The debate over the ban on the headscarf in Indian schools as "religious clothing" not permitted in secular educational institutions is opening debates about culture, politics and society in the Indian subcontinent, as mainstream discourse blames Muslim women who wear headscarves among an audience that is fundamentally skeptical of the concept of "religiousness." He defines himself as a "secularist".
In a report published by the Indian website "the wire", writer Zahra Mahdi, an academic in the Department of Religion Studies at Columbia University, said that most members of this secular audience question why Muslim women choose to "submit" by wearing the veil (the ultimate symbol of oppression). In their view), indicating that this audience shows veiled women as religious subjects in “secular” India, but was India really “secular”?
Or has Hinduism been secularized - exclusively - under the name of "national culture"?
culture and nation
The writer mentioned that all school “cultural events” in India begin with a lantern-lights ceremony to ward off the darkness of ignorance and welcome wisdom through Goddess Rajeshwari, accompanied by the singing of the Gayatri Mantra for peace and harmony. India as the motherland that radiates the power of Goddesses Durga, Lakshmi and Saraswati, the "national song" popular at school festivities.
On the other hand, and in the school system itself, Muslim women cannot wear the hijab because school is not a place for “religion.” It is not intended to highlight the hypocrisy of educational institutions that distinguish one religion from another, but rather an opportunity to pause and question what is called religion or what is seen as religious in The discourse of Indian secularism, in which the upper class rejects Hinduism as a religion and considers it a "national Indian culture."
The writer refers to the warning of the Minister of Education in Karnataka to educational institutions that stopped Hindu students who were wearing “tilak”, “kumkum”, “bindi” and “Sindoor”, indicating that these clothes constitute the “cultural identity” of Hindus, pointing out that he does not repeat Echoing the right-wing argument for the supremacy of the Hindu religion, he does not say that these are "religious symbols" but uses the secular argument that "it is not a religion, but a culture".
The writer added that the Minister of Education speaks a language that belongs to a large section of the intellectuals who define themselves as secular liberals and celebrate “Durga Puja” (an Indian festival with religious roots) as a “cultural festival” and insist that Hindu customs and rituals are only “Indian.”
The writer stresses that without undermining or diminishing the extent of the exceptional violence of the current political system, it is important to understand what supports this pervasive project, which can dehumanize Muslims in the conflicts of nation and religion, explaining that the typical violence that pervades Muslim lives, such as extrajudicial execution Law, massacres, imprisonment, police brutality, hate speech and online auctions have become frequent under the current system, but its symbolic origins lie in secular concepts where Hinduism is no longer just a religion, but has emerged as a cultural identity and has become a "national identity", but Muslims, from As they are a "religious" community, they fail to be part of this national imagination, according to these concepts.
The writer pointed out that it is not surprising that when veiled women carried the national flag, sang the national anthem, and swore by the constitution during protests against the Citizenship Amendment Act, they were hailed as “rescuing the dead spirit of Indian secularism,” noting that these were photographed Veiled women themselves in the absence of national banners as endangering Indian secularism, as veiled women “reveal” as religious subjects that cannot be integrated into the discourse of secularism that has succeeded in nationalizing Hinduism as a culture, while remaining fearful of Islam.
Absence of a nation
The writer stresses that in the absence of the “nation” in terms of a true national concept, veiled Muslim women remain in the popular imagination just “subordinate” and unable to express themselves, which is the opposite of what we have repeatedly shown, often under harsh conditions, from During anti-coalition protests and police brutality on universities, and in the ongoing debates over the headscarf issue as well.
Secular discourse defines veiled Muslim women as subservient, because it is unable to imagine the fact that they are “activists” or adopters of Islam of free choice. of choice and free will.
The writer also said that the Indian feminist discourse has remained equally committed to secular ideals, and because of the confusion between religion and patriarchy, this discourse has repeatedly returned to the circulation of the idea of “saving Muslim women” by shifting the debate from freedom of religion to education, and there is a real struggle within the secular feminist discourse to understand The reason why young veiled Muslim women refuse to give up their headscarves or their right to education is meaningless in a context in which veiling is seen as an oppressive choice.
Instead of asking what it means to wear the veil for a Muslim woman and holding her accountable for explaining her faith to a secular audience that is skeptical of religion, the author suggests, secularism may need to think about the outcome of what it is doing.
The author believes that the discourse of secularism is ironic since it finds its ideal in Gandhi, a person who has always defined himself in a religious context.
After his death, Gandhi's song "Hai Ram" was immortalized, but one of the veiled students was chased by a group who advised her not to say "Allahu Akbar" and say "Jai Hind" because it would be more appropriate for Muslims to be less religious and more secular (national). .
Ultimately, the author argues, the question is not if secularism can tolerate religion, but rather which religion is willing to consider it a “religion,” as the constant harassment of veiled Muslim women demonstrates that while Gandhi's religiosity will be tolerated in the name of the secular nation, skepticism will prevail. The choice of veiled women to abide by their rituals is made by the secular nation itself, according to the writer's words.