18 Students Suspended From  Karnataka Pre-University Following Altercations Regarding Religious Relations

Following altercations over an alleged interfaith relationship between a Hindu girl and a Muslim guy, 18 students from a pre-university (PU) college in Karnataka's Dakshina Kannada district were suspended earlier this week. At Vittala PU College, the second-year science stream had the 14 boys and 4 girls.

Principal Adarsha Rai said that when the relationship between the girl and the boy first came to light three months ago, several pupils affiliated with Hindutva groups complained. He claimed that after being summoned to the college, the kid, the girl, and their parents were let off with a warning.

However, tensions between students from both communities on the school increased this past Monday after a love note was discovered in the girl's backpack during an inspection. The Muslim lad allegedly received warnings and jeers from some Hindu boys for maintaining his contact with the girl in spite of the warnings.

According to Rai, some Hindu boys began questioning the Muslim boy regarding the love letter. The campus became tense as a result, and the parents of the boy and girl had to be contacted once more. They spoke with the girl's dad, and as a precaution, we advised the child to visit the college solely for the exam. Other students implicated in this incident were suspended, and they were instructed to only show up for the PUC exam in March 2023.

Rai claimed that among the suspended were several girls who were allegedly involved in mediating the romance between the girl and the boy. The college administration would constantly watch the pupils moving forward, he stated, adding that the situation was under control. The interfaith lover was allegedly a "well-planned scheme" to seduce Hindu females and force them to convert to Islam, as perthe Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad (ABVP) section in Dakshina Kannada.

They further claimed that Campus Front of India, the student branch of the now-outlawed Popular Front of India, set up organisations that instruct Muslim girls and boys to seduce Hindu girls and take advantage of their sentiments through interfaith relationships.