In the light of a report released by the People’s Union for Civil Liberties – Karnataka unit (PUCL-K),Abdul Bari Masoud analyses the violation of the right to education of Muslim girls since the hijab ban was imposed in the BJP-ruled State of Karnataka and how this unconstitutional ban affected the education of Muslim girls in the State.
One year of the BJP government’s assault on Muslim women’s education rights in Karnataka has taken a heavy toll. Over 1,000 Muslim girls dropped out as a result of the hijab prohibition in the state. This grim situation was disclosed by a report released by the People’s Union for Civil Liberties – Karnataka unit (PUCL-K).
The report entitled ‘Closing the Gates to Education: Violations of Rights of Muslim Women Students in Karnataka’ revealed that a total of 1,010 hijab-wearing girls dropped out of PU colleges “because of the hijab ban and other reasons as well”.
The PUCL study covered five Karnataka districts: Hassan, Dakshina Kannada, Udupi, Shimoga, and Raichur. The PUCL claimed that Hindutva organisations ran a campaign of demonisation against students, who wore hijabs, and it also drew attention to the government’s and the police’s passivity, which it claimed served as an implicit support for such fundamentalist groups.
Another report carried by The Indian Express revealed that the number of Muslim students being admitted to government pre-university colleges (PUCs) in the Udupi district has decreased by about 50%.
In comparison to 5,962 the year before, over 4,971 students across all categories registered for PUCs in government institutions in Udupi in 2022–23.
Muslim students’ enrolment in pre-university institutions (Class 11) in the district has not changed significantly, but there has been a sharp decline in applications to government PUCs.
There were 186 Muslim students enrolled in Udupi’s government PUCs in 2022–23 (91 females and 95 boys), which is less than half of the 388(178 girls and 210 boys) students enrolled in 2021–22.
Muslim admissions to private PUCs increased from 662(328 girls and 334 boys) in 2021–22 to 927 (487 girls and 440 boys) in 2022–23.
Many people think that the recent hijab controversy, which dominated the first several months of 2022, is what caused the move from government to private.
For the first time, the number of Muslim girls enrolled in our PU College has nearly doubled. Aslam Haikady, administrator of Saliath Group of Education, was reported by Indian Express as saying, “This is a testimonial to how the hijab issue has genuinely impacted them personally and academically.”
Parents of male students also want them to avoid any problems, especially social ones.
How did the hijab ban in Karnataka begin?
It began in December 2020 when six Muslim students at a pre-university institution in Udupi were all of a sudden told they could not fulfil their religious commitment by donning the headscarf on the campus grounds. Then the Hindutva forces instigated Hindu students to confront the Muslim students on the issue. After many demonstrations and altercations with Hindu classmates, who showed up wearing saffron scarves, the state authorities decided to close the colleges in the area. Later, the Karnataka government issued an order on February 5 last year, in accordance with the Karnataka Education Act of 1983, mandating a uniform that all pupils attending public schools must wear. The Order made it unlawful for students to wear the hijab in the classroom. The order seems to be an appeasement of Hindutva forces.
The hijab ban order severely worsened the challenges faced by female students. In answer to RTI requests made in June 2022, it was revealed that 145 out of 900 Muslim female students in colleges affiliated with Mangalore University in the Udupi and Dakshina Kannada districts have obtained transfer certificates as a result of the ban. This suggests that their education has been at the very least hindered, if not stopped entirely.
The PUCL report documents the impact of the de facto imposed ban on the hijab, and foregrounds the testimonies of Muslim women students across the state, who experienced harassment, humiliation and isolation when the sudden ban was imposed. More than a year after the hijab was first prohibited in a PU college in Udupi, Muslim girl students across Karnataka continue to struggle to pursue their education and face grave consequences such as psychological distress and isolation.
The report PUCL Karnataka released on the occasion of the birth anniversary of Fatima Sheikh, a social reformer and educator who was a close associate of Savitribai Phule, revealed how these students have not only been denied their right to education but have also borne the brunt of a climate of hate, hostility, and misinformation. The report foregrounds the student testimonies, and is informed by discussions with experts, activists, journalists, college administration and state officials. It also drew attention to how vigilante groups carried out a vilification campaign against hijab-wearing students and how the inaction of the government and the police gave implicit encouragement to these fundamentalist forces.
The report focused on three major areas: (1) The impact on Muslim women students after the imposition of the restriction on wearing hijab in their educational institutions, (2) The failure of different stakeholders in ensuring the safety of Muslim students, and (3) Various socio-cultural factors, including the biases, prejudices, and stereotypes against the Muslim community, especially women, which have enabled the escalation of a climate of hate.
