Petitioner in hijab case urges HC to postpone exams

Udupi: The six girls from Udupi who have filed a petition in the High Court challenging ban on wearing of hijab in classrooms, have urged the court to postpone the science practical examinations scheduled to be held on 28 February. In a petition in the High Court on Wednesday, they said, "We need time to study and appear for the practical examinations because we haven't been able to attend classes for the past two months because we were denied access to classrooms for wearing headscarves." "We've asked for the practical tests to be postponed," said Almas, one of the six petitioners.

Almas said that her friends and she requested that their practical exams be postponed by the Udupi district Deputy Director of Pre University (DDPU). "We were told by Maruti, the DDPU that he will inform the concerned in the PU Board about our request. We are hoping that our appeal will be taken into consideration," she stated.

Another petitioner in the hijab case, Aliya Assadi, stated that since their demand for wearing of hijab was politicised and their contact information and address were made public, they have been receiving phone calls from unknown numbers. "Some have threatened us and used terrible language," she claimed, urging the government to take action against individuals who assaulted one of the petitioners' brothers, Hazra Shifa. "Shifa's mental state has deteriorated since her brother, Saif, was assaulted by thugs in Malpe on Monday night. As a result, she has not joined us today to speak to the media," she explained.

She went on to say that all petitioners in the hijab case are eagerly awaiting the High Court's ultimate decision. "Until then, there's no way I'm going to do the practical exam without wearing hijab," she explained. She also stated that it is for this reason that they are demanding that practical tests be postponed until the final decision is made.