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Told To Chose Between Job And Abaya, Kashmiri School Teacher Resigns

Told To Chose Between Job And Abaya, Kashmiri School Teacher Resigns
INDIA - MARCH 05: Muslim family group at Khas Mahal Palace built 17th Century by Mughal Shah Jehan for his daughters inside Agra Fort, India (Photo by Tim Graham/Getty Images)
Tim Graham via Getty Images
INDIA - MARCH 05: Muslim family group at Khas Mahal Palace built 17th Century by Mughal Shah Jehan for his daughters inside Agra Fort, India (Photo by Tim Graham/Getty Images)

A private school teacher in Kashmir has reportedly been fired for for wearing an abaya inside the campus.

While students of Delhi Public School in Srinagar staged a protest on Friday, the state government of Jammu and Kashmir have called it a “serious issue” and said that the state was “not France”.

“It is serious and would be taken up with the school administration. People here have all the freedom to choose their private lives. Our State is not France where the government or some institute decides what people should wear,” he said.

France has banned Muslims from wearing the full-face veil - the niqab.

The teacher was reportedly asked by D.P.S. principal Kusum Warikoo to “choose between her job and the dress code."

Independent lawmaker Engineer Rashid described this as "cultural aggression."

“The mindless action amounts to cultural aggression. Wearing veil is important for Muslim women and the ban is a clear attempt to snatch religious rights and trespass into one’s faith,” he said.

The school teacher, 29, who resigned on Wednesday, told The Indian Express that the school did not inform her of any such condition when she joined.

“The principal was absent for two months. After she returned, she sent a message that I should not wear abaya. She categorically told me that Islamic dress is not allowed on the school premises.” “The (school) chairman later also told me that I should not wear it inside the school. When I refused, I was told that I have to leave the job," she told the newspaper.

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This article exists as part of the online archive for HuffPost India, which closed in 2020. Some features are no longer enabled. If you have questions or concerns about this article, please contact indiasupport@huffpost.com.