Bengaluru. Karnataka High Court said that it would pass an interim order restraining the petitioners in the Hijab row matter and other students from wearing any religious garment or headdress, till the matter is disposed of.
The Bench of Chief Justice Ritu Raj Awasthi and Justices Krishna S Dixit and JM Khazi orally remarked,
“We will pass an order that let the institutions start, but till the matter is pending, these students and stakeholders will not insist on wearing any religious garment or head dress. We will restrain everyone. We want peace and tranquility…. Till the disposal of the matter, you people should not insist for wearing all these religious things. We will restrain everyone (in the interim) from adopting all these practices.”
The Court was hearing a batch of petitions filed by Muslim girl students in the State claiming that they are not being allowed to enter colleges on account of the government order which effectively bans the wearing of hijab (headscarves).
After hearing the lawyers, the Bench adjourned the matter for February 14. In the interim, it said that the petitioners would not be allowed to wear hijab or any other religious garment to colleges.
The matter was being heard by Justice Dixit, who on Wednesday, referred it to a larger Bench stating that the case involves important issues.
Before the conclusion of the hearing, the Court urged the student community and the public at large to maintain peace and tranquillity in the wake of protests against the order.
Meanwhile, a petition was filed today urging the Supreme Court to take up the matter given the pan-India ramifications of the issue. Chief Justice of India NV Ramana, however, deemed it fit to let the High Court hear the matter first.
The first petitioner alleged that Government PU College, located in Udupi, stopped her and other female Muslim students from attending classes on the ground that they wear a hijab (headscarf). She contended that the freedom of conscience and the right to religion are both guaranteed by the Constitution, despite which she and other girl students were singled out arbitrarily for belonging to the Islamic faith.
Most recently, two more Muslim students pursuing the BBA (Bachelor of Business Administration) course at Bhandarkar College of Art and Science in Kundapura approached the Court with a similar grievance.
