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Journalism of Courage
Two days after a group of “outsiders” allegedly assaulted a Class 10 school student in Tripura‘s Sepahijala district for objecting to their instructions to minority girls against wearing the hijab in schools, the Opposition CPI(M) and Congress parties have condemned the incident and demanded that the culprits be arrested.
Soon after the incident, the Left Front, in a press statement, said the pressure against wearing the hijab in schools was a part of the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) and Bharatiya Janata Party’s (BJP) “nationwide agenda of communal hatred” and a purportedly ongoing initiative of the Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP) to spread hatred against religious minorities in Sepahijala district.
“The VHP and Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad (ABVP) have been campaigning in this area since some time to prevent girls from wearing hijab in schools with an intention to spread hatred against religious minorities and create disharmony. The recent incident happened since police and administration did not take any step,” the statement said.
It also alleged that the saffron camp was trying to score brownie points through religious polarisation and by diverting public attention from the real issues of purported deterioration of law and order, and problems related to employment and food for poor people, drinking water crisis, etc ahead of next year’s Parliamentary polls and the bypoll in two Assembly constituencies.
The CPI(M) demanded that the government identify the culprits involved in the assault and take strict action.
Meanwhile, the Congress party also insisted that the government identify the “outsiders” and arrest them at the earliest. Former minister and senior party legislator Sudip Roy Barman said some “outsiders” entered the school complex, harassed female students and assaulted a male student when he tried to protest. “Who gave them the right to enter the school and harass the students? These incidents are happening throughout the country,” he said.
Barman also alleged that the common people were “upset” with the state government over its purported failure to address real issues like price rise of essentials and unemployment, and said people are waiting to get rid of the BJP-led government in the 2024 Lok Sabha elections.
While the CPI(M)-led Left Front and the Congress fought the General Assembly elections this year on a mutual seat-sharing arrangement, the two have not been clear about any future tie-up. Both sides have said they want greater unity against the BJP but have so far remained silent on the topic of a partnership.
It is being speculated that the similar comments from Barman and the Left Front on the hijab row are suggestive of a larger unity at play, which the two sides are trying to downplay till the polls approach.
On Friday, Class 10 student Mohammed Iliyas Sarkar Suman was assaulted after he allegedly objected to a group of “outsiders” who raised opposition against girls who wore the hijab at Karaimura Higher Secondary School in Bishalgarh. A case was later registered at Bishalgarh police station against seven persons on charges including causing grievous injury and common intention.
Assistant Inspector General of Police (Law and Order) Jyotishman Das Chowdhury said all the accused were served notice to appear at the concerned police station on Saturday. “They appeared and answered our questions yesterday. We are investigating,” he said.
