Hijab Row: Karnataka HC Verdict Today; Section 144 Clamped in Districts, Schools Shut

The full bench of the Karnataka High Court, which concluded its hearing in the Hijab case, will pronounce its verdict in the matter on Tuesday. The case pertains to the demand by a section of girls in a Udupi pre-university college to wear Hijab on the campus, which snowballed into a major controversy after some students turned up in saffron shawls. The row spread to other parts of the state with the state government insisting on a uniform norm for all students.

According to the lawyers appearing for the petitioner girls from Udupi district, the matter has been listed for Tuesday as serial No. 1 and the court may spell out the operative part of the verdict from 10.30 am onwards.

A day before the verdict, prohibitory orders under Section 144 were imposed in Bengaluru city, which will remain in force for a week. More than 10,000 policemen will be deployed across the city, sources said, adding that an additional reserve police force and city armed reserve force will also be on duty. Further, the DCPs have been asked to keep a tab on social media, they said.

In Vijayapura, any gathering, agitation or protest of any type within the 200-metre radius of schools, pre-university colleges, degree colleges or other similar educational institutions is banned. Security has also been stepped up outside schools and colleges in Uttar Kannada district, sources told News18.

Dakshina Kannada DC Rajendra KV ordered a holiday in all schools and colleges for Tuesday. “External exams will happen as per schedule but internal exams of all schools and colleges will be postponed,” he said.

Deputy Commissioner of Kalaburagi also announced a holiday for schools and colleges for Tuesday and imposed Section 144 in the district. “In view of the Hijab row verdict tomorrow, the district administration has imposed Sec 144 effective from 8 pm today till 6 am on March 19. All educational institutions in the district will remain closed tomorrow,” the Kalaburagi DC announced.

Schools and colleges will also remain shut in Udupi and Shivamogga districts, while prohibitory orders will be in place in Hassan, Chikkaballapura, Kolar, Dharwad and Davangere as well.

The controversy 

In February, the BJP-led Karnataka government had ordered the closure of schools for a few days after violence erupted between supporters of the hijab and right-wing outfits across the state over the issue.

The full bench of the High Court comprising Chief Justice Ritu Raj Awasthi, Justice Krishna S Dixit and Justice J M Khazi was constituted on February 9 on a petition filed by girls from Udupi who prayed that they should be allowed to wear Hijab even inside the classroom along with the school uniform as it was part of their faith.

On January 1, six girl students of a college in Udupi attended a press conference held by the Campus Front of India (CFI) in the coastal town protesting against the college authorities denying them entry into classrooms wearing headscarves.

This was four days after they requested the principal permission to wear hijab in classes, which was not allowed. Till then, students used to wear the headscarf to the campus, but entered the classroom after removing it, college principal Rudre Gowda had said.

“The institution did not have any rule on hijab-wearing since no one used to wear it to the classroom in the last 35 years. The students who came with the demand had the backing of outside forces,” Gowda had said. As the issue of Hijab versus saffron scarves spread to several educational institutions in many parts of Karnataka, the state government announced holiday from February 9 to February 15 in all the pre-university colleges and from February 9 to February 16 in degree and diploma colleges.

The girls then approached the Karnataka High Court seeking relief and quashing the government order on February 5 restraining students from wearing any cloth that could disturb, peace, harmony and public order.

The full bench of the High Court has been hearing the case on a day-to-day basis since February 10. In its interim order, the bench asked the state government to reopen the educational institutions, which were hit by the agitation, and restrained students from wearing Hijab and saffron scarves in the class-room till the final order is delivered.

(Inputs from PTI)

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