UDUPI, India: Some schools reopened in the Indian state of Karnataka on Monday after closing last week when protests erupted over students being barred from wearing the hijab in class.
The issue, widely seen by India’s Muslim minority community as a bid to sideline it by authorities in a Hindu-dominated nation, comes as Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) prepares for elections in key states.
Police stood guard as students in pink uniforms, about a dozen wearing the hijab, entered a government girl’s school where the issue first flared in the southern Indian state’s district of Udupi, about 400 km (250 miles) from the tech hub of Bengaluru.
Authorities have banned gatherings of more than five people within 200 meters of educational institutions in the area, as classes from primary to high school began. Colleges remain shut.
A court in the state last week told students not to wear any religious clothing — ranging from saffron shawls, worn by some Hindus, to headscarves — in classrooms until further notice.
Devadatt Kamat, a lawyer in the case, said in an online hearing on Monday that his clients had been covering their heads in class since joining school. They were mainly seeking permission to keep wearing headscarves in the colors of school uniforms, he said.
Last week some schools refused entry to girls and women wearing the hijab, citing a Feb. 5 order on uniforms by the state, ruled by Modi’s party.
Some Muslim students and parents protested the move, drawing counter protests from Hindu students who wore saffron shawls and shouted slogans.
Modi’s party derives its support mainly from the majority Hindu community, which makes up about 80 percent of India’s population of roughly 1.4 billion, while Muslims account for about 13 percent.
Ayesha Imthiaz, a student in Udupi, said it was humiliating to be asked to take off the hijab before class.
An official in the coastal district, Pradeep Kurudekar S, told reporters authorities would wait for further orders from the government to resume all classes.
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Some schools reopen in Indian state after hijab dispute
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Some schools reopen in Indian state after hijab dispute
- The issue is seen by India’s Muslim minority as a bid to sideline it by authorities in a Hindu-dominated nation
- A court in Karnataka last week told students not to wear any religious clothing in classrooms until further notice
Trump administration restricts 2 Honduran election officials’ visas over special vote count
TEGUCIGALPA: The Trump administration restricted visas for two leftist Honduran election officials, citing interference in the Central American country’s special vote count.
The US State Department said in a statement Friday it revoked the visa of Mario Morazán, a magistrate of the Electoral Justice Tribunal, and denied a visa application from Marlon Ochoa, a member of the National Electoral Council. Both belong to the leftist ruling LIBRE, or Liberty and Refoundation, party.
“The United States will not tolerate actions that undermine our national security and our region’s stability,” the statement said. “We will consider all appropriate measures to deter those impeding the vote count in Honduras.”
Nearly 20 days after the elections were held, Hondurans still do not know the results of the presidential race. Due to the narrow margin between the two leading candidates, electoral officials have carried out a special revision of 2,792 ballot boxes that show alleged inconsistencies and errors. Officials began the special vote count on Thursday after more than a week of the count being paralyzed.
With 99.85 percent of the vote counted so far, conservative candidate Nasry Asfura of the National Party — whom US President Donald Trump had backed in the lead-up to the election, fueling accusations of election intervention by his opponents — is narrowly leading with 40.24 percent of the vote. Fellow conservative Salvador Nasralla of the Liberal Party followed with 39.64 percent.
In a distant third place is the ruling party’s candidate, Rixi Moncada of Liberty and Refoundation, with 19.12 percent of the vote. Moncada has not recognized the results.
This is the latest example of the Trump administration weighing in on Honduran affairs throughout the election. Over the past year in office, it has wielded its power in Latin America more aggressively than most US governments in recent history. Trump has openly offered support and funds to right-wing allies, while applying punishing pressure to adversaries, often on the left.
Trump had also pardoned former Honduran President Juan Orlando Hernández, sentenced last year to 45 years in prison for his role in a drug trafficking operation by a US court.
The US State Department said in a statement Friday it revoked the visa of Mario Morazán, a magistrate of the Electoral Justice Tribunal, and denied a visa application from Marlon Ochoa, a member of the National Electoral Council. Both belong to the leftist ruling LIBRE, or Liberty and Refoundation, party.
“The United States will not tolerate actions that undermine our national security and our region’s stability,” the statement said. “We will consider all appropriate measures to deter those impeding the vote count in Honduras.”
Nearly 20 days after the elections were held, Hondurans still do not know the results of the presidential race. Due to the narrow margin between the two leading candidates, electoral officials have carried out a special revision of 2,792 ballot boxes that show alleged inconsistencies and errors. Officials began the special vote count on Thursday after more than a week of the count being paralyzed.
With 99.85 percent of the vote counted so far, conservative candidate Nasry Asfura of the National Party — whom US President Donald Trump had backed in the lead-up to the election, fueling accusations of election intervention by his opponents — is narrowly leading with 40.24 percent of the vote. Fellow conservative Salvador Nasralla of the Liberal Party followed with 39.64 percent.
In a distant third place is the ruling party’s candidate, Rixi Moncada of Liberty and Refoundation, with 19.12 percent of the vote. Moncada has not recognized the results.
This is the latest example of the Trump administration weighing in on Honduran affairs throughout the election. Over the past year in office, it has wielded its power in Latin America more aggressively than most US governments in recent history. Trump has openly offered support and funds to right-wing allies, while applying punishing pressure to adversaries, often on the left.
Trump had also pardoned former Honduran President Juan Orlando Hernández, sentenced last year to 45 years in prison for his role in a drug trafficking operation by a US court.
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