Opinion - Letters to the Editor   

The burqa row

The statement "I don't wear the niqab because I don't think it is necessary" by the woman in London quoted by Zaiba Malik ("Even other Muslims turn and look at me," Oct. 25) is similar to the comment: "I don't exercise because I don't think it is necessary." The benefit of wearing the niqab can be appreciated only by those who wear it regularly. If you wear it just once as Zaiba did and conclude that it is irksome, it is like doing an exercise once and complaining that it is tiring and painful. Wearing or not wearing a niqab is a woman's basic right. If Zaiba does not want to wear it, it is up to her. But no one has a right to tell others whether it is correct to wear it or not.

K.S. Abdul Kareem,
Tiruchi

Wearing the hijab is a woman's right. If a woman has the right to wear skimpy clothes, another has the right to cover herself from head to toe. Why is it seen as a symbol of oppression? Those Muslim women who want to wear the veil should be allowed to do so.

Salman Zafar,
Roorkee, Uttaranchal

Zaiba Malik says among hundreds of Muslim women in the Central Mosque, she was the only one wearing the niqab. Why should such a negligible practice irritate the British authorities? Has not the journalist unwittingly exposed the intolerance of the British towards Muslims?

M.A. Hakeem,
Hyderabad

It is clear from the heading of Zaiba's article how a majority responds to a woman in the hijab. Although Islam says that such a dress protects women, they hesitate to wear it.

K. Zeenath,
Edapal, Kerala

Zaiba's observation, "I have disappeared and somebody I don't recognise is looking back at me" is interesting. I wonder what the world will look like if everyone, irrespective of religion, gender and age, covers himself or herself from head to toe. The identity of all the people will be lost.

For long, the Hindu ruling class interpreted the chaturvarna concept in the Gita to support the caste system. But over centuries, social reformers corrected the interpretation and now the caste system is treated as a blot on religion. Some practices might have outlived their purpose. It is time such practices were interpreted by scholars in the light of scientific knowledge.
V.R.K. Raj,
Hyderabad

Community codes are a combination of religion, culture and tradition. What is the need to argue that the Koran does not insist on women wearing the burqa? If some Muslim women want to wear it, let them do so. Why should others want them not to wear it? I found the Arab headgear ideal to wear while working in hot Oklahoma sun. Whether any religious text has mandated its use hardly matters to me.

Koti Sreekrishna,
Mason, Ohio

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