As the row around the hijab in Karnataka continues, some women in Malegaon resolutely united last week to defend the sacred tradition of wearing the headscarf. The mayor of Malegaon Municipal Corporation, Tahera Shaikh Rasheed, held a pro-hijab rally in which many women participated in support of the headscarf.

The rally was followed by another, in which over 30,000 women participated in, on ‘Hijab Day,’ organised on February 11 by MLA Mufti Mohammed Ismail Qasmi. The organisers have been booked by the police for violating prohibitory orders as the rally was held without police permission.