Jaipur, January 29, 2024: A group of Muslim schoolgirls staged a protest outside a Jaipur police station on Monday demanding action against Balmukund Acharya, a BJP MLA, for objecting to the girls wearing hijabs during an annual school event last week.
The girls, students at a local government-run school, accused Acharya of asking them inappropriate questions about their hijabs during the function. Holding placards and raising slogans against the legislator, they demanded an apology and an FIR against him.
According to the protesting students, Acharya asked them how they could breathe while wearing hijabs and said the headscarf should not be allowed. The Hawa Mahal MLA, however, denied this and said he only enquired about the school’s dress code rules from the principal.
As per Acharya, he noticed students dressed in hijabs and burqas at the event and asked the principal if there was provision for two separate dresses. The principal informed him that the school did not have any such provisions and that students were expected to follow uniform rules.
The legislator justified his questions saying there were visibly two types of atmospheres at the school event due to the different dresses worn by students. He claimed to have simply enquired about the dress regulations and did not intended to target madrasas.
Meanwhile, police have initiated a probe based on the complaint filed by the schoolgirls and their families. Efforts are being made to convince the protestors as the MLA has refused to apologize so far.
The issue has sparked fresh hijab row debates with politicians alleging minority appeasement. It remains to be seen if the Rajasthan education authorities will re-examine dress code guidelines for government schools in light of this controversy involving Muslim girl students.
Muslim girl students from a government senior secondary school protested outside a police station demanding action against BJP MLA Balmukund Acharya. The MLA had objected to the girls wearing hijab during a school event, questioning the dress code. The students demanded an apology from the legislator and an FIR against him. Congress MLA Rafeek Khan also attempted to raise the issue in the Rajasthan Assembly but was denied the opportunity to speak. Acharya defended his stance, citing a lack of clarity in the school’s dress code. The girl students and their families have filed a complaint, and the matter is under investigation.
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