Crime
K’taka hijab row: Muslim students vow to fight until victory

With the Karnataka hijab row snowballing into a major controversy, the protesting students, who have filed petitions in the High Court against the hijab ban in colleges, have vowed to fight until victory.
A three-judge bench of High Court will hear the matter on Thursday.
Meanwhile, Education Minister B.C. Nagesh on Thursday stated that the hijab row has been created and discussed at the international level only to denigrate the only BJP government in south India.
Shifa, one of the students of Udupi College from where the hijab row erupted, stated that even if the larger bench gives verdict against them on wearing hijab, they will continue to fight for their right. “We will fight until victory. The legal battle on wearing hijab to attend classes will be continued,” she said.
Expressing full faith on the judiciary, another student Aliya said: “We will fight for our hijab rights which are our constitutional and religious rights in case the court ruling comes against wearing hijab, she said.
Asked about them being trained and provoked by Campus Front of India (CFI), she explained that it’s not the CFI that has come to them. “After seeing their philanthropic and student friendly activities we approached them. They are supporting our struggle. They need not tell us about our rights. We are fighting for it. We don’t know why the issue is being made so big. They would have taken a simple decision at the school management level and sorted this out,” she said.
Education Minister Nagesh stated that hijab is banned in many countries and it has not become news so far. A small incident in Udupi city becomes international news and discussed at global levels. This is an international conspiracy. This conspiracy is against the state and the nation.
It is clear that there is a big conspiracy behind the hijab row. This is being done to bring disrepute and discredit to the only BJP government in south India. The government has tried to solve the issue but students have approached the court. Some elements are tolerant of the fact that everything is being run smoothly in the state by the ruling BJP government, he explained.
“The hijab is banned by Muslim countries. One particular college issue of one of the districts in the state is an international issue today. This is being done to discredit the nation. To create ill-opinion about India and a negative mindset about the country. It is a conspiracy to put blame on the ruling establishment,” Minister Nagesh said. However, no conspiracy is going to work in Karnataka, he stated.
For about a month, there were no protests in other colleges of Udupi, from where the hijab row has started. Among 12 students who have started the agitation, 6 agreed to attend classes without hijab, he stated.
Ataulla, CFI President of stated that they are helping students to get their rights. The organisation is not provoking them. He maintained that there is no link of CFI with SDPI or PFI. Along with CFI, Muslim organisations are also supporting the hijab rights for Muslim students. “Hijab row has been blown out of proportion by ruling BJP to come to power in the 2023 Assembly elections. Their aim is to polarise Hindu-Muslim votes.
The hijab row started last month with few students of Udupi Government Pre-University College wearing hijab were denied permission to attend classes. The college authorities maintain that the students who used to come without hijabs have suddenly started wearing it. The students later went on a protest refusing to attend classes without hijab. The issue became a controversy and spread to other districts snowballing into a major crisis in the state.
Crime
Blaze kills woman in Mumbai’s Lokhandwala; 10-day infant among 6 injured

Mumbai, April 26: A woman was killed and six people, including a 10-day-old infant, were injured in a fire in an high-rise building in Mumbai’s Lokhandwala in Andheri (West), early on Saturday, said the Mumbai Fire Brigade.
Abhina Kartik Sanjanvalia, 34, died on the way to Cooper Hospital. Her family member Kartik Sanjanvalia, 40, is undergoing treatment for smoke inhalation, said an official.
Five fire tenders fought the blaze, which started at around 2.40 am in Broke Land Building near Ashok Academy Lane, and restricted it to room number 104 on the first floor before extinguishing it at 5.30 a.m, said an official.
Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation’s (BMC) Mumbai Fire Brigade suspect that the fire in the eight floor building was sparked by an electric short circuit. However, the exact cause of the blaze is yet to be confirmed.
The blaze burnt down furniture, mattresses, clothes, split and window air-conditioners and electrical installations in the flat on the first floor, said an official.
The other injured residents taken to Kokilaben Hospital were identified as 10-day-old baby boy Pradumna Gupta, Rihan, 3, Daya Gupta, 21, Aparna Gupta, 41 and Polam Gupta, 40.
The incident revived painful memories of another fire incident in a 15-storey building in Lokhandwala last October which claimed the lives of three people, including a visually impaired citizen.
Soon after the fire in Riya Palace building, a 37-year-old building at Cross Road Number 4 of Lokhandwala Complex in Andheri, there were demands for opening a fire station on a plot allotted for the purpose in the area three decades ago.
The October 2024 blaze that broke out on the 10th floor of the building started around 8 am and was doused around 9 p.m. The victims were identified as Kanta Soni, 74, Chandraprakash Soni, 74, and Pelubeta, 42.
In another fire incident on Saturday in Maharashtra, a plywood godown was gutted in Thane district. The fire started around 3.30 a.m, in a three-storey building in Rahnal village in Bhiwandi and four fire tenders continued to battle the flames for hours.
A firefighter of the Bhiwandi-Nizampur Municipal Corporation (BNMC) got a fracture in his leg during the operation to douse the blaze.
An official said due to a huge pile of plywood the blaze had posed a challenge to fire-fighters.
Crime
Tahawwur Rana denies role in Mumbai terror attack during interrogation (Ld)

