Karnataka Hijab Row: Girl Students Move Supreme Court, Seek Permission To Wear Hijab During Exams

Karnataka Hijab News Update: The plea was filed in the Supreme Court as Pre-university exams in Karnataka are expected to begin on March 9.

Karnataka Hijab News Updates: Some of the girl students from Karnataka approached the Supreme Court on Wednesday for an urgent hearing on their plea, seeking permission to wear hijabs during exams. The plea was filed in the Supreme Court as Pre-university exams in Karnataka are expected to begin on March 9. However, Chief Justice DY Chandrachud assured the student petitioners that he would look into the matter and form a bench.

On behalf of the students, Advocate Shadan Farast mentioned the matter before the CJI and sought urgent listing, saying that the exams are scheduled to begin on March 9 and the girl students will lose a year if they are not allowed to sit for the exams.

To a question of the CJI, the advocate said that girls are not allowed to appear for the exams with their headscarves on and they are not ready to give exams without it. “We want only limited relief for them,” he said.

Earlier when the Karnataka government banned the wearing of hijab in Government Pre-University Colleges, several Muslim students had to move to private colleges for their studies. The exams, however, are conducted in government colleges, where there is a restriction on hijabs. This is the reason why the petitioners have sought interim relief from the top court.

In October last year, the Supreme Court had delivered a split verdict on the ban on wearing hijab in educational institutions in Karnataka. While one judge said the state government is authorised to enforce uniforms in schools, another judge called the hijab a matter of choice that cannot be stifled by the state.