Ponda — An umbrella organization for Hindu rightwing groups has asked parents in Goa to keep their children away from convent schools where it alleges their culture gets stifled.
Hindu girls in convent schools are not allowed to wear bangles, apply ‘kumkum’ (red vermilion powder) on their forehead, wear Indian dress, or to abide by their culture, the National Hindu Movement (NHM) alleged in a press release on Sunday.
The movement Sunday demonstrated in Ponda in central Goa and urged the Hindu parents not to deprive their children of Hindu culture by admitting them in convent schools. The demonstration was a part of the promoting NHM throughout the country.
NHM spokesperson Manoj Solanki said many parents who have sent their children to convent schools have complained that they are deprived of following their culture and religion.
The meeting appealed to those parents to think whether they should admit their children in convent schools, where their culture and traditions are at stake.
NHM also demanded the removal of the word “secular” from the Indian Constitution and called for an end to “appeasing” religious minorities in the country. The press release noted that the term secular was not included in the original constitution when it was promulgated in 1950. It was “illegally incorporated” later during the national emergency period (1975-1977). Therefore it should be removed and law of equality should be passed immediately, the organization demanded.
It also wants the federal government to conserve ancient temples and forts in the country by stopping their ruin.