Udupi MLA K. Raghupati Bhat on Thursday said that though he was for prevalence of communal harmony in the district, certain acts by a few Muslims, including calling for bandh against the hijab verdict and forcible closure of shops of Hindus in Bhatkal, have aggrieved members of the Hindu community.
Speaking at a press conference in Udupi, Mr. Bhat said that he has made attempts to convince the six Muslim girls of Government PU College when the hijab issue cropped up. But, they did not listen and the acts of certain people from the Muslim community aggravated the situation.
The MLA said that if children from Muslim community rigorously follow their religion, including wearing hijab always, people belonging to Hindu community too have become aware of their religion. Following these developments, some untoward incidents happened in the district, Mr. Bhat said and hoped that the situation will soon get cleared. All communities should come together and sort out the issue, he said.
Mr. Bhat said that the BJP is not against Islam or Muslims and they never demanded banning hijab. It only supported the rule that prescribed removing hijab inside classrooms. The party also did not demand banning Muslim traders in the vicinity of temples, but when temple committees took the decision, they supported it, as per law.
He further said that court decisions on entry of women into Sabarimala shrine and the hijab row cannot be equated, with the former directly interfering with religious practices and the latter with public order. Opposing the court direction on hijab is anti-democratic, he said and added that the demand for entry for women into masjids can validly be opposed as interference with religious practices.
Similarly, no one has sought the closure of shops selling halal products, but some have only said that Hindus need not consume halal products. Creating such an awareness may not be wrong, he said.
Mr. Bhat said that the Muslim community needs to get reformed while it is not prohibited from practising its religion in a democracy. Unfortunately, Muslims only speak about rights while forgetting their duties. This has made Hindus conscious, he said and added that Muslims need to learn about their duties in public life.
