MANGALURU: The Dakshina Kannada district administration on Sunday clarified that students are allowed to wear hijab inside the SSLC exam hall if it is part of their school uniform.
A number of schools, especially those run by Muslim organisations and whose school uniform consists hijab, had sought clarification in view of the order issued by the education department stating that uniform is compulsory for those appearing for SSLC examination.
Dakshina Kannada Deputy Commissioner KV Rajendra held a meeting with senior officials of revenue, education, and police departments on Sunday in which he made it clear that students should not be barred from entering the exam hall with hijab if it is part of their uniform and asked the officials to communicate the same to all exam centres.
Till Sunday morning, there was confusion in this regard as some media reports even quoted Education Minister BC Nagesh stating that hijab is not allowed even if it's part of the uniform. The heads of SSLC exam centres, which were to host students of schools that have hijab as part of the uniform, were in a fix.
They did not find any help from the Block Education Officers (BEO) as they were simply told to follow the government order.
A headmaster of a government school in Bantwal taluk said the schools not receiving any written communication till the eleventh hour made things worse for them. “I was getting calls from the head of a Muslim school where hijab is part of the uniform. I had been told that hijab will not be allowed and I had based my decision on media reports. Now, the confusion is cleared,” he heaved a sigh of relief.
Meanwhile, Muslim leaders and clerics were busy in the last two days urging the parents to ensure that their children do not miss the crucial board exam in view of the hijab issue.
“The matter is in Supreme Court and the fight for our Constitutional right will continue. But that should not affect our children’s education,” said Mohammed Masood, president of the Muslim Central Committee, an umbrella body of all Muslim organisations in Dakshina Kannada and Udupi districts.
He said the community leaders have been holding meetings with parents at their respective places to convince them not to hamper their children’s future by not sending them for exams.