The Evening Wrap: Karnataka shuts high schools and colleges for three days over hijab row

Chief Minister Basavaraj Bommai ordered closure of all high schools and colleges in Karnataka for the next three days in an attempt to prevent further escalation of the row over students wearing hijab and saffron shawls in classrooms. The Chief Minister, who is in New Delhi to meet various Union ministers, issued the order from there following reports of confrontations and violence from a few college campuses on February 8. There was stone-pelting in one college and caning by police in another. “I appeal to all students, teachers and managements of schools and colleges, as well as people of Karnataka, to maintain peace and harmony,” the Chief Minister tweeted. Pointing out that the Karnataka High Court is looking into the issue, he appealed to all those concerned, especially students, to patiently wait for the court’s verdict. Speaking to mediapersons in New Delhi, he said it was very unfortunate that the row over dress code that started in one college had spread to various districts. “Similar situation had arisen in different States at different times, and courts have given judgments and directions from time to time,” he said. Defending the dress code laid down by the government, the Chief Minister said, “We have put our case very clearly as per the Constitution and Karnataka Education Act. However, we have been waiting for directions of the Karnataka High Court.” He appealed to students to maintain peace and harmony. He reminded them that they have to sit together in colleges and carry on with educational activities. Hence, it was very important for them to maintain peace and harmony, he said. He appealed to everyone, including political leaders, to desist from instigating students or issuing provocative statements over the episode. Government summons Korean Ambassador over posts on Kashmir by Hyundai The government took up social media posts calling for Kashmiri “freedom” by various Multi-National Companies (MNCs) based in Pakistan on Tuesday, Commerce Minister Piyush Goyal told parliament on Tuesday, with External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar speaking to Korean Foreign Minister Chung Eui-yong to protest the posts put out by the Hyundai Motor Company, and the MEA conveying to a number of other countries that it found the posts “offensive”. Apart from Korean auto companies Hyundai and Kia, the Pakistani branches of American MNCs Kentucky Fried Chicken and Pizza Hut, Japanese companies Osaka batteries, Atlas Honda Limited and Isuzu D-max as well as German pharma company Schwabe had all carried posts expressing “solidarity” with “Kashmiri brothers and sisters”, and “praying for the liberation” on February 5th, which is marked as “Kashmir Solidarity day” in Pakistan. In addition, Korean Ambassador to India, Chang Jae Bok was summoned to South Block by the Ministry of External Affairs, while Indian Ambassador to Seoul Sripriya Ranganathan sought an explanation from Hyundai and Kia headquarters for the posts. “The strong displeasure of the Government on the unacceptable social media post by Hyundai Pakistan was conveyed to [the Korean Ambassador]. It was highlighted that this matter concerned India’s territorial integrity on which there could be no compromise,” said Official spokesperson Arindam Bagchi in a statement released by the MEA. Jaishankar tweeted separately that he had received a call from his Korean counterpart, and had discussed bilateral and multilateral issues “as also the Hyundai matter”. The MEA did not respond to queries about whether protests had been made with other embassies and governments. However, sources said that officials had reached out to economic counsellors in some of the embassies involved and impressed upon the need for their MNCs to respect India’s sentiments. Some of the companies that had issued the Kashmir posts have subsequently withdrawn and deleted their posts, and a few like Hyundai and KFC expressed their apologies and “regretted the offense caused to the people of India”. “[Hyundai] has already issued a clarification. Yesterday, we have also asked them to be more forceful in their unequivocal apology on this issue,” Goyal stated while responding to a zero-hour submission made on the subject by Shiv Sena’s Priyanka Chaturvedi. Speaking about the MNC posts in Pakistan, Chaturvedi had said that “These companies are doing business, both in India and Pakistan, yet have posted content in solidarity with Pakistan over Kashmir. Such posts that are challenging the sovereignty of our country should not be acceptable. It is surprising that it has been ignored till now, also keeping in mind that these companies have been flourishing in India for past many years.” In its statement on Tuesday the Hyundai motor company said that it “does not comment on political or religious issues in any specific region. Therefore, it is clearly against Hyundai Motor’s policy that the independently-owned distributor in Pakistan made unauthorised Kashmir-related social media posts from their own accounts.” In response to calls by Indian social media users to boycott Hyundai products, it also said that Hyundai Motors India is “not associated with the distributor in Pakistan”. Japan’s Suzuki Motor Corporation said that “such communication from our dealers or business associates on these topics represents neither our company position nor authorised by us. We deeply regret the hurt to sentiments, that such insensitive communication