In Tripura, girls in hijab stopped outside school; classmate thrashed for protesting

A Muslim boy was thrashed by men from a right wing group in Tripura on Friday because he objected to their gesture of preventing Muslim girls from entering a school wearing hijab.

Local people present at the spot said the victim, a class 10 student, was dragged out and beaten in front of the school, while no teacher, including the headmaster, came to his rescue.

The incident has sparked outrage among locals, who blocked roads in protest. The attackers were outsiders, reportedly not linked to the school in any way.

The police have said the situation is now under control. The area, Bishalgarh subdivision of Sepahijala district, remained tense following the incident.

According to the school authorities, a week ago, a group of former students, who claimed to be affiliated with a right wing organisation, came to the school and raised concerns about allowing Muslim girl students wearing hijab within the school premises, and requested the headmaster to enforce a ban on it, terming it non-compliance with the prescribed government uniform.

Priyatosh Nandi, the headmaster of the government-aided Karaimura Class 12 school, said a group of former students, all affiliated with the Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP), met him.

Since there are no clear instructions from the concerned government department about such a rule, the headmaster verbally informed the students not to wear hijab in the school.

According to the police, it is not a communal issue, as some media houses have reported it. They registered a case and have also tweeted that their investigation is on.

There’s heavy police deployment in the area since it is a mixed population locality with members of different communities. As a precautionary measure, classes have been suspended in an effort to de-escalate the situation.