📷 Image Credits: The Hindu
The Bombay High Court has dismissed a petition by nine women students challenging a ban on hijab, burka, and naqab in N.G. Acharya and D.K. Marathe College in Mumbai. The division bench of Justices A.S. Chandurkar and Rajesh Patil stated that they were not inclined to interfere in the college’s decision to impose the ban.
The students had approached the High Court on June 14 to challenge a recent notification regarding the ban of certain dress codes on campus, including hijab, nakab, burka, stole, cap, etc. They argued that the new dress code violated their fundamental rights to privacy, dignity, and religious freedom.
In response to the petition, the college defended its decision, stating that the ban on hijab, naqab, and burka was part of a disciplinary action for a uniform dress code and was not directed against the Muslim community. The college’s stance comes in the wake of a split verdict by the Supreme Court in the Karnataka hijab ban case in October 2022.
The students’ plea described the college’s action as ‘arbitrary, unreasonable, bad-in-law, and perverse.’ Despite their efforts to appeal the ban, the High Court upheld the college’s decision, emphasizing that it was not within their purview to intervene. The students had requested the college management and principal to withdraw the restriction on hijab, burka, and naqab, citing the right to choice, dignity, and privacy in the classroom.
This ruling by the Bombay High Court marks a significant development in the ongoing debate over religious attire in educational institutions, highlighting the intersection of personal beliefs, institutional policies, and fundamental rights within the Indian educational landscape.
