Earlier in the day, the two-judge bench of Justices Hemant Gupta and Sudhanshu Dhulia of the Supreme Court of India delivered a split verdict on the Karnataka hijab case. Reacting to the Supreme Court’s decision, Samajwadi Party leader Shafiqur Rahman Barq said that permitting women to walk around in public spaces without a burqa will only enhance wildness and promiscuity in men.
The Samajwadi Party leader maintained that not wearing Hijab in public is bad for society as a whole. Rahman insisted that this was strictly a religious matter and that Hijab is essential for women in public spaces in Islam.
Shafiqur Rahman accused BJP of trying to spoil the atmosphere of the country on the pretext of hijab.
In a video which has now gone viral, SP MP Shafiqur Rahman Barq is heard saying, “Honestly, this is a religious matter. It is a matter pertaining to Islam. In Islam, Hijab is mandatory for women. They have been told to remain in purdah and not roam around the markets and streets without purdah. This spoils the situation and profligacy increases. Today, if they say that Hijab is not necessary. Due to this, it will be a loss not just to Islam but to society also.”
Earlier in the day, the Supreme Court of India’s two-judge panel of Justices Hemant Gupta and Sudhanshu Dhulia issued a split judgement in the Karnataka hijab case. Justice Hemant Gupta upheld the ban by dismissing the 26 appeals filed against the judgment of the Karnataka High Court which held that hijab was not an essential practice of Islam and allowed the ban on wearing headscarves in educational institutions in the State.
Meanwhile, the second judge of the bench, Justice Sudhanshu Dhulia, expressed “divergence in opinion.” He set aside the Karnataka High Court judgment and held that the entire concept of essential religious practice was not essential to the dispute.
As a result of the split ruling, the case will now be sent to the Chief Justice of India for suitable direction. In the interim time, the order of the Karnataka High Court which held that hijab was not an essential practice of Islam and allowed the ban on wearing headscarves in educational institutions in the State, will remain applicable.
Notably, Shafiqur Rahman Barq is the same Samajwadi party leader who was seenextending his support to the Jihadist organisation, two days after the Taliban took control of Afghanistan. On Tuesday, August 17, the SP MP, who remains in news due to his controversial statements, tried to legitimise the radical Islamist outfit as he opined that the Talibanis have only recaptured the land that originally belonged to them.
Drawing an equivalence between these Jihadists and India’s freedom fighters, the Samajwadi Party leader said that like our countrymen fought for freedom from the British, the Talibanis also wants to free their country and run it.
Further heaping praises for the Jihadist outfit, Shafiqur Rahman Barq added, “Taliban is a force that did not allow even strong countries like Russia and America to settle in their country.”
A day after, however, the Yogi Adityanath government in Uttar Pradesh booked him on charges of sedition, promoting enmity and hurting religious sentiments for his open support to the Taliban.
The Samajwadi Party leader has a track record of making extremely problematic comments. He had once said, “BJP not only tampered with Shariat but also got girls caught and raped. Mistakes like mob lynching were done with Muslims. The government is now facing the brunt of which in the form of coronavirus.”
Shafiqur Rahman Barq is the same Samajwadi leader who had also created a controversy by saying in Parliament that Vande Mataram is against Islam.