Bengaluru: Ahead of the much-awaited Hijab verdict, the state government has banned large gatherings in Bengaluru, imposed 144 sections in Dakshina Kannada, Udupi, Shivamogga, Kalaburgi, districts and declared holiday for schools and colleges.

The three-judge bench headed by Chief Justice Ritu Raju Awasthi will deliver the verdict today morning at 10.30 AM. Police have made tight security arrangements across the state to avoid untoward incidents. To maintain public peace and order, the state government has banned large gatherings from March 15 to 19 in Mangaluru and Bengaluru.

Soon after the High Court website posted a list of Hijab petitions for pronouncement of the order, the police department and district administration of coastal districts have swung into action and ordered 144 sections in the districts where the hijab controversy erupted in January and February. Deputy Commissioners and Superintendent of Police held meetings in Udupi, Dakshina Kannada, Shivamogga, Kalaburgi districts, additional police have been deployed in schools and colleges.

Deputy Commissioners have imposed 144 sections in Shivamogga and Bengaluru till March 21, In Kalaburgi and Davangere 144 sections will be forced till March 19.

Muslim students from Government pre-university college in Udupi filed a writ petition in the High Court challenged the ban on headscarves in the state's educational institutions. The students had contended that there is no law that prohibits the use of headscarves in educational institutions and wearing headscarf or hijab is essential right guaranteed in the Constitution and

no college development body is equipped to take a call on whether it can be banned in view of public order violation. 

The Karnataka government has told the court that there is no restriction on wearing hijab in India except reasonable restrictions subject to institutional discipline and the government stated that wearing hijabs is not an essential right of the citizens.

The row erupted in Udupi district first, the six students have refused to remove headscarves and stop their use despite requests from teachers. Five students then went to court.  

As the protests spread, a section of students turned up in saffron scarves, arguing they were also linked to religious identity. Dalit students adopted blue to show support for the hijab.

The judge hearing the case in High Court, meanwhile, referred it to a larger bench and in a contentious interim order, ruled that schools and colleges could reopen but no religious clothing, including hijabs, will be allowed.

Read: https://24x7liveindia.com/karnataka-hc-restrains-students-to-wear-hijab-in-classrooms

The order became controversial as students in various schools were forced to remove headscarves before entering campuses.  In protest, some students went home. While the case was being heard at the court, which had reserved judgment, many students in hijabs were not allowed to take the final practical exams.

Social media was flooded with multiple such instances and the row over headscarves was seen as a roadblock to the education of Muslim girls.