Srinagar: A prominent school in Srinagar city of Kashmir valley has courted a controversy after the principal of the school allegedly barred the girl students from wearing 'Abaya', the mandatory Muslim veil inside the school premises. The school management has however said that it was implementing a “uniform dress code” among the students.
According to local inputs, several girl students at the Vishwa Bharti Higher Secondary School in Rainawari area of Srinagar on Thursday held a protest against the school authorities for barring them without wearing ‘Abaya’. The protesting students said that they were not allowed to enter the school premises wearing the ‘Abaya’ following an order from the school principal.
According to a protesting school student, the principal asked them not to enter the school premises with ‘Abaya’ “and now she is changing her statement”. The protesting students further alleged that the school authorities have started co-education in the school “despite being a girls institution”. “We want the authorities to fix dress code for us,” she said.
While commenting on the matter, the Principal of the school said that they were applying a “uniform abaya code” among the girl students “in order to bring some uniformity”. “The girls have been wearing colourful abayas. We told them to wear a proper hijab which covers them up to knees,” the principal said. The school administration allegedly barring the girl students from wearing the mandatory Muslim veil has created an uproar in the valley with mainstream political party National Conference calling it “interference in matters of religious attire”.
In a Facebook post, NC spokesman Tanvir Sadiq said that wearing a Hijab should be a personal choice, and there should be no interference in matters of religious attire. “It is unfortunate to witness such incidents in a Muslim-majority Jammu and Kashmir. The school administration demanding the removal of Hijabs is unacceptable,” he said.
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“We strongly oppose this and urge for immediate corrective action. This is the Vishwa Bharti Higher Secondary School Rainawari Srinagar,” he added.
