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Former Minister and BJP MLC A.H. Vishwanath on Wednesday accused the political parties of trying to sow seeds of hatred in young minds and inciting them in the name of hijab-saffron shawl row.
“Those with ‘“right’ agenda in the BJP and the Congress were provoking the students, causing communal tension. What the students want is education and not controversies like this. Leaders like D.K. Shivakumar and Siddaramaiah must understand the reality. Religion should not be allowed to enter in places of learning. Uniform/dress code is a sign of harmony and equivalence,” he told reporters.
Mr. Vishwanath argued that there was uniform/dress code in many areas. “Our soldiers wear uniforms with pride. Likewise, our children also wear uniforms with pride. It is unfortunate that the political parties are trying to politicise the issue. Don’t use religion, children and education for the sake of votes. This is dangerous to the entire country,” he observed.
The former Minister urged the government and others engaged in protests over the row to put an end to the issue.
Mr. Vishwanath took a dig at the government for declaring holiday for schools and colleges over the hijab-saffron shawl row. “It’s not correct to shut down schools and colleges after some stone throwing incidents,” he argued.
“Why no action was taken on this? Don’t we have the law,” he asked.
