NEW DELHI: Bihar governor Arif Mohammad Khan on Saturday defended chief minister Nitish Kumar, who is facing criticism for removing a woman doctor’s “hijab” (veil), saying Kumar considers female students as his own “daughters.”Also Read | CM Nitish Kumar pulls down woman’s hijab at event; Cong, RJD slam ‘vile act’“This man (Nitish) considers female students as his daughters. It pains me to hear the word ‘dispute’ in this case. Can there be any row between a father and a daughter?” Khan asked.The governor also expressed his “pain” that the incident had turned into a controversy and blamed the media for it.“What have you people made out of it?” he asked reporters.Khan was referring to a video clip which sparked a major political row. The incident took place on Monday in Patna at the chief minister’s secretariat, where Ayush doctors had gathered to receive their letters of appointment. When the woman came up for her letter, Kumar saw her veil, asked “what is this” and then removed the veil.Will the woman doctor report for duty?Meanwhile, Mahfoozur Rahman, principal of Patna’s Government Tibbi College and Hospital, said the doctor’s family wanted to avoid “media attention” and that she would “reconsider” whether to join.Also Read | Nitish Kumar hijab row: SP neta files complaint against Bihar CM, UP ministerAlthough Saturday is the last date for joining, he noted that the government and the department may consider extending the deadline, calling it a “special case.”“Ultimately, it is up to her,” Rahman said, adding that she could also opt for higher studies instead of taking up the posting.According to the principal, the doctor’s family maintained that if she joins, she would do so with her “privacy intact.”“Her husband told us the family is disappointed by the row peddled by the media and has denounced reports of their travel to Kolkata as false,” he stated.He added that the family is “not angry” with Nitish Kumar or the Bihar government.(With PTI inputs)
