Karnataka Election 2023 Results: Kaneez Fatima, the hijab protest leader, emerges winner from Gulbarga North

In late 2021, the BJP government in Karnataka banned girls and women from wearing hijab —Islamic head covering— in state-run schools and colleges. This decision led to massive protests and counter-protests that had polarised the state.

Congress candidate Kaneez Fatima, who was one of the leading voices during the Karnataka hijab protests, has emerged as the winner in Gulbarga North constituency in Karnataka assembly elections. 

According to the Election Commission (EC) website, last updated at 8:30 pm, showed her as the leading candidate, several publications have reported that she has won the seat. 

The Congress candidate was pitted against Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) candidate Chandrakant B Patil. She has a lead of 2,712 votes, as per the EC website.

In late 2021, the BJP government in Karnataka banned girls and women from wearing hijab —Islamic head covering— in state-run schools and colleges. This decision led to massive protests and counter-protests that had polarised the state. The validity of the ban is currently under judicial consideration at the Supreme Court. 

While the hijab ban was a major issue in 2022, it was not reported to be a major issue in the Karnataka assembly elections that the Congress party has now won. Karnataka hijab protests began after the BJP government banned hijab in classrooms in late 2021. 

In December 2021, as many as six young women of the Government Pre-University (PU) College for Girls in Udupi, Karnataka, were stopped from sitting for their examinations as they had refused to remove their hijabs as per the state government's ban. Several women and girls came out in support of the right to wear hijab.