Sunil Kataria

UDUPI (India) – On Wednesday, senior schools reopened in Karnataka state after being closed by authorities following protests over a ban for female students to wear the hijab Muslim headcover.

An Indian court has been deliberating on the ban Karnataka officials imposed last week on hijab-wearing school girls. It is the latest controversy involving India’s Muslim minority who account for about 13% the 1.35 billion Hindu-majority population.

Some students wore olive-green uniforms while others wore the hijab. They walked hand in hand to the Government Girls Senior School P.U. The protests were started in Udupi district. Police officers, male and female, stood guard.

All the students were permitted, even those in hijabs. This was despite last week’s ruling by the High Court of the State that religious clothing should be prohibited in schools until further instructions.

Further arguments will be heard by the court on Wednesday.

Kurma Rao M (senior district official) said discussions were ongoing within the community regarding the court decision.

He was quoted by Reuters partner ANI as saying, “We held a meeting [with all religious leaders] on the implementation court’s interim orders.”

Prime Minister NarendraModi’s Hindu nationalist Bharatiya Janata Party is the ruler of Karnataka, and there has been a lot of controversy as they try to campaign for several crucial state assembly elections.

Karnataka’s State Election will take place next year. India, however, is expected to hold its next General Election by May 2024.

Karnataka Muslim families claim the ban of the hijab is discriminatory and has led some schools to refuse entry for girls wearing the hijab.

Parents and students of Muslim faith protested the ban, drawing protests from Hindu students. They wore saffron-colored shawls around themselves. This colour is usually worn by Hindus.

Reporters were told by student Afra Ajmal asabi that “this is so unfair”, referring to the ban.

“We always wore the hijab to class.”

The authorities had closed junior and middle schools last Monday due to protests.