The men heckle her as she makes her way across the school grounds, demanding she take off her face covering, but instead of complying, Khan shouts back “Allahu Akbar” as she punches her fist in the air.
The confrontation illustrates the religious divide that’s been widening in Karnataka since a group of girls began protesting outside their government-run school in January after they were denied entry in the classroom for wearing a hijab.
The girls petitioned the state’s top court to lift the ban, prompting rival protests from right-wing Hindu students.
On Wednesday the court referred the petition to a larger panel of judges, but no date has been set for hearings.
They say that by denying Muslim women the choice to wear the hijab, the government is denying them their religious freedoms, enshrined in the Indian constitution.
“This is a massive attempt by the BJP to homogenize Indian culture, to make it a Hindu-only state,” said 23-year-old Muslim activist Afreen Fatima, who has been protesting in support of the students in her hometown of Allahabad in India’s northern Uttar Pradesh state.
“Muslim women are isolated in India. And the situation is getting worse every day.”
The ‘hijab row’
What started as a small protest made national headlines after several other government-run educational institutions in Karnataka denied entry to students wearing hijabs.
The protests have since spread to other cities. Scores of students took to the streets in India’s capital Delhi this month holding placards…
Source : cnn
