Several hijab-clad Muslim students miss classes, exam

Only a section of Muslim girls attended classes and appeared for internal examination without the hijab in government colleges in Dakshina Kannada and Udupi districts on Wednesday, a day after the High Court of Karnataka held that wearing a hijab (headscarf) is not essential part of religion and they have to stick to the prescribed uniform.

Sources said that of the 17 Muslim girl students at the Government First Grade College in Kaup in Udupi district, four attended the internal examination without wearing the hijab. Another nine students, who had also turned up at the college, refused to remove the hijab to appear for the examination. The remaining did not turn up at the college at all.

At the Government PU College in Kundapur, two first-year students attended classes without the hijab while 11 Muslim students did not turn up at the college.