A Muslim woman from Kerala was allegedly harassed by security personnel at Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s event to felicitate women village heads on International Women’s Day on Wednesday. While NDTV reported that she was forced to remove her veil and that it was returned to her after an hour, Deccan Chronicle said the security officers refused to allow her into the venue altogether because of the headscarf. The incident has not been independently verified by Scroll.in.

Shaharban Saidalavi is a panchayat president, who was part of a 100-woman-strong delegation invited from the state to attend the event in Gandhinagar, Gujarat. The Kerala Women’s Commission has criticised the incident and asked for strict action against the security officers involved.

The Indian Union Muslim League will hold protests at the district headquarters on Thursday. “Such harassments happen only after Modi came to power,” party general secretary KPA Majeed told Deccan Chronicle. “If the security staff were so particular about the veil, they could have searched the woman by removing the veil and allowed her to wear it afterwards.”

However, the local police have denied the allegations. “The woman’s face was covered and it had to be removed to check her identity,” said Virendra Yadav, Superintendent of Police, Gandhinagar. “This was done in the presence of the lady co-ordinator.”

In another incident at the event, a woman sarpanch from Uttar Pradesh was escorted out by security personnel after she tried to meet the PM. “I’m a sarpanch from a village in Gautam Budh Nagar in UP. I wanted to apprise PM of difficulties I face,” Shalini Rajput told The Financial Express. “Even the state government isn’t helping.”

At the event, Modi presented Swachh Shakti 2017 awards to top women achievers, who “have broken so many myths with their actions”. “I can see the determination to make a positive difference when I meet these women ‘sarpanchs’,” the PM said, “Female foeticide can’t be allowed to take place. Villages with women sarpanchs can play a key role and show the way in ending female foeticide.”