The ‘hijab’ row instigated by PFI’s student wing CFI has now taken the usual turn of all Islamist protests. Despite administration’s appeals to the protesting Muslim girl students to approach the appropriate committee if they wanted to discuss a change to long-standing school/college dress norms, the Islamists moved their campaign to phase 2 – violence.

Stone-pelting by Islamists and police lathi charge has been reported from various parts of Karnataka. A teacher, Manjunath Naik, was attacked with iron rods causing severe head injuries in Banahatti town of Bagalkot district. His condition is said to be serious.  “I was crossing the road when a group of people attacked me with iron rods on my head. I couldn’t realize what was happening,” a bleeding Manjunath Naik explained to media persons. He was taken to hospital by the police later. 

One video has emerged showing a Hindu girl student, who appears to have suffered a head injury in stone-pelting by the pro-hijab mob, being carried away to safety while her friends follow on looking distressed.

In Government Pre-University College of Rabakavibanahatti in Banhatti, a group of Muslim men pelted stones on the college and Hindu students in the presence of police. Few students and people have suffered minor injuries, as per sources. The local police were forced to do a lathi charge to control the situation.

In another incident, it was reported that Hindu students wearing saffron stoles were threatened by some people and police had to intervene.

In Bapujinagar Government Pre-University College in Shivamogga, stones were pelted at the college and police had to resort to lathi charge. At IDGS govt college in Chikkamagluru, pro-hijab demonstrators threw stones at private buses near the junior college. Numerous students are feared to have been injured as a result of the stone-pelting in these locations.

Rumours were spread that Hindu students had brought down the tricolor to hoist the saffron flag in the First Grade Degree College and PG Research Centre in Shivamogga. Authorities clarified that the ‘Bhagva Dhwaj’ was hoisted on an empty flag post. On Wednesday morning, NSUI (Congress student wing) members entered the college in violation of curfew orders in Shivamogga district, and pulled down the saffron flag. Police rushed to defuse the situation.

At the Mahatma Gandhi Memorial College in Udupi, a face off between the two groups of students led to stone pelting in which 3 students were injured. There was chaos at the entrance of Shanteshwar Pre-University College in Indi town, Vijayapura district too. A third group wearing blue stoles and chanting “Jai Bhim” slogans in support of the pro-hijab group was seen here.

In Mandya PES College, a girl student clad in burqa raised ‘Allah ho Akbar” slogans and the Hindu students responded with slogan of ‘Jai Sriram’.

Pro-Pak slogans and teargas shells fired in Harihar, Davanagere district

Violence was also reported from Davanagere and Harihara twin cities where prohibitory orders have now been clamped. Police fired teargas shells and carried out a baton charge to quell the violent mob in the Harihar First Grade College campus in Davanagere district. According to eyewitnesses, several policemen and students were injured in the violent incident. Many two-wheelers have been damaged and a tense situation prevails in the Davanagere town.

The trouble started when a group of people came to the college in support of the hijab. The group got into an argument with the students wearing saffron shawls and soon the situation turned violent. Police rushed to the spot and asked the mob standing outside to move out of the college area. The group of outsiders did not budge and refused to move claiming claimed that they have to ‘protect’ the hijab-wearing students. Soon, stone pelting began. To quell the mob, police fired teargas and carried out baton charge.

The town had witnessed protests on Monday night also after an objectionable social media post. That incident also saw ‘Pakistan zindabad’ slogans being raised. 

Police assaults and intimidates Hindu students?

In videos shared by twitter handle @HMSKTK, Karnataka Police and some officials appear to be intimidating a group of Hindu boys wearing saffron stoles.

In another video, Hindu girls students alleged that police was beating Hindu students up while sparing the pro-hijab group. In another video from Mandya, police could be seen asking Hindu students to remove their saffron stoles.

While the allegations of police bias should be probed fully, such behavior wouldn’t come as a surprise. Whenever faced with a tricky situation or communal polarization, the secular state’s first instinct is always to suppress Hindus or ask them to ‘tolerate’ things in interest of harmony.

Conclusion

As per the information of the Karnataka Home department, confrontation and violent incidents broke out in 7 colleges of 5 districts in the state. Protests have been staged in 55 colleges of 19 districts in Karnataka.

The police have arrested 15 persons and sent them to judicial custody in Shivamogga and Bagalkot districts in connection with Tuesday’s violence.

A handful of girls who have openly stated “hijab is our first priority, education comes second” and the Islamists puppeteering this entire episode have been allowed to hijack the education of lakhs of Karnataka students, just when schools were getting back on track after a disruptive pandemic.

And in all this, our liberal elites have been found hypocritically cheering and egging on the Islamic fundamentalists endangering education of all our youth, while slandering those Hindus who are merely demanding adherence to a uniform dress code in government junior colleges (high schools).

The burqa-clad Muslim girl who shouted “AllahuAkbar” in Mandya is the toast of liberals on SM, but the victims of the violence unleashed over these protests such as Manjunath Naik and the injured girl student who had to be carried away to safety will remain faceless and voiceless for our MSM.

(With IANS inputs)