The Karnataka state government has withheld the 2024-25 ‘Best Principal Award’ which was supposed to be given to Ramakrishna BG, the principal of the Government Pre-University College, Kundapur. However, several civil rights activists and academicians protested against the government decision reminding them about Ramakrishna’s pro-active role during the Hijab ban controversy under the previous BJP government and preventing Muslim students from pursuing education.
In 2022, during the hijab controversy in educational institutions, Ramakrishna personally shut the gates of his college when students wearing hijabs attempted to enter the college. A photograph of him closing the gates while students pleaded for entry had gone viral. His actions were condemned both nationally and internationally as the hijab issue became a flashpoint in Karnataka.
The award, which was announced as part of the Teachers' Day celebrations on September 3, initially recognized a total of 41 teachers, principals, and lecturers from government schools and PU colleges, including Ramakrishna. However, on September 4, a social media campaign was launched against Ramakrishna.
The backlash began after Social Democratic Party of India (SDPI), the political arm of the banned Popular Front of India (PFI) started a social media campaign alleging that the Congress government was encouraging right-wing activities by awarding Ramakrishna with the award.
“Siddaramaiah's government has not acted as promised in any issue affecting the minorities, including the restoration of reservation for Muslims, cow terrorism by Hindutva goon forces, unethical police brutality. Instead, it is hiding them and protecting them in other ways. As a part of that, the Principal of Kundapur Government College, Ramakrishna B.G., stood in support of the biggest conspiracy by the Sangh Parivar to stop the education of these Muslim girls,” SDPI said in a statement.
Reacting to the development, Karnataka Primary and Secondary Education Minister Madhu Bangarappa said that the district committee tasked with selecting receivers for the award “overlooked” the issue. He added that the committee should have verified before selecting the recipient.
“That’s a mistake, they should have verified everything and then sent it to us. The way he treated the children is the issue. Even if it was a government order that he was following, It had to be ordered in a certain manner and if it was not, that is the question,” the Minister said.
The hijab controversy began in December 2021 when six Muslim students were barred from attending classes at their pre-university college while wearing hijabs following an active political campaign by the right-wing outfits. Protesting the decision of Muslim students opting to follow their religious attire in educational institutions, students belonging to the Hindu community wore saffron shawls.
The issue quickly spread across the state, with many government institutions following suit and preventing hijab-clad students from entering.
On March 15, 2022, the Karnataka High Court upheld the state government's decision, ruling that the hijab was not an essential religious practice and that students must adhere to institutional dress codes.
Despite a change in the government, the ban on hijab continues under the Congress rule.