Karnataka Hijab Ban: Early Arguments in SC Talk About Law, Idea of Modesty
The QuintWhen the judges pointed out that strict dress codes ought to be adhered to even in places like restaurants and golf courses, besides the court, Hegde said: "Today the context is access to education in a government college, and everybody pays taxes … The question is about education and access to education for what is traditionally a vulnerable section of society: women… Can you say unless you homogenise, we will not allow you in?" Hegde also submitted that the hijab row was local to Udupi, but was blown out of proportion due to “the dynamic of politics.” Meanwhile, at the beginning of the hearing, Senior Counsel Rajeev Dhavan had argued that the case raises an important question regarding whether hijab is “essential” to Islam or not. Meanwhile, getting into the background of the Karnataka Government Order, Advocate General Prabhuling Navadgi said that school authorities had written to them for guidance “since after Hijab, students wore bhagwa shawls and which then led to unrest in educational institutions.” It may be worth recalling that several people had started donning saffron garbs to schools and colleges in a bid to protest Muslims girls’ right to wear hijab. “State was cautious not to prescribe any uniform but kept it open for every institution to prescribe uniform.,” Navadgi said, and added, “We only said follow institution rule.”