In Punjab, India, a university professor was fired over an alleged offensive comment regarding the Hindu god Ram. In an Instagram post published by the university on April 23, the professor was terminated “effective immediately.”

Gursang Preet Kaur is an assistant professor at the Lovely Professional University in Jalandhar, northern Punjab. Kaur allegedly referred to Ram as a “cunning person,” putting the Hindu god in a bad light.

This year's celebration of the Ram Navami festival was marred by violence and death across multiple states. Ram Navabi is an important Hindu festival that celebrates the birth of Ram, the seventh avatar of Vishnu.

On March 29, a stadium in Iran barred women from getting in during a game. Security guards of the Imam Reza Stadium in Mashhad, Iran, denied women who paid for their tickets access to the stadium.

Female Genital Mutilation (FGM) cases are increasing in Somaliland, a de facto African state that struggles for international recognition. Pandemic lockdowns fuel the increase in FGM cases. Government officials, health workers, and advocates say FGM cases are soaring since the lockdown made girls accessible to “cutters.”

A 17-year old Amritdhari Sikh girl was allegedly asked to take off her turban while attending class in Mount Carmel College in Palace Vasanth Nagar. The incident is part of the ongoing controversy involving students’ religious garments.

Last year, six Muslim female students were barred from joining their classes after refusing to take off their hijab.