When the hijab ban was imposed in Karnataka in 2022, Aliya Assadi was a Class 12 commerce student preparing for one of the most important examinations of her life. Four years later, at 21, she is pursuing a B.A. LL.B in Bengaluru, but only after losing an academic year, being denied entry into examination halls and leaving her hometown in search of a college where she could study without removing her hijab.
“I was denied permission to write my 12th board examinations. I lost one academic year completely,” Aliya said while talking to FoEJ Media.
“Because of the controversy surrounding the hijab ban, many colleges refused to give us admission. Eventually, the only option left for me was open schooling, and I completed my 12th through NIOS,” she added.
More than four years later, On 13 March , the Karnataka government formally withdrew the controversial February 5, 2022 uniform order that had effectively enabled hijab bans in several educational institutions across the state. The fresh notification allows students in government schools, aided institutions, private educational institutions and pre-university colleges to wear “limited community, traditional and customary symbols” along with prescribed uniforms.
The government specifically listed the hijab, janivara or sacred thread, Shivadhara, Rudraksha and Sharavastra among permissible symbols. Other customary or traditional symbols may also be allowed provided they do not interfere with discipline, safety or student identification.
At the same time, the order clarified that the prescribed uniform would remain primary and that such symbols should remain supplementary in nature.
Importantly, the notification stated that no student can be denied entry into classrooms, examination halls or academic activities merely for wearing these customary symbols alongside uniforms.
“No student shall be compelled to wear such traditional and customary symbols. Likewise, no student shall be forcibly prevented from wearing them,” the government said.
The order also made it clear that saffron shawls would not be permitted, stating that they do not fall under religion in the same way as customary symbols like sacred threads or hijabs.
For Aliya, however, the announcement is not merely about uniforms. It is about years of disruption that altered the course of her education.
“The withdrawal of the hijab ban is definitely an important step, but justice is not complete yet,” she said talking to FoEJ Media.
“This was never a favour from the government — it was always our constitutional and religious right,” she added.
The hijab controversy erupted in early 2022 after Muslim students in parts of Karnataka were stopped from attending classes while wearing hijabs. Soon after, Hindu students began entering campuses wearing saffron shawls, escalating tensions across colleges and turning educational institutions into battlegrounds of political and ideological conflict.
The February 5, 2022 government order empowered College Development Committees and educational institutions to prescribe uniforms and prohibit attire considered disruptive to “equality, integrity and public order.” In practice, it led to hijab bans in several government institutions across Karnataka.
For many Muslim girls, the consequences were immediate and devastating.
“The ban severely affected not just me, but thousands of Muslim girls across the state,” Aliya said
“Many students dropped out or chose not to pursue higher education because of the hijab restrictions. The impact on our education and future opportunities is something that can never truly be compensated for,” she added.
She recalled how students faced constant hostility inside and outside campuses during the height of the protests.
“It was mentally exhausting to constantly face allegations and hostility simply for standing up for our basic rights and identity,” she said.
According to Aliya, the damage extended far beyond academics.
“Yes, many students suffered deeply. Some stopped attending classes, some missed examinations, and many experienced anxiety, fear and isolation,” she said. “There were girls who only wanted education while keeping their hijab, but they were made to feel like they did not belong in educational spaces.” she said
After completing her schooling through open education, Aliya decided to pursue law. But even that came with limitations.
“The colleges in my city had restrictions on wearing the hijab, so I had to move to Bengaluru in order to continue my education while practising my faith freely, Aliya said.
The Karnataka government’s revised order stressed that the policy must be implemented in a “uniform, secular, non-discriminatory and bias-free manner” without discrimination based on religion or community.
It further stated that implementation must uphold constitutional values including equality, dignity, fraternity, secularism, scientific temper, rationality and the right to education.
School Development and Monitoring Committees (SDMCs), College Development Committees (CDCs), governing bodies and heads of institutions have also been directed to ensure that no student faces discrimination or humiliating treatment over attire.
Invoking 12th-century social reformer Basavanna, the government urged institutions to follow the inclusive spirit of “Iva Namava” — “These are our people.”
It also declared that any institutional circular, custom, resolution or directive contrary to the new order would be treated as invalid.
The Commissioner of the Department of School Education and Literacy and the Director of the Department of Pre-University Education have been directed to implement the revised policy across the state.
The decision, however, triggered sharp criticism from the Bharatiya Janata Party, which accused the ruling Congress government of reviving the hijab issue for electoral gains.
Leader of Opposition R. Ashoka alleged that the Congress government had brought back hijab in schools for “vote-bank politics and excessive appeasement of Muslims” and described the move as “anti-Hindu.”
Senior BJP leader Amit Malviya also criticised the order, accusing the government of quietly reopening the door for hijab in schools under the guise of allowing “limited traditional and faith-based symbols.”
“This is not empowerment. This is the institutionalisation of religious identity in classrooms,” Malviya said in a post on X, arguing that schools should remain neutral spaces focused on equality and education.
Defending the government’s decision, Karnataka School Education Minister Madhu Bangarappa said the order merely clarified long-standing customary and religious practices followed by different communities.
“Whether it is wearing the sacred thread, Shivadhara, turbans, traditional attire in North Karnataka, Jain customary dress or hijab, all such things that are religiously allowed have been properly specified,” he said.
Karnataka Health Minister Dinesh Gundu Rao also defended the move, saying only “limited customary practices” were being allowed and that “nobody should be hurt because of this.”
Meantime, for Aliya, though, the controversy remains a reminder of how students became trapped inside a political battle that transformed classrooms into ideological battlegrounds.
“Students became the centre of a political and ideological battle that should never have entered classrooms,” she said. “A rule that started in one college was expanded across the state, and suddenly students preparing for examinations became subjects of public and political controversy. Education should unite students, not divide them based on identity or faith.” she said talking to FoEJ Media.
The years of protests and court hearings changed her life entirely.
“I was just a student, but suddenly I became part of a larger movement and legal struggle,” she said. “It brought responsibility, criticism, pressure and attention. But it also taught me resilience, patience and the importance of standing firm for justice. Above everything, it strengthened my faith in Allah.” she added
Now, even as the government withdraws the order that once shut classroom doors on thousands of students, Aliya says the larger lesson must not be forgotten.
“My message is simple: constitutional rights should never depend on politics or public pressure,” she said.
“Students should never be forced to choose between education and faith.” Aliya said.
And to young hijabi girls still carrying fear from those years, her words remain deeply personal: “You are not alone, and your identity is not something to be ashamed of. Stay firm in your faith and never think your struggle is unseen. Even if the world ignores your pain, Allah knows every tear, every sleepless night and every silent effort. Never let anyone make you believe that your hijab and your dreams cannot exist together.”
