Hijab cauldron keeps burning

It's a conspiracy, says Kerala Guv

New Delhi: Kerala Governor Arif Mohammed Khan on Saturday termed the ongoing hijab row as a "conspiracy" and said it was not a question of choice but whether a person would follow the regulations, dress code of an institution or not.

Responding to the raging issue in neighbouring Karnataka, he told reporters in New Delhi that "please don't take this as controversy...this is a conspiracy."

Noting that Muslim girls are doing "so well" everywhere and so they need encouragement, Khan also said they do not need to be pushed down.

"It (wearing hijab) is not a question of choice...but it is a question of whether if you are joining an institution, are you going to follow the regulations, the discipline and the dress code or not," he said.

'Will chop off hands of those who touch hijab'

ALIGARH: Samajwadi Party leader from Aligarh Rubina Khanam on Saturday threatened to chop off hands of those who touch the hijab of any woman.

Her statement comes in light of the ongoing hijab controversy that took shape in Karnataka and is now reaching different pockets of the country.

Khanam said, "The ongoing hijab controversy in Karnataka is an attack on the self-respect of women and daughters of India. Anybody who tries to lay a hand on hijab of a woman will see their hands chopped off".

...'chastity belt of the dark ages'

DHAKA: Bangladeshi author Taslima Nasreen has waded into the hijab controversy, likening it to a "chastity belt of the dark ages".

In an opinion piece for a news website on Saturday, the atheist and humanist said there is "practically no difference between a Jewish, Christian, Muslim or Hindu fundamentalist".

Karnataka govt extends holidays for PU colleges

BENGALURU: The Karnataka government extended holidays for pre-university colleges till February 15. They were shut from February 9 and were scheduled to reopen on Feb 14.

Amid the ongoing controversies surrounding Hijab-wearing, the Karnataka government on Saturday announced extending of holidays for pre-university colleges till February 15 .They were shut from February 9 and were supposed to reopen on February 14.

This development comes a day after the state government extended holiday for all the universities under the Department of Higher Education and colleges under the Department of DCTE till February 16.