NEW DELHI, March 15: A petition was moved in the Supreme Court on Tuesday challenging the day’s earlier order of the Karnataka High Court upholding the state government’s order for ban on hijab in the educational institutions.
Niba Naaz, a student filed the petition against the Karnataka high court order which stated that hijab is not an essential part of Islam, thereby underlining the Basavaraj Bommai government’s restriction on the use of headscarves by Muslim women in the educational institutions.
“We are of the considered opinion that wearing of a hijab by Muslim women does not form part of the essential religious practice in the Islamic faith. The answer to the second question is that we are of the considered opinion that prescription of a school uniform is only a reasonable restriction, constitutionally permissible, which the students cannot object to. The answer to the third question is that the government has the power to issue an order and no case is made of its invalidation,” chief justice Ritu Raj Awasthi had said.
The Karnataka chief minister had appealed for calm after the High Court order requesting the students to return to their classes. On
February 5 the state government had passed an order saying students wearing hijab won’t be allowed to attend classes. The order was issued days after girls were not allowed entry into a pre-university government college in Udupi for wearing a hijab.
The Karnataka high court constituted a bench comprising chief justice Ritu Raj Awasthi along with justices JM Khazi and Krishna Dixit on February 9 to hear a batch of petitions on a daily basis filed by students seeking permission to wear hijab. A day later, the high court had issued an interim order prohibiting students from wearing any religious attire to classes till the end of hearing which was in force till date.
(Manas Dasgupta)
