Hindu Extremist Mob Attacks Muslim Hijab Protester’s Brother, Throw Stones At Restaurant Owned By Her Father
A mob of Hindu extremists terrorized the family of a young Muslim woman who petitioned the Karnataka High Court against local schools’ discriminatory ban on wearing the hijab in schools. Hazra Shifa tweeted that her 20-year-old brother had been brutally beaten by a mob of Hindu extremists as he was closing up the restaurant owned by their family. The extremists also pelted stones at the restaurant, leaving windows shattered.
“My brother was brutally attacked by a mob. Just because I continue to stand for my hijab, which is MY RIGHT. Our property was ruined as well. Why?? Can’t I demand my right? Who will be their next victim? I demand action to be taken against the Sangh Parivar (Hindu supremacist) goons,” Shifa tweeted after the attack.
Police have registered a case against some individuals who were part of the attack. However, it is unlikely that they will face any real consequences for their crimes against Muslims due to the normalization of anti-Muslim violence.
Karnataka Government Tells Court Constitution Does Not Protect Right To Wear Hijab, BJP Leader Demands Nationwide Hijab Ban
In a blatant attempt to claim that India does not guarantee freedom of religion regarding certain elements of the Islamic faith, the advocate general of Karnataka state, Prabhuling Navadgi, told the High Court that the right to wear the hijab is not protected by Article 25 of the Indian Constitution, which guarantees freedom of religious practice to all Indians.
“The right to wear Hijab falls under Article 19(1)(A) and not Article 25… where the government places a reasonable restriction subject to institutional restriction,” Navadgi said.
He added, “The consequence of the demand to declare hijab as an essential religious practice is huge because there is an element of compulsion or else you will be expelled from the community.”
Navadgi is a Hindu man, whose bigoted argument reveals his utter disrespect for the opinions of Muslim women themselves, as well as a lack of understanding of the Islamic faith, which has no elements of compulsion and no consequences of “expulsion” from the community if a woman does not wear the hijab.
His dangerous argument has been echoed in calls across the nation to ban the hijab, including from Sakshi Maharaj, a member of Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s Hindu Nationalist Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) from Uttar Pradesh state.
“I think a law should be made to ban hijab across the country,” Maharaj said in a blatantly anti-Muslim statement. Ironically, Maharaj himself is often photographed in Hindu religious garb.
No Arrests Made After Hindu Extremist Mob Terrorizes Muslim Neighborhood In Karnataka
Following a violent anti-Muslim riot held by Hindu extremist mobs in Shivamogga district in Karnataka state, no arrests have been made against any of the roughly 300 Hindu terrorists who stormed a Muslim-majority neighborhood, lit cars and homes on fire, broke into houses, destroyed religious sites, pelted stones at properties, and beat one innocent Muslim man.
Police have registered several cases against “unknown” individuals, but have made no further progress despite the quick action taken by Karnataka law enforcement to catch the killers of Harsh, a member of the Hindu extremist group Bajrang Dal who was found dead days ago. Hindu extremists, including one BJP leader, blamed Muslims for Harsh’s death, leading to the outbreak of violence.
However, police have discovered that Harsh himself had been involved in anti-Muslim mob violence in the past. According to The Indian Express, a newspaper, Harsha was involved in at least five criminal cases, ranging from assault to murder. In December 2020, he was accused of being part of a mob that attacked Muslim traders in Shivamogga.
