Intel inputs indicate role of SDPI, PFI behind hijab row

Bengaluru: After State Congress president D.K. Shivakumar received a report from his party colleagues from four districts pointing fingers at certain elements stoking hijab fire on Saturday, BJP leaders are also learnt to have received intelligence inputs on the issue and started targeting Muslim political outfits and fringe groups for creating the trouble.

Congress in the four districts has pointed fingers at the Social Democratic Party of India, Popular Front of India and their fringe group Campus Front of India for 'engineering' the hijab issue. However, Shivakumar or opposition leader in the Assembly S Siddaramiah did not openly speak about it, but on Sunday Primary and High School Education Minister B.C. Nagesh said, "Everybody knows that Popular Front of India and its like-minded parties and outfits are behind the hijab issue. But none of them will be able to stop us from banning hijabs or any other form of religious clothing other than prescribed uniforms in schools."

"These parties were trying to foment religious unrest in the State by keeping alive the hijab issue. We have already announced the rules that govern the uniforms in the schools and composite colleges and everybody irrespective of their faith must honour the or else the college authorities have been empowered with all the rights to prevent their entry into schools," Nagesh said. Nagesh said this's not our government that brought the rules but it was done during the time of S Siddaramiah five years back as chief minister.