Hijab row: It’s over to the top court

After the ruling by the Karnataka High Court on Tuesday declaring ‘Hijab is not an essential religious practice’ in Islam and the upholding of the ban on its wearing in classrooms, the student petitioner from Udupi has decided to approach the Supreme Court for justice which has given the issue a national context. The appeal against the high court ruling will be taken up in the Supreme Court only after the Holi holidays and honouring the sanctity of the courts, every Indian as responsible citizens, should do nothing whip up emotions, nor should the case lead to any public display of resentment.

Since the division bench of the Hon’ble Court has said that “the petitioners have failed to meet the threshold requirement of pleadings and proof as to wearing hijab is an inviolable religious practice of Islam”, it has left the scope for them to come up with substantive evidence, if any.

It is generally accepted that Islamic edicts, laws and ethos as their followers see and practice them, are not merely drawn from the Holy Quran, which of course is the principal source of guidance in Islam. Although the covering of the head for women finds mention in the Quran, Islam as a religion has evolved over a period of time taking Hadith (sayings of the Prophet), Tafseer (exegetes), Fiqh (jurisprudence) and practices commonly acknowledged to be part of society.

The petitioners, from what one has read about the arguments in the court, had not challenged the legitimacy of the uniform, nor even the State’s authority to enforce it. They had sought the colour-coordinated headscarf to be donned as an accessory alongside the prescribed school uniform. Whether this can be permitted or not is now left to the top court to decide.

As most people would agree, educational institutions in a plural and diverse society ought to reflect its plurality and diversity and enable the exercise of freedom guaranteed under Article 21 (Right to life and liberty). The overall weight of the ruling is on homogeneity and uniformity.

These issues are likely to come up for detailed and insightful discussions in the apex court where the petitioners have gone in appeal. One can therefore look forward to a lot more heated debates on the hijab issue in the days to come as the top court takes up the case for hearing.

The impact of the case is not likely to be limited to Karnataka as the whole country wil be waiting eagerly to know what the final decision on the case is.

For what is at stake is peace and harmony in a multi-religious, multi-ethnic society and what is permissible and what’s not in educational institutions.