Headscarf not an essential part of Islam: Allahabad HC rejects student’s plea to wear hijab with school uniform

The Allahabad High Court has dismissed a petition filed by a minor student of Tagore Public School in Prayagraj seeking permission to wear a headscarf with her prescribed school uniform. The court said the student had not placed sufficient factual or legal material to establish that wearing a headscarf was an essential religious practice in Islam. It also pointed out that photographs from the school showed that no other girl student, including those from the same religious community, was wearing a headscarf.

The petition was filed through the student's mother after she completed Class 10 and sought admission to Class 11 at the same school. She claimed that she had been wearing a scarf over her uniform since Class 6 and had not faced objections earlier.

The dispute came up when the school told her that wearing the scarf was against its dress code and refused admission on that ground.

What the Allahabad High Court said

A division bench comprising Justice JJ Munir and Justice Indrajeet Shukla examined the student's plea and the material submitted before it.

The court referred to photographs from different classes and noted that the petitioner appeared to be the only girl wearing a headscarf.

“We have perused the photographs from various classes relating to the petitioner. Except her, no other girl student is donning the headscarf, even those belonging to the same religious community. The HCs have been unanimous in their opinion that wearing a headscarf is not an essential part of the Islamic faith for a woman to don, in the absence of which, faith would be jeopardised.”

The bench said the petitioner had not provided material to show that not wearing a headscarf would result in her being excluded from the Islamic faith.

“Here, no such factual foundation has been laid or material placed on record to establish a case that the donning of a headscarf is an essential part of religion for a Muslim female, forsaking which would oust the girl or woman concerned from the faith that she professes and practices,” the court added.

Court calls claim a ‘bare assertion’

In its judgment passed on August 21, the High Court also considered the student's reliance on Article 25 of the Constitution, which protects freedom of religion.

The bench said merely stating that a practice is an essential religious practice was not enough to establish a constitutional claim.

“The assertion in the writ petition that wearing a headscarf is an essential religious practice is a bare assertion.”

The court further said that the petition did not contain the necessary factual and legal foundation for such a claim.

“A claim placing reliance upon Article 25 (right to religious freedom) of the Constitution cannot be accepted for the sake of mere assertion, without the necessary factual and legal foundation laid for the purpose. Perusal of the writ petition shows that there are no pleadings to that effect by the petitioner, except that she has been doing it since she was a child and ever since she joined the school in Class VI,” the HC added.

Student said she had worn scarf since Class 6

The student had completed Class 10 at Tagore Public School and wanted to continue her education there in Class 11.

According to her plea, she had been wearing a scarf with her school uniform since she joined the institution in Class 6. She said the school had not objected to it during her earlier years.

The issue arose when she sought admission to Class 11. The school management informed her that wearing the scarf did not comply with its prescribed dress code.

She then approached the High Court seeking permission to continue wearing the headscarf along with the school uniform.

Court backs school’s uniform policy

The High Court also considered the question of whether the student's earlier use of a scarf without objection gave her a continuing right to wear it.

The bench held that it did not.

According to the judgment, where a school has a uniform dress code that is framed in good faith, applied without discrimination and intended to maintain discipline and institutional identity, the decision on the uniform primarily remains within the school's jurisdiction.

The court said the school was not preventing the student from following her faith. Instead, it was enforcing its institutional dress code, with the uniform forming part of the school's disciplinary framework.

The fact that the school had earlier allowed the student to wear a scarf without raising an objection, the court observed, did not create a permanent or enforceable right requiring the institution to change its uniform policy.

Muslim clerics criticise the verdict

The judgment drew criticism from Muslim clerics on Tuesday, who argued that hijab is an integral part of Islam and should be permitted with a school uniform.

Islamic Centre of India chairman Maulana Khalid Rasheed said Muslim students should be allowed to wear hijab while following the prescribed dress code.

“Hijab is an integral part of Islam, and there is no confusion about it. Allah himself gave the order for pardah in the Quran. So, saying Hijab is not an integral part of Islam is not correct. School uniforms should be worn by all students; however, girls should be allowed to wear Hijab, just as children from other religions wear items of religious significance when attending school. I don't think hijab is against any rules and regulations; moreover, it fosters modesty.”

Saif Abbas questions court’s reasoning

Shia religious leader Saif Abbas also opposed the argument that the hijab could not be considered integral to Islam simply because some Muslim women do not wear it.

“We are not opposing school uniforms; the dress code should be followed. But if a student is asking permission to wear the Hijab, she should be allowed to do so as per the Constitution. Quran asks women to wear the Hijab, and it is an integral part of Islam. If some women don't wear Hijab, it cannot be said that Hijab isn't a part of Islam. A large percentage of women wear Hijab. The counsel in the court, I believe, could not make it clear that Hijab is integral to Islam. The matter should be taken to the Supreme Court,” Abbas said.

The disagreement therefore centres on two separate questions: whether hijab can be established as an essential religious practice for the purpose of a constitutional claim, and whether a school can enforce a uniform policy that applies to its students.

For the Allahabad High Court, the petition before it did not provide enough factual or legal material to establish the first point. On the second, the court held that a school can enforce a uniform policy when it is applied as an institutional rule and is not shown to be discriminatory.