Arabic teacher forced to leave exam hall for refusing to remove hijab during Hindi Prachar Sabha exam

News Network
August 21, 2023

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Chennai, Aug 21: A Muslim woman was reportedly forced to leave examination hall during the Dakshin Bharat Hindi Prachar Sabha’s exam at a school near Tiruvannamalai in Tamil Nadu after she turned down the demand to show her hair by removing her hijab.

Shabana, who teaches Arabic at a school in Tiruvannamalai town, was prepared to appear for her Madhyama exam at Annamalai Matriculation Higher Secondary School in Somasipadi village. However, a few minutes after the exam started on Sunday, August 20, she was asked to stop writing and remove her hijab.

“I informed the principal that I am a teacher and I cannot remove my hijab. The principal was not ready to listen to my explanations. I was standing for a couple of minutes hoping he would leave the place and I can continue my test. However, the school correspondent came in some time, raised her voice and said that she cannot allow me to take the exam if I wear the hijab. She took away my writing pad, kept it outside and told me to move out and enter the exam hall only after removing my hijab,” the victim told reporters.

Shabana said that within 20 minutes after she began writing, she was asked by the school principal, who came for invigilation, to remove her hijab.

According to Shabana, the school correspondent also asked her to submit a letter saying that she did not want to take the exam if she had to remove the hijab.

Shabana told the correspondent the hijab was like a uniform and that as a teacher, if she removed her hijab, students would think they could remove theirs also. “She said I cannot argue with her. Despite pleading with her for some time and saying that I can remove the nose piece, she was not ready to allow me,” the candidate said.

Shabana also said that she was made to wait for close to an hour by the authorities as they continued arguing with her, disallowing her to take the exam.

Later, Shabana's husband confronted the school management about the matter. Condemning the incident, members of the Social Democratic Party of India (SDPI) staged a protest in front of the exam centre.

“This is a democratic, secular country. Each one has their religious rights and no one should be allowed to take away anyone’s religious freedom. When we asked the principal if there was any government order on this, we were told that the Hindi Prachar Sabha secretary had informed them,” said Mustaq Baasha, SDPI president in Tiruvannamalai district.

“The government should provide justice to the woman and take stringent action against the authorities for discrimination,” the SDPI leader said, adding that such incidents could not be allowed to take place in Tamil Nadu, “the land of Periyar”.

An official from the district education department said that the exam was conducted by the Hindi Prachar Sabha and not the state government, adding that the government had not issued any such order insisting that candidates should remove their hijab.

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News Network
October 21,2024

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Khalistani terrorist Gurpatwant Singh Pannun on Monday warned passengers not to fly on Air India flights from November 1 to 19. He asserted that an attack could take place on an Air India flight during the specified dates, which coincide with the "40th anniversary of the Sikh genocide".

The founder of Sikhs for Justice (SFJ), who holds dual citizenship in Canada and the US, had issued a similar threat around the same time last year.

Pannun's fresh threat comes amid several airlines in India receiving multiple threat calls about potential bombings, all of which turned out to be hoaxes. It also occurred at a time when India and Canada are engaged in a murky diplomatic row following Canada's allegations of India targeting Khalistani elements in the country, including the murder of another terrorist, Hardeep Singh Nijjar.

In November 2023, Pannun released a video claiming that Delhi's Indira Gandhi International Airport would be renamed and would remain closed on November 19, warning people against flying on Air India that day. The National Investigation Agency charged him with criminal conspiracy, promoting enmity between different groups on the grounds of religion, and various offences under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act (UAPA).

In December last year, Pannun threatened to attack the Parliament on or before December 13, following reports of an alleged foiled plot to kill him. December 13 marks the anniversary of the terrorist attack on the Parliament in 2001.

He also threatened to kill Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann and Director General of State Police Gaurav Yadav on Republic Day this year. He also urged gangsters to unite and launch an attack on Mann on January 26.

Pannun has been designated a terrorist by the Ministry of Home Affairs since July 2020 on charges of sedition and secessionism, as he leads SFJ, a group advocating for a separate sovereign Sikh state. A year prior to this, India banned SFJ as an "unlawful association" for engaging in "anti-national and subversive" activities.

In another development, on October 17, the United States charged a former officer of India's spy agency Research and Analysis Wing (RAW) for allegedly directing a foiled plot to murder Pannun, a charge New Delhi has rejected as baseless allegations.

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News Network
October 28,2024

Bengaluru: The Enforcement Directorate on Monday undertook fresh searches in connection with the Mysuru Urban Development Authority (MUDA) linked money laundering case in which it has booked Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah, official sources said.

About seven-eight premises in Bengaluru and Mysuru are being covered, the sources said.

The federal agency had conducted the first round of raids in this case on October 18 when it searched the MUDA office in Mysuru and some other locations.

It also questioned some lower-rank officials of the MUDA at its Bengaluru zonal office last week.

The ED has filed a enforcement case information report (ECIR) under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) to book the CM and others taking cognisance of a Lokayukta FIR.

Siddaramaiah is facing Lokayukta and ED probes into alleged irregularities in the allotment of 14 sites to his wife by the MUDA.

Siddaramaiah's wife Parvathi B M, brother-in-law Mallikarjuna Swamy, Devaraju -- from whom Mallikarjuna Swamy purchased land and gifted it to Parvathi -- and others are named as other accused in the case by the two probe agencies.

Parvathi was recently questioned by the Lokayukta.

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News Network
October 27,2024

Samajwadi Party (SP) chief Akhilesh Yadav stated on Sunday, October 27, that his party is prepared to contest the Maharashtra Assembly elections independently if the Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) does not include them in the alliance. 

Yadav assured that the SP would only contest in constituencies where it has a strong organizational presence and would ensure its participation does not affect the MVA’s overall prospects.

Several I.N.D.I.A. alliance members have expressed dissatisfaction with the Congress over seat-sharing arrangements in upcoming state polls. 

Both the CPI(ML)L and the RJD voiced frustration after being offered only 3-4 seats each for the Jharkhand elections by the Congress.

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