Bikini or hijab, womans right to decide: Priyanka Gandhi Vadra on Karnataka row

Priyanka Gandhi
Vadra, the Congress leader spearheading the party’s Uttar Pradesh campaign,
spoke out on the Karnataka hijab row on Twitter Wednesday. Gandhi Vadra, whose
campaign for the UP polls is “Ladki Hun Lad Sakti Hun,” emphatically stated
that women have a right to wear what they choose.

“Whether it is a
bikini, a ghoonghat, a pair of jeans, or a hijab, it is a woman’s right to
decide what she wants to wear. This right is guaranteed by the Indian
Constitution. Stop harassing women,” the Congress leader tweeted.

Rahul Gandhi, MP
and Congress’ effective national leader, responded to his sister’s tweet with a
“thumbs up” emoji. The 51-year-old former Congress president had spoken out on
the hijab row last week.

Also Read | What, where and why of Karnataka hijab row: All you need to know

“By letting
students’ hijab come in the way of their education, we are robbing the future
of the daughters of India. Ma Saraswati gives knowledge to all. She doesn’t
differentiate,” Gandhi said.

Several colleges
in Karnataka saw tensions escalate after sections of students opposed the right
of other students to wear the hijab in college. The hijab is a headscarf of
sorts typically worn by Muslim women.

On Tuesday,
hundreds of students gathered at Mahatma Gandhi Memorial College in Karnataka’s
Udupi. While one section of students chanted “Jai Shree Ram” slogans, the other
group expressed their anger at not being allowed to wear the hijab.

Karnataka Chief
Minister Basavaraj Bommai said Tuesday, “All concerned people should keep the
peace and let the children study.” Schools in Karnataka are closed for three
days.  

Despite appeals,
footage surfaced on Tuesday of a woman being heckled by a group of men in Mandya
wearing saffron scarves and shouting “Jai Shree Ram”. The girl yells “Allah hu
Akbar” before she is escorted away, according to an NDTV report.

The burgeoning
protests have spread from Udupi to Chikkamagaluru and Mandya.