Bangalore news Highlights: Holiday announced to universities belonging to the department of Higher Education and colleges under the Department of Collegiate and Technical Education, in the wake of the hijab row, has been extended till February 16, the Karnataka government said Friday. However, examinations will be held as scheduled and it has been directed to conduct online classes, state Higher Education Minister C N Ashwath Narayan said in a statement.
On Friday, the Karnataka High Court released an interim order for colleges to reopen and for students to refrain from wearing clothes that are not prescribed under colleges’ uniform norms. Earlier in the day, the Supreme Court declined to give urgent listing for hearing a Special Leave Petition against Karnataka High Court’s direction regarding the hijab petitions.
Karnataka on Friday reported 3,976 new cases of Covid-19 and 41 fatalities, taking the tally to 39,21,095 and toll to 39,575. The total number of active cases across the state is now 44,571. The positivity rate for the day stood at 3.47 per cent.
Covid-19 cases in Karnataka declined from 1,137 cases on Saturday to 1,001 cases on Sunday while 18 deaths took place today. These took the total infected and fatalities till date to 39,36,586 and 39,795, said the State Health Department. A bulletin said 1,780 people were discharged. The total recoveries were 38,84,120 so far. Active cases stood at 12,634.
Bengaluru urban district reported 485 infections and 12 deaths. Other districts too had fresh cases: 93 in Tumakuru, 51 in Belagavi, 48 in Mysuru, 46 in Ballari and 42 in Kodagu.
There were deaths in six districts, including the two in Dharwad. There were zero fatalities in 25 districts. The test positivity rate for the day was 1.42 per cent and the case fatality rate was 1.79 per cent. (PTI)
A criminal case of cheating, trespassing and threatening has been registered against Congress MLA and former minister B Z Zameer Ahmed Khan, his brother and others.
The case was registered by the Sampigehalli police station here on the direction of the Seventh Additional Chief Metropolitan Magistrate.
According to the FIR, Shahista Nazeen Khanum had owned land in Chokkanahalli in Yelahanka.
When they went to build a shed for the labourers on August 4, Khan with his brother Jameel Ahmed Khan and others allegedly trespassed into their property with bulldozers and weapons and threatened them not to build anything there. (PTI)
Former actor Zaira Wasim of ‘Dangal’ fame has expressed her disappointment over the hijab row and said it is an unjust choice to make between education and hijab, which is an obligation in Islam.
The hijab row began last month when six students at Government PU College in Udupi, who attended the class wearing the headscarf were prohibited from entering the college as it was in violation of the stipulated dress code.
Wasim penned a lengthy note on social media, which she posted on her Twitter and Instagram accounts, voicing her opinion on the backlash hijab-wearing girls and women are facing in the country. (PTI)
A criminal case of cheating, trespassing and threatening has been registered against Congress MLA and former minister B Z Zameer Ahmed Khan, his brother and others.
The case was registered by the Sampigehalli police station here on the direction of the Seventh Additional Chief Metropolitan Magistrate.
According to the FIR, Shahista Nazeen Khanum had owned land in Chokkanahalli in Yelahanka. When they went to build a shed for the labourers on August 4, Khan with his brother Jameel Ahmed Khan and others allegedly trespassed into their property with bulldozers and weapons and threatened them not to build anything there. (PTI)
In Bengaluru, a private school teacher was suspended for allegedly making derogatory remarks about religious clothing. As people gathered in front of the school on Saturday morning, one of the parents, Shahabuddin, told reporters that the hijab was not an issue in the state capital. “This school has about 80 per cent Muslim students, and there is no divide between Hindus and Muslims. But a teacher used derogatory language while referring to a section of students, which prompted us to come to the school. It has been solved.” Read more here
Bahutva Karnataka, an organisation of like-minded people, who were scheduled to hold candle vigil on Saturday evening in support of hijab and against the atrocities of few Hindu vigilante cancel the event after Bengaluru City Police withdrew its permission.
A PIL was filed in the Supreme Court on Saturday in the wake of the Karnataka ‘hijab’ row and it seeks a direction to the Centre, states and union territories to implement a common dress code for staffers and students in registered educational institutions for securing equality and promoting fraternity and national integration. On Friday, other cases pertaining to the ‘hijab’ controversy were mentioned for urgent hearing before the top court, which took note of the pendency before the three-judge bench in the Karnataka High Court, and said it would protect the Constitutional rights of every citizen and take up cases at an “appropriate time”. –PTI
Udupi BJP MLA K Raghupathi Bhat has said he has been receiving threat calls from unidentified persons after the hijab issue turned into a major controversy. Bhat, who is the president of the development committee of the pre-university college for women in Udupi where the hijab issue originated in Karnataka, told reporters in Udupi on Friday that most of the calls received by him were internet calls from foreign countries. The BJP MLA said the callers are issuing threats to his life which are not new to him. They have been warning that he will be targeted if he asserts himself more on the hijab issue. –PTI
The Karnataka government has extended till February 15 holidays for pre-university colleges, shut from February 9 following the raging hijab row on several campuses and was slated to open on February 14.
The government has already ordered closure of the degree and diploma colleges till February 16. In its circular, the government said the decision has been taken as a precautionary measure to maintain law and order in the state.
A video clip of some Muslim students allegedly offering ‘namaz’ inside the classroom of the government primary school at Ankathadka in Kadaba taluk of Karnataka’s Dakshina Kannada district has gone viral on social media.
The incident, that happened on February 4, came to light when the clip went viral a few days later and the local people came out with objections.
Following complaints, officials of the education department visited the school on Friday. The teachers of the school said they had directed the students not to engage in religious activities inside the classroom after the incident came to their notice.
