Bihar: Row erupts after teacher asks hijab-clad student to show if she wasn’t wearing a bluetooth device in examination

New Delhi: A row erupted on Sunday at a college student in Bihar’s Muzaffarpur after a female student alleged that objectionable remarks were made against her by a male teacher when she refused to take off her head-scarf (hijab) during an exam.

However, the college said that the girl was “not asked to take off her hijab and was only asked to show if she wasn’t wearing a Bluetooth device.”

The incident took place at the Mahant Darshan Das Mahila College, better known by its abbreviation “MDDM”, situated in Muzaffarpur’s Mithanpura locality where intermediate students turned up for their sent-up tests.

Meanwhile, students began protesting after the girl was allegedly asked to remove her hijab.

“We were in the classroom & were writing the exam when the teacher asked to take off the hijab saying that we might be wearing a Bluetooth device. On not taking off hijab the teacher asked us to leave,” students told ANI.

Bihar | Students at MDDM college in Muzaffarpur protested after a student was allegedly asked by a teacher to remove hijab during the exam, earlier today pic.twitter.com/CBHrgjZOe9

— ANI (@ANI) October 16, 2022

Student created ruckus, called anti-social elements: Principal

Students who clear sent-up tests will be eligible to appear for the final examination.
College Principal Dr. Kanu Priya said, “she was not prevented from wearing the hijab. She was only asked to reveal her ears since there were apprehensions that she might be carrying a Bluetooth device.

Students have to keep their mobile phones outside before entering the classroom. When teacher in exam hall asked the student to remove hijab & show if she isn’t using Bluetooth device, the girl didn’t show it & got aggressive: College Principal pic.twitter.com/XBLO8rZmQh

— ANI (@ANI) October 16, 2022

The principal said, “Hijab was not an issue at all. Many students were carrying mobile phones, which was against norms. The girl in question was among those who were asked to leave their handsets outside the exam hall”.

The girl was only asked to reveal her ears as the teacher, who was one of the invigilators, needed to check if she was carrying any Bluetooth device, the principal said.

“If the girl had a problem with that, she could have informed the examination controller or me. But she had other intentions. She rang up the local police station and also some local anti-social elements she seemed to be knowing. When they arrived, she created a ruckus,” alleged the principal.

“She claimed that the teacher had called her an anti-national and taunted her with the remark that she should go to Pakistan. I was not at the examination hall at the time but other girls appearing for the tests have said it was a lie,” said the principal.
The college principal also claimed that it appears from records that the girl’s attendance has been very poor.

“The education department has issued instructions that no student with less than 75 percent attendance be allowed to sit for the final exams. The girl might have acted under the impression that this will browbeat the college administration and force it to be lenient in her case,” Dr. Kanu Priya said.

Meanwhile, the Station House Officer of the local Mithanpura police station, Shrikant Sinha, said the dispute arose when the tests had just begun.

“Both sides were counselled by us and the exams were conducted peacefully. At present, lodging a case or deployment of additional forces in the area is not warranted. But we will keep a watch,” PTI quoted the SHO saying.

Wearing hijab in educational institutions has triggered a major row in Karnataka and the matter even reached the Supreme Court.

The apex court on 13 October delivered a split verdict on the ban on hijabs in Karnataka’s educational institutions and referred the matter to the Chief Justice of India for constituting a larger bench.

With inputs from agencies

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