Hijab row: 'Where is the law against headscarves?' - students ask Karnataka HC

Karnataka Muslim students who have been barred from wearing hijab on Monday asked the high court where is the laws against wearing hijab to schools and colleges.

The students contended in Karnataka High Court that there is no law that prohibits the use of headscarves in educational institutions. Appearing on their behalf, senior advocate Devadatt Kamat said hijab is protected under the religious freedoms granted by the Constitution and no college development body can ban it.

The students' lawyer further added that the state cannot say if wearing a headscarf is essential practise or not. It has to be seen from the view point of a believer, he said adding that in this case students have been wearing headscarf for years together.

Muslim girls wearing headscarves are not hurting anyone, the petitioners' lawyer said, pointing out that religious freedoms can be barred only when it interferes with public order.

The high court will continue hearing the petition on Tuesday.

The hijab row had started in Karnataka last month as Muslim girl students at a Udupi school were not allowed to attend classes due to hijab. Five students then went to court. The hijab protests then spread to a number of schools and colleges in many towns of the state with rightwing groups protesting and harassing Muslim girls students who wore hijab to school or college.