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Informist, Friday, Aug 9, 2024

 

NEW DELHI – The Supreme Court today stayed a circular by a private school in Mumbai asking students to follow a dress code that should not include burkha, nakab, hijab, cap, badge and stole. The court issued a notice to Chembur Trombay Education Society, the University of Mumbai, Directorate of Higher Education, Maharashtra government and other parties, and placed the matter for hearing in the week commencing Nov 18.

 

The Bench of Justice Sanjiv Khanna and Justice P.V. Sanjay Kumar said that the private college's decision would work against empowering women. "How are you empowering women by telling them what to wear? Less said the better. Where is the choice for the woman? You have suddenly woken up to the fact that they are wearing it. It is unfortunate that these are all being said after so many years of Independence, and you say religion is there in this country," said the court.

 

The counsel for the college said that it does not want the religion of students to be revealed. To this, the top court said that religion is there in names also and the college should not impose these rules. "...Solution to a lot of this is proper good education. I know a burqa cannot be allowed as you cannot sit in the class like this," the court added.

 

The bench even questioned, "Will you say that somebody wearing tilak will not be allowed?" Advocate Madhavi Divan, appearing for the college, said there were 441 Muslim students happily attending the college and objection was raised by only a few Muslim students. "Will it not be upto the girl what she wants to wear?," remarked the court.

 

The bench was hearing petitions by some students of N.G. Acharya and D.K. Marathe College against a circular instructing them to follow a dress code from the new academic year beginning June. On Jun 26, the Bombay High Court had dismissed the petition of students and had observed that the directive was aimed to prevent the disclosure of a student's religion, allowing them to focus solely on their education. 

 

It is to be noted that the apex court is also hearing the Karnataka hijab ban case which arose in 2022. A controversy had broken out in the state when some hijab-clad Muslim students were denied entry to their college on the grounds that it was a violation of the college's uniform policy. In February 2022, the Karnataka government issued an order saying all students must abide by the state's uniform policy, leading to widespread protests.  End

 

Reported by Surya Tripathi

Edited by Aditya Sakorkar

 

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