Hijab ban to continue inside classrooms of Karnataka schools and colleges, says Education Minister BC Nagesh

Bengaluru: Hijab ban will continue inside the classrooms of schools and colleges in Karnataka, announced state education minister B C Nagesh on Thursday, minutes after the Supreme Court delivered a split verdict into the issue.

"We welcome the Supreme Court verdict. We had expected a better judgement. As you know, throughout the world, women are demanding not to wear hijab or burqa. But there is a split judgement from the Supreme Court. So whatever Karnataka High Court had given the order, it is valid as on today. Ban on wearing of hijab in educational institutions of the state remains," said Nagesh.

He further said that the state will follow the rules that are framed as per the Karnataka Education Act and Rule which does not permit any religious items inside the class. "So we are very clear that no student can wear hijab inside the class," he added.

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The minister further said, "Definitely a three-bench SC is going to think everything on demand on students and the order of Karnataka HC and we expect a better judgment."

'Organisation supporting wearing hijab want to split society'

The Karnataka education minister said that the organisations supporting wearing hijab in educational institutions "will always want to split this society". "They are using hijab to split the society," he added.

Karnataka hijab ban: SC delivers a split verdict

The Supreme Court Thursday delivered a split verdict on a batch of pleas challenging the Karnataka High Court judgement refusing to lift the ban on hijab in educational institutions in the state.

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While Justice Hemant Gupta dismissed the appeals against the high court verdict, Justice Sudhanshu Dhulia allowed them.

The matter has now been referred to a higher bench.

On January this year, 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 hijab.

Also Read: First India, now Supreme Court divided over hijab as two-judge bench gives split verdict

This was four days after they requested the principal's 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, the college principal Rudre Gowda had said.

"The institution did not have any rule on hijab-wearing as such and 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.

The High Court upheld Karnataka government's decision banning hijab on school and college campuses.

With inputs from agencies

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