New Delhi: On Tuesday, the Supreme Court announced that it would list a plea challenging the Bombay High Court’s decision, which upheld a Mumbai college’s ban on wearing hijabs, burqas, and niqabs on campus.
On June 26, the High Court declined to interfere with the Chembur Trombay Education Society’s N G Acharya and D K Marathe College’s decision to impose the ban, stating that such rules do not violate students’ fundamental rights. The court noted that a dress code is part of the college’s right to “establish and administer an educational institution.”
Chief Justice D Y Chandrachud and Justices JB Pardiwala and Manoj Misra acknowledged the request for an urgent listing of the appeal, noting that a bench had already been assigned to the matter.
Lawyer Abiha Zaidi, representing petitioners including Zainab Abdul Qayyum, requested an urgent hearing, highlighting that unit tests at the college would begin on Wednesday.
The Supreme Court has yet to definitively rule on the legality of such mandates from educational institutions. In a similar case from Karnataka, a two-judge bench delivered opposing verdicts on the hijab controversy. Justice Hemant Gupta upheld the ban, while Justice Sudhanshu Dhulia ruled against any restrictions on wearing hijabs in schools and colleges.
The current issue arose from the decision of a Mumbai college, which the Bombay High Court supported, asserting that the dress code applied to all students regardless of religion or caste. The students argued that the ban infringed on their rights to practice religion, privacy, and choice.
The High Court, however, found no violation of Articles 19(1)(a) and 25 of the Constitution and rejected the claim that wearing hijabs and niqabs is an essential religious practice. The court deemed the dress code necessary for maintaining discipline, a right derived from Articles 19(1)(g) and 26 of the Constitution. The dress code was only enforced within college premises, leaving students’ freedom of choice and expression otherwise unaffected.
