Karnataka Colleges Open, Students Not Allowed In Class With Hijab

Even as the Karnataka High Court hears arguments on allowing religious clothing in educational institutions, another government college in the state has turned into a site of protest for sending away students who insisted on wearing the hijab (headscarf) in classrooms. The Government PU college at Vijayapura in north Karnataka, which allowed hijabs earlier, did not allow students wearing hijabs to enter the classrooms today. The college administration argued that they were only following interim orders of the court, which had allowed schools and colleges to resume only on the condition that no religious clothing be allowed in classrooms. The students, however, say the college did not inform them that they would not be allowed in hijabs or burkhas.