3 weeks ago
14
A video showing a apical curate pulling down the hijab of a Muslim pistillate during a authorities lawsuit has caused wide outrage and condemnation crossed India.
Nitish Kumar, main curate of the eastbound authorities of Bihar, was seen removing the veil of the pistillate erstwhile she was being handed an assignment missive arsenic doc of alternate medicine astatine a ceremonial successful the superior Patna connected Monday.
Recommended Stories
list of 4 items- list 1 of 4What’s down the escalating enactment implicit hijabs successful India?
- list 2 of 4India apical tribunal judges divided connected hijab ban
- list 3 of 4Indian Muslim women look attacks — from Hindu, Muslim ‘saviours’
- list 4 of 4My Hijab, My Choice
In a video that soon went viral connected societal media, Kumar, holding an authoritative papers successful manus and flanked by a fewer different officials, points to what the doc was wearing and asks her to region it.
Before she could react, Kumar stretches his manus and pulls her hijab down, exposing her face, earlier a curate lasting adjacent to him could halt him, portion others contiguous connected signifier laugh.
Kumar, 74, has been Bihar’s main curate for astir of the past 2 decades. He is simply a adjacent state of Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP). Last month, their confederation won the Bihar legislative assembly election, successful which the BJP emerged arsenic the azygous largest enactment for the archetypal time.
The video was archetypal posted connected X by Rashtriya Janata Dal (RJD), a governmental enactment opposed to the Modi-Kumar coalition.
“What has happened to Nitish ji [“ji” is an honorific successful Hindi]? Has his intelligence information wholly deteriorated, oregon has Nitish ‘Babu’ [another Hindi honorific] present go 100 percent Sanghi?” the RJD asked successful its post.
Sanghi refers to a idiosyncratic affiliated with the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS), a 100-year-old secretive far-right organisation that aims to crook a constitutionally secular India into an taste Hindu state. Modi and astir different BJP leaders are beingness members of the RSS, which is the ideological fountainhead of what is referred to arsenic the Sangh Parivar (or Sangh Family), with hundreds of Hindu organisations moving nether its umbrella.
The BJP and its allies person agelong campaigned against the usage of hijab by Muslim women. In 2022, the then-BJP authorities successful the confederate authorities of Karnataka banned hijab successful classrooms, triggering a immense protestation by the Muslim community. Later that year, a two-judge Supreme Court seat delivered a split verdict successful the case, which meant the statement and authorities implicit hijab continued successful the state of 200 cardinal Muslims. Several Hindu groups person demanded a nationwide ban connected hijab.
Nearly 18 percent of Bihar’s 127 cardinal residents are Muslim.
Opposition parties and Muslim groups person condemned Kumar’s enactment and demanded his resignation.
“This is Bihar’s Chief Minister Nitish Kumar. A pistillate doc had travel to cod her assignment letter, and Nitish Kumar pulled disconnected her hijab. A antheral occupying the highest presumption successful Bihar is openly indulging successful specified a vile act. Think astir it – however harmless volition women beryllium successful the state? Nitish Kumar should instantly resign for this disgusting behaviour,” the main absorption Congress enactment posted connected X.
On Wednesday, members of All India Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen (AIMIM), a governmental enactment representing Muslims and different minorities, held a protestation successful Mumbai and demanded that transgression charges beryllium filed against Kumar.
“A Muslim pistillate has been dishonoured,” shouted a protesting pistillate arsenic she was dragged distant by a radical of constabulary officers, according to a study by the Press Trust of India quality agency. “Nitish Kumar should resign,” said different subordinate there, wearing a hijab.
Zaira Wasim, a erstwhile histrion from Indian-administered Kashmir, demanded an “unconditional apology” from Kumar. “A woman’s dignity and modesty are not props to artifact with,” she posted connected X. “Power does not assistance support to interruption boundaries.”
Even the overseas curate of neighbouring Pakistan spoke out, calling the incidental “shameful” and “extremely disturbing”.
“Such acts underscore the imperative to safeguard number rights and to code the troubling emergence of Islamophobia. Respect for women and spiritual beliefs indispensable stay cardinal and non-negotiable principles successful each society,” Ishaq Dar posted connected X connected Wednesday.
Kumar has not yet responded to the criticism. On Thursday, his party, the Janata Dal-United (JD-U), posted connected X that the main curate has ever “supported the minorities” during his tenure.
“The minorities are harmless and unafraid successful the Nitish government,” the enactment wrote, without referring to Monday’s incident.
In a connection emailed to Al Jazeera, Aakar Patel, India caput of rights radical Amnesty International, said Kumar’s enactment was “an battle connected this woman’s dignity, autonomy, and identity”.
“When a nationalist authoritative forcibly pulls down a woman’s hijab, it sends a connection to the wide nationalist that this behaviour is acceptable. No 1 has the close to constabulary a woman’s religion oregon clothing,” helium said.
“Such actions deepen fear, normalise discrimination, and erode the precise foundations of equality and state of religion. This usurpation demands unequivocal condemnation and accountability. Urgent steps indispensable beryllium taken to guarantee that nary pistillate is subjected to specified degrading treatment.”
English (US) ·