On the sensational Hijab Row case, today at 10.30 am, the Karnataka high court ‘upholds’ the government’s order on the ban on wearing hijab inside educational institutions. The landmark case of hijab ban verdict was given by the three-judge bench encompassing Chief Justice Ritu Raj Awasthi, Justice Krishna S Dixit and Justice JM Khazi.
In this historic case that provoked a religious divide, the Karnataka high court has ruled that wearing a hijab is not an “essential” religious practice to the Islam community. The court verdict was followed by the long-standing hijab dispute in Karnataka that had unpleasant effects of protests and religious uproar in the state.
The hijab row was started when six girls from Government PU College, Udupi, Karnataka were restricted from entering classes for wearing hijab. As a sequel to the previous event, other colleges in the state also prohibited the entry of Muslim girls wearing hijab inside the campus. Protests broke out across the state as a repelling effect. On the other hand, in response to the ongoing hijab protest, the students of the Government Pre-University College in Kundapur donned saffron scarves as a representation of their religious attire.
The state faced huge unrest due to the student’s protest. In the midst, Muslim girls were harassed by the infuriated saffron-clothed students. A video of a Muslim girl shouting ‘Allahu Akbar’ when she was targeted by the saffron-clad students also got viral.
During which the Muslim students from the Government PU college in Udupi filed a writ petition in the Karnataka high court and also approached the National Human Rights Commission seeking removal of the ban on wearing hijab inside campuses.
Religious politics came into the picture as Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) blamed Congress for provoking the Muslim students and making it a communal issue. While Congress blamed BJP for the same above reasons.
The government ordered shutting schools during the protest but the high court passed an interim order on 11th February 2022, requesting all the closed educational institutions to reopen and prohibited wearing of any religious attire such as hijab, scarves or saffron shawls until further orders.
Besides, women across the country came out on the roads to show support for Muslim students. Protest erupted in places like Kashmir, Telangana, Jadavpur University (Kolkata) and Aligarh Muslim University (UP).
Ahead of the verdict, the government of Karnataka, on Monday, had put a curb on large gatherings and shut down several educational institutions in particular areas to prevent any kind of unrest. The verdict by the Karnataka high court was widely welcomed by various BJP leaders.
Published By : VATSAL KOTHA
Edited By : KRITIKA KASHYAP
