Teacher doesn’t wear burqa, barred from class

CNN IBN

Kolkata, 29 July 2010: A teacher in West Bengal’s first Muslim university has not been able to hold her classes for the last three months after she rebelled against the tradition and decided not to wear burqa. Though the guidelines at Aliah University in Kolkata do not stipulate that women teacher should wear burqa, the students’ union say the 24-year-old teacher, Sirin Middya, can teach but only in burqa.

 

Sirin joined Aliah University as a guest lecturer in March 2010 after completeing her MA in Bengali from Jadavpur University. The students union warned her in the second week of April that she should wear a burqa and come to the university. "I was told that I would not be allowed to attend college if I did not agree to come in a burqa. The University Grants Commission does not prescribe any such dress code and even the university does not have a dress code. But the most unfortunate part is that students are forcing us to wear burqa," she was quoted as saying by The Indian Express.

Sirin says she has no issues with wearing a burqa, but it would be of her own free will. The university has not taken any decision on the students union stand and is hoping that it would die down. The university owns its origin to the famous Calcutta Madrasah which was started in 1781 by Governor General of Bengal Warren Hastings. Calcutta Madrasah was upgraded into the Aliah University in 2008.