Karnataka mulls tweaking order banning hijabs: Report

It may take some time to bring out an order to this effect since it is being challenged in the Karnataka HC

Amid the ongoing controversy over hijab ban, the Karnataka government is mulling tweaking its contentious order issued on February 5, which suggested that a ban on hijabs in government pre-university colleges would not amount to a violation of the right to freedom of religion.

The state government is looking into modifying the order issued by the state’s Education Department, according to report by The Indian Express. However, it may take some time to bring out an order to this effect since it is being challenged in the Karnataka High Court.

Meanwhile, amid the confusion surrounding the Karnataka High Court’s interim order on restraining students from wearing the hijab, saffron stoles and scarfs, the Minority Welfare, Hajj and Waqf department on Thursday directed all schools functioning under it to abide by the court’s orders and bar students from wearing religious attire.

Also Read -- Karnataka government order says no to hijab, saffron shawls in minority institutions

With almost all schools and colleges enforcing the no-hijab rule citing compliance with the High Court’s interim order, several Muslim organisations and ulemas condemned the move and sought direction and interpretation from the government and High Court.

Further, schools like boarding schools and Moulana Azad model schools, where minority community (Muslim) students constitute 80-90 per cent of the strength, the HC’s interim order led to confusion with many still attending classes with hijabs.

Also Read -- Karnataka govt collects data on Muslim students

Meanwhile, the state government has silently set out to collect data of students belonging to the minority community from both private and government educational institutions, especially those enrolled in classes 1 to 10.

According to the data accessed from the Department of Public Instruction on Thursday, there are 17,39,742 Muslim students in the various government-run schools across the state. The data further revealed that Bengaluru South reported the highest number of minority students at 1,55,104, followed by Kalaburagi with 1,31,802 and Bengaluru North with 1,22,993 students. Chamarajanagar district reported the lowest number of Muslim students at 9,603.

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