Denied permission to take Karnataka II PUC exams wearing hijab, two students leave

Bengaluru: Two Muslim girl students on Friday voluntarily left the exam centre after they were denied permission by the authorities to appear in the II PUC (Class 12) examinations in Karnataka wearing a hijab.

According to Zee Media reports, the incident took place at Vidyodaya PU College in Udupi. Around 6.84 lakh students today appeared in the II PUC (Class 12) examinations in Karnataka amid tight security. The hijab-clad students were instructed to remove it at the entrance and attend the examination.

Karnataka Education Minister BC Nagesh had earlier announced that the students wearing hijab will not be allowed to write the II PUC examinations. The staff members have also been restricted to wear a hijab during the exams.

After successfully conducting SSLC (class 10) exams amid the hijab controversy, the Karnataka government is holding crucial II PUC examinations from Thursday to May 18.

The students have been banned from taking mobiles inside exam halls. The supervisors are permitted to carry a basic set without a camera. Taking no chances, the state education department had sought the police security cover for all examination centres and all exam works will be carried out in police ''bandobust''. The 200-metre zone surrounding the exam centre is declared a prohibited zone.

Ahead of the exams, former Chief Minister HD Kumaraswamy wished all students the best of luck. He further advised that nothing is more important than life. "Don`t get into trouble throughout life by neglecting exams, let a bright future be your’s," he said, indirectly referring to the hijab crisis.

Sources said that the four students attached to Udupi Pre-University Girl`s College, who were involved in the hijab protest, did not turn up for examinations. The college sources explained that they did not even collect their hall tickets.

Elaborate security arrangements have been made for the smooth conduct of exams as there is the possibility of the hijab controversy resurfacing. The examination is being conducted in 1,076 examination centres and a total of 3,46,936 boys and 3,37,319 girls are writing the exams. The practical lab tests will be conducted in 1,030 examination centres and 2,67,349 students are likely to appear for it.

Earlier, the Karnataka High Court Special bench, headed by Chief Justice Ritu Raj Awasthi, had dismissed the petition by students seeking permission to wear hijab in classrooms.

The bench had also noted that wearing of hijab is not an essential practice of Islam. The hijab controversy started with students of Udupi Pre-University College and it spread across the state creating a crisis.

(With Agency Inputs)