Karnataka HC To Give Verdict On Hijab Row Today

The Karnataka High Court will give its verdict in the Hijab row on Tuesday after controversy erupted over the headscarves worn by Muslim women around late last year.

The issue reached its flashpoint after students were not allowed to enter classrooms and were asked to remove them. This led to five students challenging the ban in the court.

Karnataka Home Minister Araga Jnanendra met Chief Minister Basavraj Bommai at his residence ahead of the verdict to brief him on the security and police department. The verdict will be delivered around 10.30 am.

Meanwhile, the state government has banned large gatherings for a week in the capital city Bengaluru in order to “maintain public peace”. Gatherings were also banned between March 15 to 19 in Mangalore while Udupi district administration declared a holiday in schools and colleges today.

The Karnataka HC had also banned religious clothes including Hijab and saffron scarves temporarily last month as the controversy turned into protest demonstrations and several Muslim students were being harassed by students who showed up wearing saffron scarves saying that they were also linked to religious identity.

The petitioners told the court that wearing the hijab was fundamental right guaranteed under India’s constitution and an essential practice in Islam. The court reserved its judgment after 11 days of hearing on February 25.

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Notably, along with students, teachers were also not allowed to enter schools and colleges wearing the hijab in many parts of the state since then.

The controversy had flared up in Karnataka late last year as students at a school in Udupi refused to remove their headscarves and stop their use despite requests from teachers. Five students then challenged the issue in court.

On February 5, Karnataka banned “clothes that were against law and order” and on February 10, the HC banned all religious outfits temporarily as it heard petitions challenging the restrictions.

In addition, as the case was being heard, over 100 students were not allowed to take the final practical exams.

Then last month, the Karnataka government had contended before the court that wearing the hijab is not an essential religious practice of Islam and preventing it does not violate the constitutional right of religious freedom.

The move from the state government drew criticism from the United States and the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation and led to protests in some other parts of the country.

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