has caused,” it said. On Monday, KFC India had also issued an apology “for a post that was published on some KFC social media channels outside the country”. Tamil Nadu Assembly re-adopts Bill against NEET A special session of the Tamil Nadu Legislative Assembly on February 8 unanimously re-adopted a Bill that seeks to dispense with the National Eligibility-cum-Entrance Test (NEET) for admission into undergraduate medical degree courses in the State. The Bill, previously adopted in September last year, was recently returned to Assembly Speaker M, Appavu, by T.N. Governor R.N. Ravi. This is the first time, the House has re-adopted a Bill returned by the Governor. Earlier, all four BJP members staged a walk out of the House, opposing the Tamil Nadu government’s decision. During the special session of the House, which commenced in the Assembly Hall in the Fort St. George campus at 10 a.m., Chief Minister M.K. Stalin moved the Bill on the floor of the House. Members of the principal Opposition party, the AIADMK, and other parties present in the House supported the Bill. After a voice vote, Assembly Speaker M. Appavu declared the Bill adopted “unanimously”. Last week, the Governor returned the earlier Bill, contending that the legislation was against the interests of the students especially the rural and economically poor students of the State. In February 2017, a similar Bill against NEET was adopted by the House during the then AIADMK regime but a few months later, President Ram Nath Kovind withheld his assent to the legislation. Congress thinking trapped by urban naxals, says PM Modi in Rajya Sabha A day after his Lok Sabha speech where he called the Congress party as the leader of the tukde tukde (break-up) gang, Prime Minister Narendra Modi continued his attack against the principal Opposition party in Rajya Sabha stating that the party’s thinking is trapped by that of the “Urban Naxals.” “It is being said that we are trying to change history. The Congress thinking seems to have been hijacked by urban Naxals. We just want to improve the memory of some people. We are not changing history. Some people’s history is limited to one family,” he said. Taking a dig at a statement on importance of federalism made by Congress’ Rahul Gandhi in Lok Sabha last week where he delved on two competing visions of India — one that viewed India as a Union of States, Modi said, “Congress has a problem with ‘nation’ also. If [the word] nation is unconstitutional, then why is your party’s name Indian National Congress. Change it to Federation of Congress. Correct the mistakes done by your predecessors.” Modi was replying to the debate on Motion of Thanks to the President’s address in Rajya Sabha. He spoke for 96-minutes. An hour into his speech, the Congress members walked out the House as a mark of protest. Recalling the speech made by Leader of Opposition Mallikarjun Kharge in the Upper House last week, Modi said, “Kharge ji said Congress laid the foundation of the country and BJP only foisted its flag on it. This was not said in a lighter vein, this is a result of that thinking that India was born in 1947. And it is a result of this that the people who ruled for 50 years have this thinking, this democracy is not at your mercy. You throttled democracy in 1975.” Further attacking the Congress, Modi added, “We should say with pride that India is the mother of democracy. Congress’s problem is that they did not think beyond dynasty. The biggest threat to India is from dynastic political parties and when a family is supreme in a party, the first casualty is talent. For years the country has suffered this thinking. I expect all political parties to follow democracy in their working also, Congress should lead this initiative.” Retorting to Kharge’s earlier speech where he narrated the contributions of his party, Modi said, “It was said that what would have happened if Congress not there...Indira is India, India is Indira. Mahatma Gandhi had understood this. I will tell you what would have happened if Congress wasn’t there -- democracy would have been devoid of dynastic influence, we would be rid of foreign influence, there would be no emergency, no caste and regional divide, no Sikh genocide would have taken place, Kashmir Pandits wouldn’t have been displaced, daughters wouldn’t have been killed in tandoor (over), if Congress wasn’t there then people wouldn’t have to wait for basic facilities, I will keep counting.” Continuing his attack, Modi said the “Congress high command” had three ways of functioning -- to discredit, destabilise and dismiss -- and cited examples of state governments “dismissed” in the past. Covid Watch: Numbers and Developments The number of reported coronavirus cases from India stood at 4,23,37,548 at the time of publishing this newsletter, with the death toll at 5,04,097. Evening Wrap will return tomorrow. [logo] The Evening Wrap 08 FEBRUARY 2022 [The Hindu logo] Welcome to the Evening Wrap newsletter, your guide to the day’s biggest stories with concise analysis from The Hindu. [[Arrow]Open in browser]( [[Mail icon]More newsletters]( Unrest over hijab: Karnataka CM orders closure of all high schools and colleges for three days Chief Minister Basavaraj Bommai [ordered closure of all high schools and colleges in Karnataka for the next three days]( in an attempt to prevent further escalation of [the row over students wearing hijab]( and saffron shawls in classrooms. The Chief Minister, who is in New Delhi to meet various Union ministers, issued the order from there following reports of confrontations and violence from a few college campuses on February 8. There was stone-pelting in one college and caning by police in another. “I appeal to all students, teachers and managements of schools and colleges, as well as people of Karnataka, to maintain peace and harmony,” the Chief Minister tweeted. [Students wearing saffron shawl and hijab stage a protest outside Mahatma Gandhi Memorial College campus, in Udupi district of Karnataka, on February 8, 2022.]  