Kerala: clash over Islamic veil at Catholic school

The case of a student at St. Rita School in Palluruthy who wants to wear the hijab despite uniform regulations prohibiting it is reigniting interreligious tensions in Kerala. After attempts to resolve the matter peacefully, the local government has asked the school to comply. Criticism from the National People's Party: ‘This is not an isolated attack on Christian institutions; the authorities must not be complicit.’

Kochi (AsiaNews) - The issue of the Islamic veil has reignited interreligious tensions in the Indian state of Kerala. On 7 October, a student at St. Rita's Public School in Palluruthy - a Latin Rite Catholic school located in the Ernakulam district of Kerala - arrived at school wearing a hijab. She was denied entry because she was wearing the veil. School authorities said her attire did not comply with the prescribed dress code. According to the school, she was kindly asked to comply.

On 10 October, the student again came to school wearing the hijab. "We have an established school uniform and everyone must maintain uniformity. We had communicated this to the students at the time of admission. The student followed the dress code for four months. But one morning she showed up in violation of the rules. We asked her to remove her hijab in a friendly manner, and she agreed. The next day, her mother came to the school and we explained to her that the student must follow the rules and regulations," said Sr. Heleena, the school principal.

However, as the case escalated into a heated confrontation between the student's parents and the school management, the Parents and Teachers Committee decided to declare two days of closure, 13 and 14 October, at St. Rita's Public School to avoid further tension. On Monday, 13 October, the Kerala High Court also granted police protection to the school, following a request from the school management.

The student's father, Aziz, claims that his daughter did not violate the rules in a disrespectful manner. "For the past four months, she has been going to school wearing a scarf. But she did not fasten it like a hijab. Her mother went to the school several times to discuss the rule. When I went to talk to the headmistress, the committee chairman and others spoke to me very harshly,‘ he said.

For his part, Kerala Education Minister V. Sivankutty, after initially arguing for the need to find a peaceful resolution to the issue (’The school has a uniform, and everyone must respect it. We must not create problems like in other states over clothing issues,‘ he said), yesterday he made a U-turn, ordering St. Rita's Public School to allow the girl to enter school wearing a hijab, arguing that ’no educational institution can be allowed to violate constitutional rights".

However, the affair is already turning into a political battleground. The National People's Party (NPP) - an Indian national party with strong roots in north-eastern India, where the Christian presence is most numerous - has expressed concern about what it described as a continuing series of deliberate attacks on Christian institutions and symbols in the Ernakulam district. It claims that the recent tensions at St. Rita's Public School are part of a larger, well-orchestrated conspiracy to create fear and interreligious tension. The NPP recalled that just a month ago, an act of aggression took place in Kalamassery, where the boundary wall of St. Thomas Bhavan was demolished and two prefabricated houses were allegedly installed during the night.

‘The operation, carried out in the middle of the night, involved heavy machinery such as excavators, cranes, large trucks and about seventy-five people. It was a real coordinated attack,’ the party said. Citing another incident in the municipality of Kochi, the NPP pointed out that a division councillor attempted to rename St. Augustine Convent Road, a road whose name had been legally established in accordance with all the required procedures.

Hence the accusations against the Congress Party and the CPI(M) - the parties that lead the local government of Kerala: ‘The local government's inability to act decisively only reinforces the perception that it is indifferent or even complicit. If this dangerous trend is not stopped, Kerala risks becoming a breeding ground for anti-national and divisive forces.’