Shiv Sena leader Sanjay Raut fuels controversy, calls for burqa ban

A Sri Lankan vendor shows a full face veil, called a niqab, at a shop in Colombo. Pic/AFP

Shiv Sena leader Sanjay Raut's call for a burqa ban through its editorial in Saamna (the regional power's mouthpiece) has, as expected, fuelled a huge controversy. The call comes in the wake of Sri Lanka banning the face veil (and face coverings) in public, in the wake of Islamist terror attacks on churches that killed at least 250 last month.

Veil ail

"If Sri Lanka, a liberal, democratic, small nation which has Muslim, Sinhalese, Christians and Hindus living together can implement this ban for national security, why can't India put in place a face veil ban in public places?" asked Raut. Raut dismissed accusations about what critics sarcastically called "apt timing" of the burqa ban demand given that elections are on and efforts to polarise are ongoing. "Polling has ended in Maharashtra," he asserted, "In fact,' Raut said, the statements that the "Election Commission (EC) must take note of this is all nonsense. Even earlier, the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) and the Vishwa Hindu Parishad (VHP) have spoken about a burqa ban."

Raut stressed that, "the ban is on face coverings, and even a man can cover his face in public, so that, too, should not be allowed. Face coverings, which make identification a problem, have to be banned."

Social Reform

Raut scoffed at criticism that this is interference in the Muslim community. "This is part of social reform, just like the ban on triple talaq is." The Sena leader asked, "Why call everything interference? When we talk about Section 370, it is dubbed as interference, talk about the Uniform Civil Code (UCC) and it is called interference, triple talaq is called interference, don't we have a government? Why not think about the nation?" Raut said the government moved on, "practices like Sati and child marriage, which were also part of social reform."

Raut also said that a lot of Muslim women do not wear the face veil and "so many Muslim actresses did not and do not wear the burqa". He ended saying that countries in Europe like France, Belgium and Denmark also have a face veil ban in place, and that, "this is a difficult conversation that needs a debate".

The Muslim voice

Zakia Soman, co-founder of the Bharatiya Muslim Mahila Andolan (BMMA) which was in the forefront of ensuring that women, like men, got access to the Haji Ali dargah, said, "There is something to be said for all face coverings that can make identification difficult in the wake of any criminal activity. The individual has to always adhere to the laws of the land and every citizen must co-operate with the law and order machinery. Yet, we also have to see that every political party uses different planks to indulge in vote bank politics whether it is those who are perceived as 'against' the Muslim community or those that are into blindly appeasing the conservative, patriarchal set within," finished Soman.

Feroze Mithiborwala of the Bharat Bachao Andolan said, "The Muslims in Sri Lanka have agreed to the ban, they know the seriousness of extreme Salafism, which is unfortunately also a reality in Kerala and Tamil Nadu today. It is time, too, for 'secular' parties to get serious on Muslim extremism. Just like they slam Hindutva terror, they must be as clear and unequivocal about slamming Islamist terror. Muslims should not get defensive about this and understand the rationale, all face coverings hinder identification and the full face veil is one of them."

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