Wearing hijab not an essential religious practice, Karnataka HC says upholding ban on head scarves in classrooms

After months of protests, counter-protests, students of two communities raising slogans against each other, heckling at educational institutions and a fear of unrest bubbling to a breaking point in Karnataka, the High Court has finally pronounced its verdict in the hijab case.

The Karnataka High Court answered the two questions pertaining to the matter:

1. Is wearing hijab an essential religious practice in the Islamic faith protected under Article 25?
2. Is prescribing a school uniform in violation of rights?

THE VERDICT:

#HijabRow: #KarnatakaHighCourt dismisses all petitions.Verdict ?♦️Wearing of hijab not essential religious practice under Islam♦️Students can’t object to restrictions on wearing of uniform♦️No case made out for invalidation of Feb 5 Govt order.

— DailyO (@DailyO_) March 15, 2022

• Wearing hijab is not an essential religious practice of the Islamic faith
• Prescription of uniforms is a reasonable restriction imposed by schools and colleges that students cannot object to.
• No case made out for validation of the February 5 Government order. 

The verdict was pronounced by Chief Justice Ritu Raj Awasthi.

Pro-hijab advocates and those representing the petitioners – Muslim girls who were not allowed to enter classrooms for wearing hijab – had argued in the court that wearing hijab is an essential practice in Islam and a ban on the headscarf essentially violates the right to practice religion.

Union Minister Prahlad Joshi reacted to the verdict saying that he welcomes the court’s decision and that students should set aside the differences, get back to studying and remain united.

I welcome the Court's decision. I appeal to everyone that the state & country has to go forward, everyone has to maintain peace by accepting the order of HC. The basic work of students is to study. So leaving all this aside they should study and be united: Union Min Pralhad Joshi https://t.co/xb3BeAYBQm pic.twitter.com/PBzQHqzX9A

— ANI (@ANI) March 15, 2022

Karnataka Chief Minister Basavaraj Bommai appealed to the masses and those protesting over the hijab ban to accept the High Court order and start attending schools.

I appeal all to accept the High Court’s decision and we need to ensure that education is delivered to all the students. Education is important. All students now must attend schools: @BSBommai on #KarnatakaHijabRow verdict. LIVE with @nabilajamal_ pic.twitter.com/EQF9tEJzwQ

— IndiaToday (@IndiaToday) March 15, 2022

Reports are emerging that the petitioners may approach the Supreme Court, dissatisfied with the Karnataka High Court order.

WHAT HAD HAPPENED?

• It all began at a government PU college in Udupi district in Karnataka on January 1, 2022. A few Muslim girl students were not allowed entry into the classrooms for wearing the hijab as it violated the school’s prescribed uniform.
• The matter went to the College Development Committee (CDC) who’s President, a BJP MLA, Ragupathi Bhat, said that the girls are free to leave and a TC would be provided. The BJP MLA’s presence on the CDC was a point of contention during the hearing, with pro-hijab advocates questioning the CDC’s legitimacy in making decisions that affected the fundamental rights of the girls.
• On January 26, 2022, the Karnataka government set up a special committee to decide on the subject matter that also said that wearing hijab to educational institutions is not protected under fundamental rights.

• A Karnataka government order said that clothes that disrupted public order were banned at educational institutions.
• The matter soon spread to other colleges too. On January 3, 2022, there were instances of some students wearing saffron scarves around their necks protesting against the pro-hijab students. In February, Muslim girl students were not allowed entry into classrooms in a college in Kundapura district citing the new government order. And at the same time, Shivamogga became a place of anti and pro-hijab protests, with some spirally into brief spouts of violence.
• Some of the affected Muslim girl students and others petitioned to the Karnataka High Court seeking direction in the issue. Around the same time, the Karnataka government closed the schools and colleges for a few days to bring the situation under control.
• Single-judge bench Karnataka High Court transferred the case to a larger bench. The larger bench soon came out with an interim order asking the petitioners to return to the educational institutions without insisting on wearing hijab.
• Following this, several videos emerged where girls and women in hijab and burqa were made to remove the religious pieces of clothing outside the gates of schools and colleges. In some instances, the parents and authorities engaged in a war of words and in other cases, the parents whisked their girl children away from the schools for not being allowed inside without the headscarf.
• During the arguments which lasted for 11 days, senior advocate Sanjay Hegde even questioned other religious pieces of clothing generally allowed in public spaces like wearing of the turban by Sikh community members.

The Karnataka government has banned large gatherings from March 15-19, 2022 to ensure law and order after the High Court verdict.