SC to hear next week pleas against Karnataka HC order refusing to lift ban on hijab

New Delhi/Bengaluru: After months of waiting, the Supreme Court Wednesday agreed to hear a bunch of appeals filed against the Karnataka High Court's verdict regarding the hijab ban in schools in the state. It was on March 15 that the Karnataka High Court ruled that wearing hijabs does not fall under the essential practice of Islam.

When Advocate Prashant Bhushan mentioned the matter in the court, a bench headed by Chief Justice of India NV Ramana agreed to list the matter before an appropriate bench next week.

Prashant Bhushan said that the matters were filed way back in March but haven’t been listed yet.

The hijab row was triggered when an Udupi school in coastal Karnataka banned hijab inside the classrooms. This snowballed into a huge issue prompting girls to challenge the order in the Karnataka High Court. On March 15, the High Court ruled that wearing hijabs does not fall under the essential practice of Islam and that the restrictions on wearing of dress were reasonable and that the students cannot oppose it.

Subsequently, six Muslim girl students moved the Supreme Court against the Karnataka High Court's verdict.

In the meantime, while a majority of Muslim girl students agreed to the government directive on uniform, a few opted out of schools insisting that they will not make any compromise on the hijab.

Published on: Wednesday, July 13, 2022, 11:58 AM IST