Shiv Sena demands ban on burqa in public places, cites Sri Lanka

The Shiv Sena on Wednesday asked Prime Minister Narendra Modi to follow Sri Lanka’s footsteps to ban the burqa across the country. Calling for the burqa ban, Shiv Sena said in an editorial that when it could be done in “Ravan’s Lanka, when will it happen in Ram’s Ayodhya?” The Sena said that the ban should be imposed in “national interest”. The Sri Lankan government banned the burqa, niqab or any kind of face-covering veil across the island nation following Easter Sunday’s serial blasts that killed over 250 people. Though, the election in Maharashtra is over, three phases of polls are still pending in the country including in states like Bihar, West Bengal, Uttar Pradesh and Rajasthan. The editorial in Sena mouthpiece Saamana said, “India, especially Jammu and Kashmir, has suffered due to Islamic terror. Countries such as Sri Lanka, France, Britain, New Zealand have taken tough steps, the question is when will India do it.” It asked, “Why is India lagging behind?” when countries have taken steps to ban the burqa after terrorist attacks. It added that scores of young Muslim girls wanted to get rid of the tradition to cover their face in public. The Uddhav Thackeray-led party said that the current government had taken a decision to do away with Triple Talaq to save Muslim women from exploitation. It added that PM Modi will have to take a decision which will be “as courageous as the decision to conduct a surgical strike”. The editorial accused many Muslims of not having “understood the true meaning of their religion (Islam)”. It said that they had confused it with traditions and customs like burqa, polygamy, triple talaq and resistance to family planning. “For instance, when any voice is raised against these practices, immediately there are cries of ‘Islam is in danger’. The order of preference among Muslims is religion taking precedence over nationalism. Muslim women have been sporting burqas/veils under the wrong impression that it is a Quoranic tenet,” the Sena said. Source: Hindustan Times