MPs yesterday condemned the hijab ban imposed in educational institutions in an Indian state and demanded international pressure on the government to immediately end the ‘discriminatory’ decision.
Parliament unanimously approved an urgent proposal by 23 MPs, led by Al Asala Bloc president and services committee chairman Ahmed Al Ansari, to issue a statement against “such discrimination towards the Muslim minority” in the country.
The urgent proposal was added as Speaker Fouzia Zainal was set to end the session for a few MPs to attend official business abroad.
“The inhumane, unjust and unfair decision to ban the hijab in educational institutions in a state, considered a stronghold of Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), should end immediately,” said Mr Al Ansari.
“We are not demanding the government to severe ties with India, we just want them to treat Muslims the same way we treat Hindus here, as they have their own temples, practise their rituals freely and wear whatever they want.
“Religious tolerance and freedoms are basic international human rights.
“The world has to take a stand against this issue before it further escalates.”
Meanwhile, bloc member MP Abdulrazzak Al Hattab said secular human rights societies across the world have called on the Indian government to revoke the ban on headscarves.
“People have the right to wear what they want, especially if it is part of their religious culture,” he said.
Last week, a judge at Karnataka’s high court referred petitions challenging the ban to a larger panel. The issue is being closely watched internationally as a test of religious freedom guaranteed by the Indian Constitution.
The US Office of International Religious Freedom had also criticised the ban on Friday.
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