school. They have been groomed and consulted by Campus Front of India (CFI), student wing of the Islamist group Popular Front of India (PFI) which is banned in several states for extremist activities. The burqa clad people have also got support from the Taliban for their ‘fight’. The ‘liberals’ and Islamists have been claiming wearing a hijab is a choice, but it seems from the above comments, not wearing a hijab attracts threats.
