Lagatar24 Desk
New Delhi, Feb 22: The Supreme Court on Wednesday said that it would take a call on listing the Hijab case which deals with the Karnataka’s ban on Muslim girl students wearing the hijab (headscarf) in college campuses.
Advocate Shadan Farasat brought up the case before Chief Justice of India (CJI) DY Chandrachud, stating that the girls’ inability to take exams is a result of the hijab prohibition in government colleges.
The girls had already lost a year, and Farasat informed the court that the upcoming tests were on March 9.
“I will take a call on this,” the CJI said.
Senior Attorney Meenakshi Arora first brought up the situation on January 23. She informed the court that the Muslim students involved in the case were expected to appear in practical tests this month.
So that the impacted girl students may take the tests, interim guidance was required in the situation.
The petitioners had received a promise from the court at the time that a date for a three-judge bench to hear the case would be set soon.
In October of last year, a division of the Supreme Court issued a split decision in a case challenging a government order (GO) that effectively gave government colleges in the State the authority to forbid Muslim female students from wearing the hijab on campus.
The State’s ban had been initially contested before the Karnataka High Court, which upheld it. The situation then made it to the Supreme Court.
A larger bench had to hear the matter since Judge Sudhanshu Dhulia overturned the ban that Justice Hemant Gupta (now retired) had upheld. The petitioner girl students claim that after the Supreme Court issued a divided decision in the case, the impacted pupils transferred from government colleges to private colleges.
But, as only government colleges are permitted to hold tests, instructions must first be given before they can take the exams in February while wearing the hijab.