Mumbai, April 26: Tahawwur Rana, the Pakistani-Canadian national accused of involvement in the 26/11 Mumbai terror attack, has denied any role in the conspiracy during his interrogation by the Mumbai Crime Branch.
According to senior officials, Rana, who is currently in the custody of the National Investigation Agency (NIA) in Delhi, was questioned for over eight hours by a team of Mumbai Police officers.
During the interrogation, Rana distanced himself from the attacks that claimed over 166 lives and injured hundreds on November 26, 2008.
Rana reportedly told investigators that he had “no connection whatsoever” with the planning or execution of the attack.
He also claimed that his childhood friend and co-accused, David Coleman Headley, was solely responsible for the reconnaissance and planning aspects.
Headley, who turned approver in the case, had earlier admitted to conducting recce missions across India, including in Mumbai, on behalf of Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT).
During questioning, Rana said that apart from Mumbai and Delhi, he had also travelled to Kerala.
When asked about the purpose of his visit to Kerala, he claimed he had gone there to meet a known acquaintance and had provided the individual’s name and address to the agency.
Following this, sources said a team from the Mumbai Crime Branch may soon travel to Kerala to verify his claims and question the said person.
Officials revealed that Rana was largely uncooperative during the interrogation and frequently gave evasive answers.
He also cited memory lapses, stating that he was unable to recall specific details related to the attack that occurred over 17 years ago.
The interrogation is part of an ongoing probe by the NIA into the extensive three-year groundwork carried out by Lashkar-e-Taiba and Pakistan’s Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) prior to the Mumbai terror attacks.
Rana is also being questioned about his alleged links to several individuals whose names surfaced in intercepted communications, including Abdur Rehman Hashim Syed, Sajid Majid, Ilyas Kashmiri, and Zaki-ur-Rehman Lakhvi — all of whom are believed to have played crucial roles in the 26/11 conspiracy.
Rana, a former officer of the Pakistan Army’s Medical Corps, was extradited to India from the United States recently to face justice in the Mumbai attack case.
Crime
‘Rise against your govt, army for encouraging terrorism,’ Sunni cleric’s appeal to Pakistanis

Lucknow, April 24: In a strong condemnation of the Pahalgam terror attack, senior Sunni cleric and Imam of Aishbagh Eidgah, Maulana Khalid Rashid Firangi Mahali, on Thursday called on the people of Pakistan to rise against their government and military for facilitating acts of terror on Indian soil.
The remarks come after 26 people, most of them tourists, were gunned down in a brutal targeted terror attack in Jammu and Kashmir’s Baisaran Valley near Pahalgam on Tuesday.
The Resistance Front, a Pakistan-based terror outfit and offshoot of the proscribed Lashkar-e-Taiba, is suspected to be behind the massacre.
Speaking to Media, Firangi Mahali said, “The people of Pakistan should understand that no one will support such activities. They should raise their voices against their own government and army, which are encouraging these acts of terrorism.”
The Cabinet Committee on Security (CCS), led by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, announced a series of stringent measures in response to the attack.
These include the suspension of the Indus Waters Treaty, closure of the Attari-Wagah border, cancellation of the SAARC Visa Exemption Scheme (SVES) for Pakistani nationals, expulsion of Pakistan’s military attaches from New Delhi and a reduction in diplomatic staff at both High Commissions.
Calling these actions “necessary and timely,” Firangi Mahali stated, “The horrific incident of terrorism in Pahalgam has been condemned in the harshest terms. This tragic event has shaken the entire country. The steps taken by the Government of India — whether on the water agreement, diplomatic expulsions, or visa cancellations — are absolutely appropriate.”
Appealing for national unity, he urged political parties to come together on a single platform in support of the government’s decisions.
“This is not the time for political division. All parties must stand united so that a positive image of national solidarity is conveyed internationally,” he said.
The cleric also warned against communalising the tragedy. “My appeal to fellow Indians is not to view this terror incident through a religious lens. No religion condones violence or terrorism,” he said.
“Some of the posts circulating on social media are sending out a very negative message. In this hour of crisis, every Indian — regardless of religion or political affiliation — must stand together,” he added.
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