Amid the Hijab row in Karnataka, the government on Thursday decided to resume classes for high school students from next week, even as Chief Minister Basavaraj Bommai stated the High Court has said students should not wear the religious dress to colleges.
The government’s decision to resume classes up to Standard X from February 14 and for Pre-University and Degree Colleges thereafter, came at a meeting chaired by the chief minister with his cabinet colleagues holding the Home, Primary and Secondary Education and Higher Education portfolios, and senior officials.
“The three-judge bench (of the Karnataka High Court) has said that they will hear the case on a day-to-day basis and that everyone should maintain peace, and not to wear religious dress at colleges until then (order). They have also given instruction for reopening of educational institutions,” Bommai said.
Speaking to reporters here, he said, discussions were held at the meeting aimed at establishing peace at school and college campuses and creating an atmosphere for students to study together, and to maintain law and order. “It has been decided that high school classes up to class 10 will start functioning from Monday and in the second stage PUC and degree colleges will start, the dates will be announced in the due course,” he said.
The Karnataka government announced a three-day holiday on Tuesday given violence and tension in some schools and colleges owing to the Hijab (Islamic headscarves) versus saffron scarves face-off. The full bench of the Karnataka High Court hearing the Hijab ban case on Thursday posted the matter for February 14.
The three-judge full bench of Chief Justice Ritu Raj Awasthi, Justice J M Khazi, and Justice Krishna S Dixit was formed on Wednesday to hear the petitions by the Muslim girl students challenging the ban on Hijab.
The bench was constituted after the single judge, Justice Dixit referred the matter to the CJ with a view that a larger bench should hear the matter. The full bench also said it wants the matter to be resolved at the earliest but till that time peace and tranquility are to be maintained.
Earlier, the Chief Justice asked the media to refrain from reporting the observations made by the bench during the hearing. The Hijab row started in December end when a few students started coming to the government pre-university college in Udupi wearing Hijab. Protesting against it, some Hindu students turned up wearing saffron scarves.
The row spread to other educational institutions in different parts of the State, and the protests took a violent turn at someplace earlier this week, prompting the government on Tuesday to declare three days holiday for the institutions.
