Karnataka hijab controversy reaches SC, CJI NV Ramana says ‘let HC decide’

By Team Newsable | First Published Feb 10, 2022, 11:17 AM IST

The special bench constituted by Karnataka High Court will hear Thursday a total of five petitions on the hijab row on behalf of 18 girls from colleges in the Udupi region.

The controversy over the hijab or headscarf worn by Muslim girls which escalated across India, has now reached the Supreme Court. The Supreme court on Thursday declined to urgently list a plea seeking transfer of the petitions from Karnataka High Court relating to Hijab row to the apex court.

Senior Advocate Kapil Sibal on Thursday indicated that a petition has been filed “with respect to what is happening in Karnataka”, as per Bar and Bench report.

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He sought to make an urgent mentioning of the same before Chief Justice of India NV Ramana. “This deals with what's happening in Karnataka. It’s spreading all over the county. In the meantime, exams are two months away,” he was quoted as saying by Bar and Bench.

The Supreme Court said, HC is getting the matter today, asks why it should interfere at this stage. It refuses to give any specific date.

The Chief Justice of Karnataka High Court on Wednesday constituted a three-judge bench, including himself, to hear on Thursday a batch of petitions questioning a ban on the use of hijabs in a few pre-university colleges in the state after a single-judge bench of the court had decided to refer the pleas to a larger bench saying the case involved larger Constitutional issues. The hearing will begin at 2.30 pm.

Meanwhile, Chief Minister Basavaraj Bommai has appealed to outsiders to not disturb peace and tranquillity in school campuses and in the state. “I appeal to outsiders to not disturb peace and tranquility in school campuses and in the State. It is our duty to create a peaceful atmosphere so that justice can be delivered,” Bommai said.

Also, all gatherings and protests near educational institutions were banned in Bengaluru for two weeks today amid the escalating row over hijabs in schools and colleges of Karnataka.

The case had been filed by a group of Muslim girls studying in government colleges in the Udupi district against a ban on wearing hijabs in classrooms. Muslim girls in several colleges in the state were recently denied entry into classrooms for wearing headscarves, which college authorities claim is not allowed.

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