Hijab row: Feb 5 Government Order doesn't ban hijab, insists AG in Karnataka HC
Bengaluru, Feb 19: Amid the raging row over the Hijab issue in Karnataka, the state government has told the High Court that its order dated February 5 did not ban the headscarf but only delegated the powers to decide the school uniform to the College Development Committees (CDC).
The government took a conscious stand not to intervene in the matters related to religious symbols in the educational institutions and hence it delegated the powers to decide the school uniform to the CDCs, comprising the local MLA, Advocate General Prabhuling Navadgi told a full bench of the High Court, led by Chief Justice Ritu Raj Awasthi, on Friday.
"The conscious stand of the state with all responsibility I state that we do not want to intervene in these kind of matters in so far as matter relates to religious symbols issues in the educational institutions," Navadgi told the full bench of the Karnataka High Court during a hearing in connection with the Muslim girls' plea against the Hijab ban.
"But I must say they unnecessarily dragged us into this and made it into an issue when in a plain reading of the February 5, 2022 order, we have not prohibited Hijab. In fact, we have given complete autonomy to the CDC as well as the private college management," the AG argued further.
He was referring to the charges of the petitioner Muslim girls who claimed the Government Order (GO) on February 5, restricting students from wearing cloth which can disturb peace, harmony and law and order, was illegal and it was issued without the 'application of mind'.
"The attack on the government on this GO saying that this is irrational, gives a communal colour and discriminates against the Muslim women, is absolutely without basis. It does not affect their rights. It is an innocuous order. The government has left it to the institutions on the issue of the uniform," Navadgi argued.
On the allegation of the petitioners' counsel that there was non-application of mind vis-a-vis the order, Navadgi said the charges that some of the judgments cited in the government order were relevant and some were not, his submission was that sometimes officers record things 'due to over-enthusiasm'.
Explaining the reason behind issuing the order prohibiting clothes that could disturb peace and harmony, the AG said the intention was only to ask the students not to wear indecent dress "but it did not say anything more or less than that."
On the charge that the GO was against Hijab, Navadgi said the question of Hijab was not there unless they want him to read something which he was not able to read.
"I have read it 10 times--these two paragraphs (of the GO). The question of asking an institution to proscribe or prescribe Hijab -- where does the state come into the picture" the advocate general asked.
According to him, the petitioners unnecessarily dragged the state into the issue.
He also claimed that ever since the GO was passed on February 5, the state has not received a single complaint about any CDC or a school having prescribed any resolution, which has resulted in an unrest or "our intervention has been invited."
During the hearing, the AG broadly limited his argument to three points -- Hijab is not an essential religious practice of Islam, preventing its use did not violate Article 25 of the Indian Constitution and the GO, which has been challenged by a few Muslim girls from the Udupi government pre-university college was in accordance with the law.
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Bengal: Murder of Suvendu aide sparks political row; BJP, TMC trade barbs
Kolkata (PTI): The murder of a close aide of BJP leader Suvendu Adhikari triggered political confrontation in West Bengal on Thursday, with the saffron camp accusing the TMC of fostering "lawlessness" and the Mamata Banerjee-led party rejecting the charge.
In a shocking development within 48 hours of the assembly poll verdict, Chandranath Rath, Adhikari's executive assistant, was shot dead in a brazen attack at Madhyamgram on Wednesday night, escalating tension in the area.
According to preliminary information, motorcycle-borne assailants intercepted Rath's vehicle near Doltala in Madhyamgram around 10.30 pm, forced it to stop and opened fire at point-blank range before fleeing.
Senior BJP leaders on Thursday alleged that the killing reflected the "complete collapse" of law and order in the state under the rule of the TMC government, which was "thrown out of power" in the assembly polls.
"A person closely associated with the leader of the opposition was targeted in a planned manner. This shows how law and order have deteriorated under the Mamata Banerjee government, which the people of Bengal have thrown out of power," a BJP leader said.
Adhikari on Thursday described the gunning down of his close aide as a "cold-blooded murder" and alleged that the killers had carried out a recce before executing the attack in North 24 Parganas district.
The Trinamool Congress dismissed the allegations and accused the BJP of attempting to politicise the incident before the investigation had progressed.
"The TMC has nothing to do with this unfortunate incident. The police are investigating the case professionally. The BJP should refrain from making baseless accusations. We are the ones who demanded a CBI probe of the killing," a senior Trinamool leader said.
The Congress demanded a transparent probe and criticised both the BJP and the TMC for "turning every tragedy into a political battle".
"The focus should remain on arresting the killers and ensuring justice, not on political point-scoring," a state Congress leader said.
The CPI(M) also condemned the killing and expressed concern over the deteriorating political atmosphere in the state.
"Violence and fear have increasingly become part of Bengal's political culture under the TMC rule. The administration must act firmly and impartially. We condemn the killing and demand strict action against those involved in the crime," a senior CPI(M) leader said.
