Female students at the Vishu Bharti (VB) school in Rainawari Srinagar launched a protest against the school management on Thursday morning, claiming they had been barred from entering the school grounds. The administration explained the decision to the pupils by saying they had received instructions from “higher ups.”
If we wish to learn how to properly wear the Abaya, we are obligated to attend a Madrassa. The kids who staged the protest said that the school administration had told them that their actions were negatively impacting the school’s climate.
The kids emphasised that they had no objection to anybody going to school in any manner of attire, but that they should be allowed to exercise their right to cover their heads if they so want. Say it with me: “Aap loug yahan ka mahoul kharab karte hai. The principal reportedly instructed the girls, “Hijab mai pehnke kaand karte ho aur apne ghar walon ka naam kharab karte ho.” You Muslim women in hijabs have made the educational environment intolerable. All of you are a disgrace to your families, and you should be ashamed.
Who are they to pass judgement on us because of what we choose to wear? The sports programme and other extracurricular activities are hostile environments for us. A protesting student remarked, “Why is it okay for male students to continue smoking inside the college, but problematic the moment female students start following what they choose?”
Meanwhile, a parent complained that male students were smoking and using inappropriate language on school grounds. That’s not a problem, by the way. Many of them are wearing brightly coloured full-body covers called Abayas, and we’re just asking them to remove them. A woman may wear a hijab in this establishment without being discriminated against. “We just want to make sure everyone in school adheres to the same dress code,” she said.
