Students from Kerala protested at a church-run college in Muwathupuzha. (Photo: X/@yuvrajsays)
Some students alleged that non-teaching staff prevented some female students from performing Friday prayers.
A brawl broke out in Kerala after a section of students protested against a refusal to allow them to conduct “worships” at a church-run college in nearby Muwathupuzha. The Bharatiya Janata Party and members of the Catholic Church objected to student protests against the refusal to nod in prayer.
A section of students staged a protest inside Nirmala College on Friday, alleging that non-teaching staff prevented several female students from performing Friday prayers in a room in the college.
In a video of the protest shown on some local channels, students claimed that office staff had not allowed them to pray for days and demanded an apology from the principal.
The incident drew criticism from the BJP, which said some people were trying to create problems in educational institutions run by Hindu and Christian communities.
“Some people are trying to threaten the president of the university for not allowing worship. K Surendran, state president of the Bharatiya Janata Party, claimed that extremists are behind such actions.
He claimed that these people had the support of the Left and Congress parties.
The demand for separate prayer areas is part of the agenda, the BJP said in a statement.
“Similar incidents have been reported from Kanjirapalli and Erathupetta. This is part of an international conspiracy to turn our universities into riot zones in the name of religion,” the statement read.
Meanwhile, SFI, the student wing of the ruling CPI(M), said the Sangh Parivar group was trying to blame it for the protests on campus.
“SFI has always been at the forefront of safeguarding secularism on campus. SFI recognizes that allowing the observance of ceremonies of any particular religion on campus may affect the secular ethos of the campus by leading to observance of observances of all religions,” SFI said in a statement express.
SFI state secretary PM Arsho said the organization was not involved in any of the protests alleged by the BJP.
The Catholic Conference, which is linked to the Syro-Malabar Church, condemned the protests and said such divisive forces should be purged.
“Educational institutions can allow students time to pray at nearby mosques on Fridays. But demands to provide spaces for women on university campuses just because women are not allowed in mosques is unacceptable,” the group posted on Saturday stated in the statement.
BJP leader PC George called the riots inside the college “reprehensible”.
“Will any Muslim university provide prayer space for Hindus or Christians?” he asked.
(This report has not been edited by News18 staff and is published from United News Agency-PTI)
