PUCL urges Ka'tka govt to address Hijab ban fallout

Rachana Ramesh | NT

Bengaluru: The Karnataka chapter of People's Union for Civil Liberties (PUCL) in a report titled ‘Closing the Gates to Education: Violations of Rights of Muslim Women Students in Karnataka’s Educational Institutions’ has urged the Karnataka government to address the fallout of the hijab ban in the State. The release of the report coincided with the birth anniversary of Fatima Sheikh, a social reformer and an educator who was a close associate of Savitribai Phule.

The report documents the impact of the ban on wearing hijab, taking into account the testimonies of Muslim women students across the state, who allegedly experienced harassment, humiliation and isolation in the wake of the ‘sudden’ ban. Arvind Narrain from PUCL said that over 1010 girls have dropped out solely as a consequence of the ban.

“The arbitrary hijab policy has continued to violate the rights of Muslim girls,” he said and noted the Supreme Court split verdict on the issue where Justice Dhulia had said: “All the petitioners want is to wear a hijab. Is it too much to ask in a democracy? How is it against public morality, order or health? Or even decency or any other provision of part III of the Constitution.” In Justice Dhulia’s opinion, the young petitioners had asserted their individual and not community right.

Poorna R, one of the research members, noted that the enrolment of minority students in government institutions has decreased nearly by half. According to data, only 91 Muslim girls have enrolled in government colleges this academic year, compared to 178 in the academic year of 2021- 22. The number of Muslim boys enrolled has also reduced from 210 to 100. “This is probably the first time since Independence where the government is contradicting the promotion of education,” she said.

Poorna explained that the environment of schools after the ban was hostile. “Suddenly the girls saw the classrooms as a scary space, where they needed to hold hands in solidarity,” she said. Aishwarya, another researcher, spoke of the many ways in which the High Court order was misinterpreted.

“The High Court order did not seek for an immediate action of the ban but it was misinterpreted and implemented by government authorities, meaning that the choice was deliberately made,” she said.

She claimed that BC Nagesh, the Minister for School Education and Literacy, led a deliberate misrepresentation of the High Court's interim order and the final verdict by making skewed statements, which put the future of many students in danger. Shaima Amatullah, a PhD Scholar, noted the comparison made to the state of women in Iran in the report and said that both scenarios represent the denial of agency.

“Religious symbols have always been there. When you walk into a xerox shop and see a symbol, you do not feel like it is something odd, it is the India we have grown up in. Why is this question coming up now?” she said and urged the crowd to ponder on the targets that are being systematically made.