Bombay High Court Upholds Mumbai Colleges Decision On Hijab, Burqa Ban

The Bombay High Court on Wednesday declined to intervene in a decision taken by NG Acharya and DK Marathe College, a city-based institution, to ban the wearing of hijabs, burkas, and naqabs on its premises. The ruling was delivered by a division bench comprising Justices A S Chandurkar and Rajesh Patil, who dismissed a petition filed by nine female students enrolled in the second and third years of a science degree course.

Earlier this month, the students filed their petition in the HC against a directive issued by the Chembur Trombay Education Society's NG Acharya and DK Marathe College that enforced a dress code prohibiting the donning of hijabs, naqabs, burkas, stoles, caps, and badges within the campus.

The petitioners claimed the new dress code policy violated their fundamental rights to practice their religion, privacy, and choice. According to news agency PTI, the plea described the college’s action as "arbitrary, unreasonable, bad-in-law, and perverse.”