Pointing out that the Karnataka High Court is looking into the issue, he appealed to all those concerned, especially students, to patiently wait for the court’s verdict. Speaking to mediapersons in New Delhi, he said it was very unfortunate that the row over dress code that started in one college had spread to various districts. “Similar situation had arisen in different States at different times, and courts have given judgments and directions from time to time,” he said. Defending the dress code laid down by the government, the Chief Minister said, “We have put our case very clearly as per the Constitution and Karnataka Education Act. However, we have been waiting for directions of the Karnataka High Court.” He appealed to students to maintain peace and harmony. He reminded them that they have to sit together in colleges and carry on with educational activities. Hence, it was very important for them to maintain peace and harmony, he said. He appealed to everyone, including political leaders, to desist from instigating students or issuing provocative statements over the episode. [underlineimg] Government summons Korean Ambassador over posts on Kashmir by Hyundai The government took up social media posts calling for Kashmiri “freedom” by various Multi-National Companies (MNCs) based in Pakistan on Tuesday, Commerce Minister Piyush Goyal told parliament on Tuesday, with External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar speaking to Korean Foreign Minister Chung Eui-yong to protest the posts put out by the Hyundai Motor Company, and the MEA conveying to a number of other countries that it found the posts “offensive”. Apart from Korean auto companies Hyundai and Kia, the Pakistani branches of American MNCs Kentucky Fried Chicken and Pizza Hut, Japanese companies Osaka batteries, Atlas Honda Limited and Isuzu D-max as well as German pharma company Schwabe had all carried posts expressing “solidarity” with “Kashmiri brothers and sisters”, and “praying for the liberation” on February 5th, which is marked as “Kashmir Solidarity day” in Pakistan. In addition, Korean Ambassador to India, Chang Jae Bok was [summoned to South Block by the Ministry of External Affairs]( while Indian Ambassador to Seoul Sripriya Ranganathan sought an explanation from Hyundai and Kia headquarters for the posts. “The strong displeasure of the Government on the unacceptable social media post by Hyundai Pakistan was conveyed to [the Korean Ambassador]. It was highlighted that this matter concerned India’s territorial integrity on which there could be no compromise,” said Official spokesperson Arindam Bagchi in a statement released by the MEA. Jaishankar tweeted separately that he had received a call from his Korean counterpart, and had discussed bilateral and multilateral issues “as also the Hyundai matter”. The MEA did not respond to queries about whether protests had been made with other embassies and governments. However, sources said that officials had reached out to economic counsellors in some of the embassies involved and impressed upon the need for their MNCs to respect India’s sentiments. Some of the companies that had issued the Kashmir posts have subsequently withdrawn and deleted their posts, and a few like Hyundai and KFC expressed their apologies and “regretted the offense caused to the people of India”. “[Hyundai] has already issued a clarification. Yesterday, we have also asked them to be more forceful in their unequivocal apology on this issue,” Goyal stated while responding to a zero-hour submission made on the subject by Shiv Sena’s Priyanka Chaturvedi. Speaking about the MNC posts in Pakistan, Chaturvedi had said that “These companies are doing business, both in India and Pakistan, yet have posted content in solidarity with Pakistan over Kashmir. Such posts that are challenging the sovereignty of our country should not be acceptable. It is surprising that it has been ignored till now, also keeping in mind that these companies have been flourishing in India for past many years.” In its statement on Tuesday the Hyundai motor company said that it “does not comment on political or religious issues in any specific region. Therefore, it is clearly against Hyundai Motor’s policy that the independently-owned distributor in Pakistan made unauthorised Kashmir-related social media posts from their own accounts.” In response to calls by Indian social media users to boycott Hyundai products, it also said that Hyundai Motors India is “not associated with the distributor in Pakistan”. Japan’s Suzuki Motor Corporation said that “such communication from our dealers or business associates on these topics represents neither our company position nor authorised by us. We deeply regret the hurt to sentiments, that such insensitive communication has caused,” it said. On Monday, KFC India had also issued an apology “for a post that was published on some KFC social media channels outside the country”. [underlineimg] Tamil Nadu Assembly re-adopts Bill against NEET A special session of