K'taka Hijab row: TRS leader Kavitha pens down poem to support girls

Telangana Rashtra Samithi (TRS) MLC Kalavakuntla Kavitha on Thursday penned down a poem to lend support to girls participating in the Karnataka Hijab protest. The TRS leader took to her official Twitter handle today and posted a poem with the caption "Let women decide what they are comfortable in embracing and wearing".

"Wearing and applying Sindoor is my conscious choice Wearing Hijab is Muskan's choice. Let women decide what they are comfortable in embracing and wearing. #DontTeachUs," the TRS leader tweeted. In her poem, the former MP also said that despite the actions of divisive forces, "We are all one - we are Indians".

She also said that the choice of lifestyle and choice of clothing is a personal choice and the idea of India cannot be evaluated with the notion of how a certain section of the society expects women and religions to behave. The Hijab protests began on February 4 at the Government Girls PU college in Udupi district in Karnataka when some students alleged that they had been barred from attending classes. During the protests, some students were allegedly denied entry to college wearing hijab by Muslim women earlier this month. 

On Monday, students of different colleges arrived that Shanteshwar Education Trust in Vijayapura wearing saffron stoles amid the Hijab row in Karnataka. The pre-University education board had released a circular stating that the students can only wear the uniform approved by the school administration and no other religious practices will be allowed in colleges. 

Following these protests, a three-day holiday from February 9 to 11 has been declared in all the universities under the Department of Higher Education and colleges under the department of Collegiate and Technical Education (DCTE). Karnataka High Court on Tuesday also appealed student community and the public at large to maintain peace and tranquillity while hearing various pleas challenging a ban on hijab in the state.