India: Court upholds hijab ban in Karnataka

A court in the Indian state of Karnataka on Tuesday upheld a regional ban on hijab-wearing in the classroom, just weeks after educational institutions were closed amid heated protests for and against the controversial policy.

The original order was passed on February 5, when the Karnataka government banned clothes that "disturb equality, integrity and public order." Several schools and colleges used this order as grounds to deny entry to Muslim girls wearing the hijab.

A group of Muslim female students took the matter to the state's high court, questioning how the hijab disturbs the aforementioned values.

Karnataka is governed by Prime Minister Narendra Modi's Bharatiya Janta Party (BJP), which has been repeatedly criticized for marginalizing minority groups and denying their rights.

While the hijab ban does not extend to other Indian states, the court ruling could set a precedent for the rest of the country.

A contentious verdict

When the ban was first announced, videos of colleges closing their doors to hijab-clad
students went viral on social media, triggering widespread protest. Several Muslim students said their fundamental rights to education and religion were being threatened.

This led to counterprotests by Hindu students and others, who wore saffron shawls to educational institutes. The color is closely associated with Hinduism and often used by Hindu nationalists.

After schools and colleges were closed to assuage the tensions, the state's top court disallowed students from wearing hijab or any religious clothing pending a verdict.

The high court's verdict, however, said the state government had the power to prescribe uniform guidelines for students as a "reasonable restriction on fundamental rights."

Karnataka's high court ruled that the wearing of the hijab "does not form a part of essential religious practice in Islamic faith."

As students waited for the verdict, the state government banned large gatherings for a week in the capital city of Bengaluru "to maintain public peace and order." All schools and colleges in Udupi, the epicenter of the unrest, were closed on Tuesday.

Disappointment voiced by Muslims and minorities

The ban has been criticized as just another way of marginalizing Muslims, who account for close to 13% of Hindu-majority India's 1.35 billion population.

"The high court order is against individual rights, against fundamental rights and against religious rights," said Abdul Majeed, Karnataka chief of the Social Democratic Party of India. He said he would speak to the petitioners to challenge the verdict in India's Supreme Court.

Other Muslim politicians, including Mehbooba Mufti, the former chief minister of Jammu and Kashmir state, called the verdict "deeply disappointing."

Karnataka ministers said that Muslim students who were staying away from class in protest should respect the judgment and go back to school.

see/wd (AP, AFP, Reuters)