Complaint Against Rana Ayyub For Calling Students Carrying Saffron Flags 'Terrorists'

A complaint against Rana Ayyub was recently registered for her remarks on the students in Karnataka carrying saffron flags, protesting against Muslim students wearing hijab. The advocate who has filed the complaint with the Mumbai Police has called Ayyub's remarks "derogatory".

Advocate Ashutosh J Dubey, who has filed the complaint, alleged that in a recent interview with BBC World News, journalist and author Rana Ayyub said that "students with saffron flags in Karnataka are terrorists."

Over these alleged remarks, Dubey has asked the police to take action against the journalist, who wrote the book the Gujarat Files. The complainant called the video "objectionable" and stated that the comment was "willfully spelling inciting and derogatory statements against the students who hold saffron flags."

Hijab Row In Karnataka

This row began in December last year after a group of girls wearing hijab were stopped from entering the Government PU Girls' College in Udupi district of Karnataka. The reason cited by the administration for this sudden step was a circular on proper dress code that was issued by the State Education Ministry. According to the said circular, students were not allowed to wear hijab or any religious clothing.

Suggested Reading: Karnataka Hijab Row: No Girl Should Have To Be “Brave” Just So That She Can Study

Students claimed that this was the first time they had been stopped from wearing hijab. After protests, they were allowed to enter campus wearing hijab but were asked to remove their headscarves before entering classrooms.

In February, this row spilled over to other colleges in the district, starting with Bhandarkar's College in Udupi. Again, a group of women wearing hijab were stopped from entering the college and sent back. However, this incident was triggered by hundreds of boys showing up in saffron shawls, demanding a band on hijab on the college campus.

A video of Muslim women students pleading with college authorities to let them attend classes, as their exams were just two months away, went viral on social media, sparking a larger debate on social media.

Last week, in the Mandya district of the state, a girl wearing burkha was hounded by a group of saffron-clad boys. They screamed Jai Shri Ram and followed her. The girl, named Muskan Khan, tired of the harassment, shouted back "Allah Hu Akbar."

One of the girl students had filed a plea with the Karnataka High Court for allowing girls to wear hijab. The plea is being heard by the Chief Justice of Karnataka Ritu Raj Awasthi, Justices JM Khazi and Krishna S Dixit. They have given an interim order until the matter is resolved. CJ Awasthi said that till the time the case is disposed of, students should not insist on wearing religious "things" on college campus.

The students had also moved Supreme Court of India for intervention in the issue. However, the Chief Justice of India NV Ramana rejected the plea and said, "Please do not spread it to larger levels We know what is happening. Think over, is it proper to bring these things to Delhi? The national level? If there is anything wrong, we will protect..."