The education department has directed its resource person to visit the school and submit a report on the incident immediately, block education officer C Lokesh said. (PTI)
Amid global criticism over the Hijab row in Karnataka, the Ministry of External Affairs Saturday said motivated comments over internal issues were not welcome.
Our response to media queries on India’s reaction to comments by some countries on dress code in some educational institutions in Karnataka:https://t.co/Mrqa0M8fVr pic.twitter.com/pJlGmw82Kp
This comes a day after a US government body that monitors and reports on religious freedom abroad had criticised the Karnataka government, saying “hijab bans in schools violated religious freedom and stigmatized and marginalized women and girls”. (Read more)
External Affairs Minister Dr. S. Jaishankar, who is in Australia for the fourth Quad Foreign Ministers’ Meeting, welcomed the Australian Government’s intention to open a Consulate-General in Bengaluru. The Minister also attended several official events in the country, and visited the Melbourne Cricket Ground.
A fitting end to a busy day. Quad FMs visit the @MCG. Presented @MarisePayne with a bat signed by @imVkohli.
A message of fair play and rules of the game. pic.twitter.com/c3KrKdRq6G
Police held flag marches across the twin districts of Dakshina Kannada and Udupi as part of preventive measures in the wake of the hijab controversy.
The flag marches were held on Friday evening at Puttur and Surathkal in Dakshina Kannada district. The highly trained 97th Battalion Rapid Action Force (RAF) who handle law and order issues took part in the march with 130 personnel, Deputy Commissioner of Police Hariram Shankar said. He said the RAF, stationed at Panambur in Mangaluru, will be pressed into action in the event of any law and order issue to ensure the safety of the public.
Udupi police also conducted a flag march on Friday at several places in the district, the epicentre of the hijab controversy. Flag marches were held in Udupi, Kaup, Kundapur, Karkala, Padubidri, Brahmavar, Byndoor and Shirva. Udupi district Superintendent of Police N Vishnuvardhan said the safety of the public will be ensured and the route march is to instil confidence among the people. (PTI)
With encroachments in forest areas becoming a major issue, officials of the Karnataka forest department say that delay in conducting surveys is one of the reasons behind rapid encroachment.
Some of the surveys in Bengaluru, Chikkamagaluru and Shivamogga wildlife divisions have not been completed even after a decade, say officials. (Read more)
Travellers from Maharashtra will no longer be required to produce a negative RT-PCR test report, Karnataka Health Minister K Sudhakar said on Twitter. However, they will be required to produce proof of vaccination.
Passengers coming from Maharashtra to Karnataka, through all modes of transportation, no longer need a negative RTPCR report. Vaccine certificate is however mandatory.#Maharashtra #Covid_19 #Covid pic.twitter.com/p84o2fGCB5
Bengaluru city is likely to see a maximum temperature of 30.5 degree Celsius and a minimum temperature of 17.2 degree Celsius, according to an 8.30 am update from the Meteorological Centre in Bengaluru. The humidity is set to be 59%. No rainfall has been predicted.
Here’s the local forecast:
For 24 hours: Mainly clear sky. Mist very likely during early morning hours in some areas. Maximum and minimum temperatures very likely to be around 30 and 16 degrees Celsius respectively.
For 48 hours: Mainly clear sky. Mist very likely during early morning hours in some areas. Maximum and minimum temperatures very likely to be around 30 and 16 degrees Celsius respectively.
The number of new Covid-19 cases in Karnataka continued to fall with the state recording a positivity rate of 3.47% Friday, as per the state health bulletin.
Here are the key figures:
➡️ New cases in Karnataka: 3,976
➡️ New cases in Bengaluru: 1,725
➡️ Positivity rate in Karnataka State: 3.47%
➡️ Discharges: 11,377
➡️ Active cases in the state: 44,571
➡️ Deaths in Karnataka: 41
Holiday announced to universities belonging to the department of Higher Education and colleges under the Department of Collegiate and Technical Education (DCTE), in the wake of the Hijab row, has been extended till February 16, the Karnataka government said Friday.
However, examinations will be held as scheduled and it has been directed to conduct online classes, state Higher Education Minister C N Ashwath Narayan said in a statement. (PTI)
US Ambassador-at-large for International Religious Freedom (IRF) Rashad Hussain on Friday said “Karnataka should not determine permissibility of religious clothing” and hijab bans in schools “violate religious freedom and stigmatize and marginalize women and girls”.
Religious freedom includes the ability to choose one’s religious attire. The Indian state of Karnataka should not determine permissibility of religious clothing. Hijab bans in schools violate religious freedom and stigmatize and marginalize women and girls.
This came on a day when External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar met US Secretary of State Antony Blinken in Melbourne on Friday and the two leaders reviewed the efforts to strengthen cooperation bilaterally and through the Quad grouping in the strategic Indian Ocean region. (Read more)
Following the interim order of Karnataka High Court over Karnataka hijab row, police route march in Udupi.
#karnataka
Following to the interim order of #KarnatakaHighCourt over #KarnatakaHijabRow Police route march in #Udupi @IndianExpress pic.twitter.com/JTkn9OMZzZ
Burqa-clad college girl confronts men in saffron shawls, video goes viral
The video of a burqa-clad college student confronting a group of men trying to heckle her at the PES College in Karnataka’s Mandya district has gone viral on social media. The men, who were carrying saffron shawls, had purportedly gathered outside the college on Tuesday demanding a ban on Islamic attire like hijab and burqa at the campus.
The girl, Muskan, a second-year student of BCom, came to the college to submit an assignment. When indianexpress.com spoke to her about the incident, Muskan said: “Before me, a few other Muslim girls were also heckled in a similar manner. The college administration and the principal never prevented us from wearing the burqa, so why should I listen to outsiders?”
