Even as hijab row settles, Kerala Minister Sivankutty blames school management

Thiruvananthapuram, Oct 16 (IANS) Even as the hijab row at a private school in Palluruthy near Kochi has now settled, Kerala Education Minister V. Sivankutty on Thursday launched an attack on the school management for what he termed as an "organised attempt" to politicise the issue and blame the government.

The controversy had erupted after an eighth-grade student was allegedly barred from entering her classroom for wearing a hijab, as it was against the school rules.

While the girl's father initially agreed to abide by the rules, things went astray following the alleged intervention of external forces.

The school was closed for two days, and in the meantime, the issue was amicably settled. However, after Sivankutty's Facebook post in which he asked for a report on the incident, things went out of control.

While the school management was firm and backed by a 2018 Kerala High Court order giving the school management freedom to formulate rules, the Palluruthy School decided to approach the High Court.

On Wednesday, fresh talks resolved the issue with the girl's father agreeing to abide by the rules.

However, Sivankutty was irked by the firm stand taken by the school authorities that they would take legal recourse.

On Wednesday, Sivankutty went on record to say that since the issue has been amicably resolved, there was no further need for the government to intervene.

However, irked by the widespread criticism over his social media remarks, the minister minced no words and accused the school management of trying to "deliberately escalate" the situation for political mileage.

"There is a clear and calculated attempt to shift the blame onto the government. The management is trying to politicise a sensitive issue," he said and warned that the government would not tolerate any attempt to undermine its authority in matters concerning education and fundamental rights.

He was particularly critical of the school's principal, the PTA president and the legal counsel.

Meanwhile, the girl student also did not attend the classes on Thursday.

--IANS

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