Denver Newsroom, Mar 15, 2022 / 16:00 pm
The state of Karnataka may ban Muslim girls from wearing head scarves in schools, the state’s highest court has ruled, contending that wearing the hijab is not essential for the practice of Islam.
Muslim students had filed petitions against the hijab ban, the Associated Press reports. Anas Tanwir, the lawyer representing the girls, said they have decided to appeal to India’s highest court.
Prabhuling Navadgi, a lawyer who represented the Karnataka government, argued that a ban on the hijab did not violate religious freedom protections in India’s constitution. He said in court that schools have the right to set a dress code.
Aiman Mohiuddin, a student barred from wearing her hijab at her school in the city of Mandya, said the ban made her feel as if someone were chopping off a part of her body.