Hindu Sena wants Home Ministry to ban burqa, nikab to prevent terror attacks

Right-wing fringe group Hindu Sena has written to the Home Ministry, demanding a complete ban on face covers, burqa and niqab at public places and government and private institutions on the lines of Sri Lanka to prevent terror attacks.

In his letter to Home Secretary Rajiv Gauba, Hindu Sena national president Vishnu Gupta said intelligence failures in Sri Lanka led to synchronized suicide bombings by terrorists in churches in the island nation recently, resulting in more than 250 deaths.

"We request you to immediately formulate policies at both tactical and strategic levels to prevent occurrence of such attacks in India and Indian territories, including embassies and high commissions, all across the world," the letter read.

"Please impose a ban on full face covers and dresses like burqa and niqab at all public places and inside government and private institutions. These kind of head coverings enable terrorists to hide their identity from CCTV cameras and other surveillance measures in place. Sri Lanka has already implemented this policy," Gupta said.

Sri Lanka Monday enforced a ban on burqa, a week after suicide bombers claiming links to Islamic State blew themselves up, killing more than 250 people in churches and hotels on Easter Sunday.

On January 22, the Hindu Sena had paid tributes to Queen Victoria on her 118th death anniversary here, saying she "freed India from the autocratic rule of the Mughals".

The Hindu Sena had celebrated the birthday of US President Donald Trump with a cake weighing 7.1 kg in New Delhi in 2017.