Islamic centre to hold inter-faith meet on hijab row

Lucknow: The clerics at the Islamic Centre of India (ICI) will hold an interfaith conference with various religious heads to find a solution against hate being spread in the country, in the backdrop of the Hijab row in Karnataka.

In a meeting at ICI, the clerics elaborated on the importance of hijab for women, as laid down in the Quran and Prophet Mohammad's Hadiths.

ICI head, Maulana Khalid Rashid Farangi Mahali, said, "Hijab is the religious duty of a Muslim woman, and the Indian Constitution in Article 25 allows every citizen to practice their religion as per choice. Stopping students from attending educational institutions in their hijab is a direct attack on their religious freedom."

He said, "We have decided to soon hold an interfaith conference against such propagated hate with heads of different religions to come up with a common solution towards peace, prosperity and the future of our nation."

He further added: "The Constitution also guarantees every citizen the right to education. From this point of view too, the Karnataka government is eroding the constitutional rights."

Expressing concern over the issue, the cleric said that if students are incited against the religion of their fellow classmates, the future of the country would be worrying.

The date for the conference would be announced later, he added.