In addition, the report chronicles all major developments from December, 2021 until the split ruling delivered by the Supreme Court of India. It details how the education departments failed in their duty to protect the rights of the students and to appropriately implement the order of the Karnataka High Court. It also analyses the role played by the police, judiciary and the media as the crisis unfolded.
It is to be noted that Muslims in India have historically had limited access to education, but those in Karnataka have had it particularly difficult. According to a government survey published in 2013, Karnataka had the highest dropout rate of all the states for Muslim children in grades 1 through 8 – 6.3%. It also discovered that 73.9% of all Muslim upper primary students in India who discontinued their studies that year were from Karnataka.
In this backdrop, Syed Tanveer Ahmad, Secretary Jamaat-e- Islami Hind’s Markazi Taleemi Board, said the Karnataka Government is constitutionally obligated to address the ongoing breaches of young Muslim women’s fundamental rights.Speaking with Radiance, Syed Tanveer said it should be a matter of grave concern that the findings of many survey reports revealed the unsavoury situation of the Muslim girl students in the state.
Education is a public good, a human right, and it helps the public in a beneficial way, not just for the person or the community, but also for the entire country.
He said the state government should not adopt a double standard in dealing with such issues and not look at it through communal prism.
However, renowned journalist M. A. Siraj of Bangalore claimed that the Hijab order by the Karnataka government is a ‘retaliatory action’. He blamed SDPI for stoking the issue for its politics. The issue was manageable at the local level as the Beary Muslim community has its own educational institutions to adjust these girls in their colleges, he added.
Husain Kodibengre, an activist of APCR Karnataka, told Radiance that since the controversy created on Hijab in the state as many as 1,000 Muslim girls’ education has been affected. This is not good for a government which has a pet slogan “Beti Bachao, Beti Pardho”, he pointed out.
Another activist and president of Udupi District Federation of Muslim Jamaats, Yasin Malpe said we are all pinning our hope on the Supreme Court that it will do justice.
The PUCL Karnataka unit president Adv. Arvind Narrain, and general secretary, Shujayathulla, also urged the state government to address the negative effects of the de facto prohibition on the hijab in educational institutionson Muslim women’s rights to education, dignity, and privacy.
They pointed out that the split verdict of the Supreme Court delivered on October 13, 2022, has only prolonged the students’ wait for justice.
The PUCL report made several recommendations and some are listed below:
- The State of Karnataka must uphold its constitutional commitment towards principles of non-discrimination, privacy, autonomy, and dignity in relation to the affected Muslim students.
- The State must compensate students for the loss they have suffered due to its unconstitutional and arbitrary action which has deprived Muslim girl students of their constitutional rights to education, expression, dignity, and non-discrimination.
- The Education Department must issue directives clarifying the ambit of the Karnataka High Court order in Resham vs. State of Karnataka.
- The State of Karnataka should immediately withdraw prosecution initiated against Muslim students, teachers or any such individual for carrying out peaceful protests during the period of February – April 2022.
- The media must develop internal guidelines to regulate the reporting relating to vulnerable communities, minors, and on-going court cases to ensure that the coverage does not aggravate alienation and stigma experienced by marginalised communities.
- The police must:Extend protection to all the petitioners and their families who were before the High Court and Supreme Court and ensure their physical safety and security. Take swift action in registering cases against members of vigilante groups who have been visibly seen in videos and images harassing and stalking Muslim women students. Act on the complaints that were filed by Muslim women students in an unbiased manner and file FIRs against college authorities, Hindutva groups or any individual who violated the right to dignity, privacy, and freedom of expression of the students and their families. Undertake departmental inquiry and initiate disciplinary action against their personnel in case of inaction and unauthorised action which has resulted in the violation of fundamental rights of the Muslim students. Make available to the public all orders imposing Section 144 of the CrPC in all districts of the state between 01.01.2022 and 30.04.2022.
- The Women and Child Department, Karnataka must Initiate programmes for providing mental health support for students adversely affected by the hijab
- The Karnataka State Human Rights Commission (KSHRC), Karnataka State Minorities Commission (KMSC), Karnataka State Commission for Protection of Child Rights (KSCPCR) and Karnataka State Commission for Women (KSCW) must take suomoto cognisance of the violations of the rights of Muslim students, women and minors, and intervene in cases of harassment, discrimination and hate speech against Muslims students.
The report also appealed to the Chief Justice of India to constitute an appropriate Bench as early as possible. “There is an urgent need for the matter to be taken up expeditiously as Muslim women students continue to be denied their constitutional right to education, dignity and privacy”.