Hijab Row: Re-Exam Only for Students Who Missed Before HC's Interim Order

Karnataka Law Minister called the bandh against the high court’s order on hijab as ‘Contempt of Court’.

The Opposition Congress MLA Krishna Byre Gowda urged the government to give the students a second chance.

(Photo: Deeksha Malhotra/TheQuint)

The Karnataka government has said that students who missed their exams amidst the hijab row can appear for re-examination, albeit with some conditions.

Students who missed their exams before the Karnataka High Court’s interim order on 10 February will be allowed to write the exam, however they shouldn't adorn the hijab, said Law Minister JC Madhuswamy.

During the zero hour in the Assembly on Thursday, 17 March, Udupi MLA Raghupathy Bhat appealed to the House, “Some girls who did not take exams that time are now ready to enter classes without hijab. Special exams should be made available to them.”

The Opposition Congress MLA Krishna Byre Gowda too urged the government to give the students a second chance.

“Neither the government nor citizens can overrule the court’s decision. We only have the right to appeal to the apex court if we are unhappy with the judgment. Children who did not attend exams due to ignorance or innocence will be allowed to take exams.”

JC Madhuswamy, Karnataka Law Minister

Even after the interim order was given, if children boycotted college exams as a protest, the government is unwilling to let them appear, he added.

Madhuswamy explained that the state government has a constitutional obligation and so the state is bound to implement the High Court’s order.

He also called the bandh against the high court’s order on hijab as ‘Contempt of Court’.

The Leader of Opposition Siddaramaiah said that everyone must follow the court order. “But if some people are unhappy with the judgment, they have the right to protest peacefully,” he added

Earlier, a group of students who were asked to sit in a separate room for wearing hijab, had refused to take the exam. They had staged protests and claimed that this was discrimination.

On 16 February, the Karnataka government had issued a circular quoting the high court's interim order that directed all schools and colleges under the minority welfare department not to allow hijabs, saffron stoles, and scarves in classrooms.