The Allahabad High Court has dismissed a petition filed by a Muslim student seeking permission to wear a hijab along with her school uniform. The court said that the High Court cannot establish it as an essential religious practice of Islam.
A division bench led by Justice JJ Munir and Justice Indrajeet Shukla said that the hijab cannot be considered an essential religious practice under Article 25 of the Constitution. Hearing the plea filed by a grade 11 student from Prayagraj, the court said that no sufficient religious or legal grounds had been put forth to say that wearing a headscarf was mandatory in Islam.
The student has passed her Class-X from the Tagore Public School, and sought admission in Class-XI in the same school, but the school authorities have refused her admission in Class-XI on the ground that she is not welcome with her headscarf
“No such factual foundation has been laid or material placed on record to establish a case that the donning of a headscarf is an essential part of religion for a Muslim female,” the court said.
A claim, placing reliance upon Article 25 of the Constitution, cannot be accepted for the sake of mere assertion without the necessary factual and legal foundation laid for the purpose. A perusal of the writ petition shows that there are no pleadings to that effect by the petitioner, except that she has been doing it since she was a child and ever since she joined the school in Class VI,” the bench said.
The High Court further highlighted the importance of a uniform dress code in school and noted that where it observed that a school’s dress policy is uniform, non-discriminatory, and intended to maintain discipline and institutional identity, individual students cannot seek changes based on personal preferences.
“The prescribed uniform that serves as a dress code for students attending a School serves many purposes. It instils discipline, equality amongst children, projects institutional identity and eschews distinctions within the classroom,” the court highlighted.
The student, meanwhile, argued that she had been observing a headscarf from grade 6 to grade 10 in the same school without objection, to which the court said that the school’s previous acceptance of a hijab does not create a legal right to continue wearing it if the school decides to follow a uniform dress code policy.
“In the past, the school might not have raised an objection to the petitioner wearing a headscarf when she was reading in the lower classes, either due to lethargy, inaction, lack of will, non-enforcement of the uniform policy, or even courtesy or hesitation. But that would not give rise to an estoppel against the school when they decide to enforce a uniform policy, enforcing their dress code,” the court said.
The bench said that a uniform creates a “religion-neutral atmosphere” and applies equally to students from various faiths.
Mohammed Monis, advocate for the student said on speaking to ANI, “In the eleventh grade, the school staff suddenly stopped her from wearing the scarf, stating that it is not permitted under the school’s dress code. The Court ruled that a school has the right to determine its own dress code and dismissed the petition on those grounds… Our argument was that since she had been studying there from grades 6 to 10, if the management had intended to stop her, they should have done so at the sixth-grade level by insisting she adhere to the dress code from the start… We are currently consulting her parents; if they wish to proceed, we will file a writ petition in the Supreme Court…”
The High Court highlighted that the Karnataka High Court’s verdict on banning hijab in school remains in force because the Supreme Court is yet to resolve the matter ahead of delivering a split verdict.
As someone who was forced to take the legal route simply to exercise my right to wear the hijab, today’s judgment of the Allahabad High Court is deeply disappointing, but it is not the end of this constitutional question, Aliya Assadi, one of the six students of Government Pre-University College who stood up for the hijab ban row in Karnataka, said while speaking to FoEJ Media.
“The Court has once again relied upon the 2022 Karnataka High Court judgment to hold that hijab is not an essential religious practice and has upheld the authority of educational institutions to enforce their dress codes,” she added.
“But we must remember that the Karnataka judgment itself arose from a deeply contested constitutional question, and the Supreme Court delivered a split verdict on the matter. The issue therefore remains far from being a settled and final declaration of the constitutional rights of Muslim women and girls,” Assadi said.
“I stand in solidarity with the young student who approached the court. She should never have had to choose between her education and her conscience,” she said.
BJP state president Sanjay Saraogi speaking to IANS said, “It is the right decision. The decision given by the Allahabad High Court is correct. Why should one wear religious attire to school? Why should one wear a hijab? So, it is absolutely the right decision. Whatever the court’s decision is, the Uttar Pradesh government will accept and implement it. But the decision is absolutely right…”
All India Shia Personal Law Board, Maulana Yasoob Abbas said speaking to ANI, “The High Court’s verdict regarding the hijab is deeply regrettable; while the Court’s decision must certainly be respected, we live in an India where every religion and faith enjoys complete freedom. If a girl wishes to attend school, college, or university wearing a hijab, she should not be stopped through a judicial decree…it is not right to issue a court order that effectively strips someone of that religious freedom; in my view, doing so would be unconstitutional.”
Islamic Centre Chairman Maulana Khalid Rasheed Firangi Mahali said speaking to IANS, “We believe that the court’s decision regarding hijab needs to be reviewed and reconsidered… So, we believe that girls who want to go to school wearing a scarf or hijab should not be stopped. As far as the school uniform is concerned, everyone must wear the uniform if they want to study in that school…”
