Udupi College Hijab row: Student approaches Karnataka High Court with writ petition
Udupi: One of the students of Udupi Government PU College, Resham Farooq has approached the Karnataka High Court to declare that the student's right to wear a hijab is a fundamental right guaranteed under Articles 14 and 25 of the Constitution of India.
The student, represented by Advocates Shathabish Shivanna, Arnav A Bagalwadi, and Abhishek Janardhan has filed a writ petition in the High Court to permit the students to attend classes wearing hijab and without any interference from the college administration.
Speaking to Vartha Bharati over a phone call, Advocate Shathabish Shivanna said “These students were denied their fundamental right to education as they were wearing a hijab. The wearing of the hijab is part of the essential religious practice in the Islamic faith. It is a fundamental right that ought to be protected by the state.”
When asked if they were expecting any immediate relief from the High Court, Shivanna said they will request the court to give an interim direction to the college to allow students to attend classes wearing hijab.
“When the matter will come for the preliminary hearing, we will pray to the court to provide interim relief to the students. The Court goes by the procedure and will ask the state and college to respond on the issue, so in the meanwhile, we will pray to the court to direct college to allow the students to attend classes wearing hijab” he added.
Eight students of the Government PU College Udupi were denied entry to the classrooms on 28-12-2021 for wearing hijab. The students have ever since remained out of class amidst their protest against the college’s move.
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AIITA welcomes Karnataka’s ban on obscene songs in school events
Bhatkal: The Karnataka unit of the All India Ideal Teachers Association (AIITA) has welcomed the Karnataka government’s decision to strictly ban school children from dancing to obscene songs during educational and cultural programmes in government, aided, and private schools across the state.
AIITA Karnataka State President M. R. Manvi congratulated the government for taking what he termed an important step to preserve the sanctity of education.
“Such decisions to safeguard the dignity of school children and uphold the values of education are the need of the hour. This rule should not be limited to government schools alone but must be strictly implemented in all private educational institutions as well,” he said.
He further urged the government to address other concerns within school programmes.
“The government should not only prohibit obscene dances in the name of school anniversaries, but also ensure that plays and dialogues that incite religious hatred are avoided. Schools should be centres of harmony, not platforms for spreading hatred,” he added.
According to a recent circular issued by the Department of School Education and Literacy, obscene dances are adversely affecting the mental health and moral values of students.
In this regard, schools have been advised to use songs that promote nationalism, positive thinking, the greatness of Kannada culture, and value-based traditions instead of inappropriate content during programmes.
The circular also emphasises that students should be dressed in decent attire.
AIITA also backed the department’s warning that disciplinary action would be taken against head teachers if such guidelines are violated. The association has further demanded that district Deputy Directors of Public Instruction strictly monitor the implementation of these rules.
