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Indian Court Supports Ban on Muslim Head Scarves

Karnataka, India —(Map)

On Tuesday, the high court in the Indian state of Karnataka ruled that the government can ban Muslim girls from wearing head scarves at school. The ruling comes at a time when many Muslims in India feel threatened by the government’s “Hindu first” actions.

In Islam, the religion practiced by Muslims, people are expected to dress in ways that aren’t showy or flashy. For women, this usually means wearing a head covering. Many Muslim women wear head scarves, known as hijabs. Hijabs usually cover the head and neck, but leave the face uncovered.

Two Muslim girls in hijabs, photographed during the Mourning of Muharram in Kolkata.
In Islam, the religion practiced by Muslims, people are expected to dress in ways that aren’t showy or flashy. For women, this usually means wearing a head covering. Many Muslim women wear head scarves, known as hijabs.
(Source: Biswarup Ganguly [CC BY 3.0], via Wikimedia Commons.)

The current case began last September at a government girls’ college in Udupi, Karnataka. Teachers at the school refused to let Muslim students wear hijabs into their classrooms. The college said that hijabs broke the school’s rules about what students could wear.

The Muslim students complained that the rules interfered with their rights to have their own religion and to have an education. In earlier years, students wore hijabs at the school without problems.

The students protested. Other schools and colleges in Karnataka began to make similar rules. Soon, Hindu students began to protest against the protest by wearing saffron (yellow) scarves. The color saffron is important to Hindus.

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The Muslim students protested. Other schools and colleges in Karnataka began to make similar rules. Questions over the hijab ban upset people all over India. Above, people in New Delhi protest to support the Muslim students in Karnataka.

Questions over the hijab ban upset people all over India. Many people in India wear special clothing because of their religion. The problem isn’t just about the hijab. It’s a sign of a much larger, and growing, struggle in India between Hindus and Muslims.

India wasn’t set up as a country based on religion. India’s Constitution protects freedom of religion. But about 80% of Indians are Hindu, like the country’s prime minister, Narendra Modi. Only about 14% of India’s people are Muslims.

Mr. Modi and his political party,  BJP (Bharatiya Janata Party), have put a lot of effort into promoting the needs of Hindus above those of minority religions. Many Muslims believe Mr. Modi and the BJP are trying to push them to the side, and make them invisible in the country.

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Mr. Modi and his political party, BJP, have made great efforts to promote the needs of Hindus above those of minority religions. Many Muslims believe Mr. Modi and the BJP are trying to make them invisible. Above, Mr. Modi speaks to BJP party members after a recent election.

Mr. Modi has worked to limit the number of Muslims in the country. In 2019, Mr. Modi’s government took control of Jammu and Kashmir (J&K) – the only Indian state that’s mainly Muslim. Before that, J&K was protected by law, and allowed to make its own rules.

In early February, the Karnataka state government, which is run by the BJP, supported the right of schools to ban hijabs. Protests broke out, and schools in the state were closed for three days.

Yesterday, the state’s top court ruled against the Muslim students. The court said that wearing a hijab wasn’t absolutely required by the Islamic religion. The court said the state’s rules about what students can wear were “reasonable”.

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Karnataka’s top court ruled against the Muslim students, saying that wearing a hijab wasn’t absolutely required by the Islamic religion. The ruling could increase religious tensions across India. Above, police outside a school in Bangalore, Karnataka after the ruling.

The court’s ruling has made some people happy, and left many others very upset. Karnataka has banned public gatherings for a week in the hope of avoiding violent protests.

The ruling is likely to increase religious tensions across India. The Muslim students who originally took the question to court are now expected to bring the case to India’s Supreme Court.

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