Following the Hijab dispute in the state and the withdrawal of some Muslim women from colleges, the Karnataka Waqf board has decided to establish ten new colleges in the state.
These colleges will have no issues with women wearing hijabs and adhering to other Shariat, Islamic law requirements. The waqf board will supply the land and cash for the project.
In the future, the waqf board plans to establish more such colleges
The state administration informed the Supreme Court earlier that the Karnataka government decree that sparked the hijab controversy was “religion neutral.” The state launched a vehement defence of itself, blaming the PFI for the scandal, which it alleged was part of a “larger conspiracy.”
Insisting that the movement in support of wearing hijab at educational institutions was not a “random act” by a few persons, it stated that the state government would have been “guilty of dereliction of constitutional duty” if it had not acted in this manner.
Earlier this year, a two-judge Supreme Court bench gave a split verdict on the matter and it was referred to a nine-judge bench for a later hearing. Before that, the Karnataka High Court ruled in the favour of the state government and said that institutional discipline will prevail over individual choice.
In a similar controversy like the Karnataka hijab row, last week on 22 November, Hindu and Muslim students at a state-run school in West Bengal’s Howrah district battled over a special permission granted to one group for wearing religious gear.
Some Hindu students wore saffron scarves to Dhulagori Adarsha Vidyalaya, in protest of Muslim girls being granted selective permission to wear hijab.