the Tamil Nadu Legislative Assembly on February 8 [unanimously re-adopted a Bill that seeks to dispense with the National Eligibility-cum-Entrance Test (NEET)]( for admission into undergraduate medical degree courses in the State. The Bill, previously adopted in September last year, was recently returned to Assembly Speaker M, Appavu, by T.N. Governor R.N. Ravi. This is the first time, the House has re-adopted a Bill returned by the Governor. Earlier, all four BJP members staged a walk out of the House, opposing the Tamil Nadu government’s decision. During the special session of the House, which commenced in the Assembly Hall in the Fort St. George campus at 10 a.m., Chief Minister M.K. Stalin moved the Bill on the floor of the House. Members of the principal Opposition party, the AIADMK, and other parties present in the House supported the Bill. After a voice vote, Assembly Speaker M. Appavu declared the Bill adopted “unanimously”. Last week, the Governor returned the earlier Bill, contending that the legislation was against the interests of the students especially the rural and economically poor students of the State. In February 2017, a similar Bill against NEET was adopted by the House during the then AIADMK regime but a few months later, President Ram Nath Kovind withheld his assent to the legislation. [underlineimg] Congress thinking trapped by urban naxals, says PM Modi in Rajya Sabha A day after his Lok Sabha speech where he called the Congress party as the leader of the tukde tukde (break-up) gang, [Prime Minister Narendra Modi continued his attack against the principal Opposition party in Rajya Sabha]( stating that the party’s thinking is trapped by that of the “Urban Naxals.” “It is being said that we are trying to change history. The Congress thinking seems to have been hijacked by urban Naxals. We just want to improve the memory of some people. We are not changing history. Some people’s history is limited to one family,” he said. [Prime Minister Narendra Modi addresses the Rajya Sabha during the Budget session of Parliament, in New Delhi on February 8, 2022. Twitter/@narendramodi]  Taking a dig at a statement on importance of federalism made by Congress’ Rahul Gandhi in Lok Sabha last week where he delved on two competing visions of India — one that viewed India as a Union of States, Modi said, “Congress has a problem with ‘nation’ also. If [the word] nation is unconstitutional, then why is your party’s name Indian National Congress. Change it to Federation of Congress. Correct the mistakes done by your predecessors.” Modi was replying to the debate on Motion of Thanks to the President’s address in Rajya Sabha. He spoke for 96-minutes. An hour into his speech, the Congress members walked out the House as a mark of protest. Recalling the speech made by Leader of Opposition Mallikarjun Kharge in the Upper House last week, Modi said, “Kharge ji said Congress laid the foundation of the country and BJP only foisted its flag on it. This was not said in a lighter vein, this is a result of that thinking that India was born in 1947. And it is a result of this that the people who ruled for 50 years have this thinking, this democracy is not at your mercy. You throttled democracy in 1975.” Further attacking the Congress, Modi added, “We should say with pride that India is the mother of democracy. Congress’s problem is that they did not think beyond dynasty. The biggest threat to India is from dynastic political parties and when a family is supreme in a party, the first casualty is talent. For years the country has suffered this thinking. I expect all political parties to follow democracy in their working also, Congress should lead this initiative.” Retorting to Kharge’s earlier speech where he narrated the contributions of his party, Modi said, “It was said that what would have happened if Congress not there...Indira is India, India is Indira. Mahatma Gandhi had understood this. I will tell you what would have happened if Congress wasn’t there -- democracy would have been devoid of dynastic influence, we would be rid of foreign influence, there would be no emergency, no caste and regional divide, no Sikh genocide would have taken place, Kashmir Pandits wouldn’t have been displaced, daughters wouldn’t have been killed in tandoor (over), if Congress wasn’t there then people wouldn’t have to wait for basic facilities, I will keep counting.” Continuing his attack, Modi said the “Congress high command” had three ways of functioning -- to discredit, destabilise and dismiss -- and cited examples of state governments “dismissed” in the past. [underlineimg] Covid Watch: Numbers and Developments The [number of reported coronavirus cases from India]( stood at 4,23,37,548 at the time of publishing this newsletter, with the death toll at 5,04,097. [underlineimg] Evening Wrap will return tomorrow. Today's Top Picks [[Oscar Nominations 2022: Here is the full list] Oscar Nominations 2022: Here is the full list]( [[‘Kadaisi Vivasayi’ movie review: M Manikandan’s poignant ode to the old-fashioned farmer] ‘Kadaisi Vivasayi’ movie review: M Manikandan’s poignant ode to the old-fashioned farmer]( [[Explained: RBI’s digital currency plans] Explained: RBI’s digital currency plans]( [[Lata Mangeshkar, a window to India, mourned by fans in China] Lata Mangeshkar, a window to India, mourned by fans in China]( Copyright @ 2022, THG PUBLISHING PVT LTD. If you are facing any trouble in viewing this newsletter, please [try here]( If you do not wish to receive such emails [go here](