The Karnataka high court on Thursday restrained students from wearing hijab or any other religious attire to schools and colleges until it finally decides a clutch of petitions questioning the ban on the hijab, imposed by the state government through an executive order.
A bench, led by Chief Justice Ritu Raj Awasthi, emphasized that it would give precedence to the reopening of educational institutions in the state while prohibiting all kinds of religious attire in schools and colleges for the time being.
“We will pass an order. But till the matter is resolved, no student should insist on wearing a religious dress,” the Press Trust of India news agency quoted Chief Justice Ritu Raj Awasthi as saying.
The court also directed the state to reopen schools and colleges which the chief minister had shut for three days as protests over the ban escalated earlier this week.
The high court on Friday put out the full copy of its order after initially issuing oral orders on Thursday at the end of a hearing for interim relief on the issue regarding whether a ban on Muslim girls wearing the hijab in classrooms in some colleges in the state is a violation of their fundamental right to freedom of religion.
“The interest of students would be better served by their returning to the classes than by the continuation of agitations and consequent closure of institutions. The academic year is coming to an end shortly,” the high court full bench comprising Chief Justice Ritu Raj Awasthi, Justice Krishna S Dixit, and Justice J M Khazi stated in the interim order.
“Elongation of academic terms would be detrimental to the educational career of students especially when the timelines for admission to higher studies/courses are mandatory,” the court said while directing the reopening of colleges in the state.
“In the above circumstances, we request the state government, and all other stakeholders to reopen the educational institutions and allow the students to return to the classes at the earliest,” the order said.
An appeal has been filed in the Supreme Court challenging the direction of the Karnataka High Court that has asked students not to insist on wearing any religious cloth on campuses of educational institutions which can instigate people, till the matter is resolved. The plea filed by a student has sought a stay on the direction of the high court, which is hearing the hijab issue, as well as the proceedings going on before the three-judge bench. The appeal contended that the high court has sought to curtail the fundamental right of Muslim student women by not allowing them to wear the hijab.
A bench, led by Chief Justice Ritu Raj Awasthi, emphasized that it would give precedence to the reopening of educational institutions in the state while prohibiting all kinds of religious attire in schools and colleges for the time being.
“We will pass an order. But till the matter is resolved, no student should insist on wearing a religious dress,” the Press Trust of India news agency quoted Chief Justice Ritu Raj Awasthi as saying.
The court also directed the state to reopen schools and colleges which the chief minister had shut for three days as protests over the ban escalated earlier this week.
The high court on Friday put out the full copy of its order after initially issuing oral orders on Thursday at the end of a hearing for interim relief on the issue regarding whether a ban on Muslim girls wearing the hijab in classrooms in some colleges in the state is a violation of their fundamental right to freedom of religion.
“The interest of students would be better served by their returning to the classes than by the continuation of agitations and consequent closure of institutions. The academic year is coming to an end shortly,” the high court full bench comprising Chief Justice Ritu Raj Awasthi, Justice Krishna S Dixit, and Justice J M Khazi stated in the interim order.
“Elongation of academic terms would be detrimental to the educational career of students especially when the timelines for admission to higher studies/courses are mandatory,” the court said while directing the reopening of colleges in the state.
“In the above circumstances, we request the state government, and all other stakeholders to reopen the educational institutions and allow the students to return to the classes at the earliest,” the order said.
An appeal has been filed in the Supreme Court challenging the direction of the Karnataka High Court that has asked students not to insist on wearing any religious cloth on campuses of educational institutions which can instigate people, till the matter is resolved. The plea filed by a student has sought a stay on the direction of the high court, which is hearing the hijab issue, as well as the proceedings going on before the three-judge bench. The appeal contended that the high court has sought to curtail the fundamental right of Muslim student women by not allowing them to wear the hijab.
