Congress leader Priyanka Gandhi Vadra’s assertion on Wednesday amid the Karnataka hijab row that women have the right to decide what to wear did not sit well with a section of social media users who questioned the Grand Old Party’s “hypocrisy” after denying the rights of women during their rule.

Taking to Twitter, BJP’s Shehzad Poonawalla questioned Gandhi’s tweet “deliberately misrepresenting & communalising an issue over uniforms” which was immediately followed by Pakistan’s Shah Mahmood Qureshi calling the hijab ban move “oppressive” and against fundamental rights.

“#Hijab issue संयोग या प्रयोग ? CONGRESS ECOSYSTEM & PRIYANKA VADRA TWEETS AROUND 10am DELIBERATELY MISREPRESENTING & COMMUNALISING AN ISSUE OVER UNIFORMS… PAKISTAN TWEETS 11am… यह संयोग / प्रयोग – ३७०, सर्जिकल स्ट्राइक , बालाकोट स्ट्राइक , पुलवामा पर भी देखने मिला है,” Poonawalla tweeted.

Several journalists also raised their voice against Gandhi’s tweet which said the Constitution gives women the right to decide their outfit. Journalist Richa Anirudh asked if the Congress leader wanted to bring back the purdah system “& make India Iran?”. Tell me one girl @priyankagandhi ji who goes to SCHOOL in a bikini,ghoonghat or a pair of jeans!Pls lets talk facts! Issue is about SCHOOL uniform NOTHING else!Generations of Indian women have struggled to get rid of a regressive Purdah system. You want it back & make India Iran?”

TV journalist Rubika Liyaquat raised the history of the Congress to take a dig at Gandhi. Reminding of the Shah Bano instance and refusal of the party to act against triple talaq, the scribe said Congress was now supporting young girls being tied down in hijabs.

Journalist Aman Chopra asked if the right of women would also be extended to them entering mosques or marrying the man of their choice.

The hijab controversy first erupted in January at a government PU College in Udupi where six students who attended classes wearing headscarf in violation of the stipulated dress code were asked to leave the campus. The row has spread to different parts of the state with Hindu students too responding by turning up in saffron shawls.

Such saffron-clad students are also being barred from entering classes. The row has also taken a political colour as the ruling BJP stood strongly in support of uniform-related rules being enforced by educational institutions, calling the headscarf, a religious symbol, while the opposition Congress has come out in support of Muslim girls.

Incidents of stone pelting and use of force by police were reported on Tuesday as the hijab row in Karnataka escalated and protests by students spread to more colleges prompting the state government to declare a three-day holiday for all educational institutions.

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