58 girl students suspended from college in K'taka for wearing Hijab, holding protest
Bengaluru, Feb 19: Girl students in many parts of Karnataka were denied entry into their respective educational institutions on Saturday as they arrived in hijabs, as the issue showed no signs of abating after its flare-up about a fortnight ago that prompted the government to close down colleges and institutions for a couple of days.
As many as 58 students were suspended at Shiralakoppa in Shivamogga district for refusing to remove their hijab and staging a demonstration against the government pre-university college administration.
The girls were suspended on Friday and were told that they should not come to the college, a student told reporters. On Saturday too, they came to the college, raised slogans and demanded their right to wear hijab. However, they were not let in.
"We came here but the principal told us that we have all been suspended and there is no need for us to come to the college. Even police told us not to come to the college but we came here. Today, no one spoke to us," the students complained.
In the SJVP College at Harihar in Davangere district, girls wearing hijab were denied entry. The pupils refused to go inside without the scarf, stressing that it was as important as education and they cannot give up their right.
In Vijay Paramedical College in Belagavi district, students complained to the reporters that a holiday was announced by the institution for an indefinite period due to the hijab issue.
"We will not sit without headscarves. Let the college realise how it affects our education. The principal is not listening to us," a student told the media.
In Ballari, a group of girls were not allowed inside the Sarala Devi College, which has been witnessing protests from the day the controversy erupted and the government had ordered that no one should wear clothes that could disturb peace, harmony and, law and order.
The government college at Gangavathi in Koppal district too faced a similar situation where girls were not allowed inside the college.
In Kudur village in Ramanagara district, some students staged a demonstration on the college ground after they were not allowed to enter the classrooms.
On January 1, six girl students of a college in Udupi attended a press conference held by Campus Front of India (CFI) in the coastal town protesting against the college authorities denying them entry into the classroom by wearing hijab.
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Five killed as moving bus catches fire in Lucknow
Lucknow (PTI): Five people, including two children, were killed when a private bus caught fire in the Mohanlalganj area here early Thursday, police said.
They said the incident occurred around 5:00 am on Kisan Path, a major roadway on the outskirts of Lucknow.
According to sources, the bus was carrying 80 passengers.
Assistant Commissioner of Police (Mohanlalganj) Rajneesh Verma said the bus was en route to Delhi from Begusarai in Bihar when it suddenly caught fire.
"Initial investigation suggests that the fire may have started due to a short circuit in the bus' gearbox," Verma told PTI.
Most of the passengers were asleep when the fire started. It spread rapidly and five passengers -- two women, two children and a man -- were unable to get out in time and died. Several other passengers sustained injuries and have been taken to a hospital for treatment, police said.
According to eyewitnesses, the flames were visible from almost a kilometre away. The bus did not come to a halt immediately after the fire broke out, the eyewitnesses said.
Firefighters reached the spot promptly and managed to control the blaze within half an hour.
Police found that the emergency exit door of the bus failed to open, which led to passengers sitting in the rear getting trapped inside.
According to authorities, a probe to determine the exact cause of the fire is underway.
