“If a Muslim woman thinks that wearing of hijab is conducive to her religion, no authority, no court can say otherwise,” said senior advocate Dushyant Dave, appearing on behalf of the hijab petitioners in the Supreme Court on Monday.
A Supreme Court bench comprising Justices Hemant Gupta and Sudhanshu Dhulia is hearing a batch of petitions challenging the ban on wearing Hijab in educational institutions in Karnataka.
A total of 23 petitions total are placed before the bench. According to Live Law, some of them are writ petitions sent directly to the Supreme Court asking for Muslim girl students’ right to wear the hijab, while others are special leave applications contesting the Karnataka High Court’s March 15 ruling upholding the hijab ban.
“We may like it or may not like it, but that does not affect their right to wear hijab,” Dave said.
Dave cited the Ratilal Gandhi case to support his position, saying that no outside authority has the ability to discount these as being fundamental to religion. He quotes from the same case, saying that “in cases of doubt, the court should take a common sense view”. “Can we say from a common sense view that hijab is not an essential practice,” asked Dave.
“This country is built upon a beautiful culture..built on traditions. And in 5000 years, we have adopted many religions…Historians all over the world have said, India is the place which has accepted persons who have come hear. And now we have laws on love jihad. In Gujarat, there is a law, where we cannot sell to Muslims,” Dave lamented.
The hearing will continue Tuesday at 11 AM. The bench said that Adv Dave will continue till 1 PM, and his argument, that no one else will be allowed from the petitioner’s side.
