Kerala sarpanch made to remove headscarf

GANDHINAGAR/KOZHIKODE: A Muslim woman gram panchayat president has alleged of being stopped because she was wearing a black mafta 'headscarf, when trying to enter the 'Swachh Shakti 2017' all India convention of women sarpanchs addressed by the Prime Minister. "The police said the black mafta will not be allowed into the hall," Sheherbanath, president of the Muppainad gram panchayat in Wayanad, Kerala, alleged. "I was forced to remove the headscarf and hand it over to the security personnel at the venue. I attended the function without the mafta." A member of the IUML, she said the headscarf was later returned by the police after strong protests from the Kerala delegation.