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Golf course has dress code, can students come in minis, asks SC in Hijab row hearing

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The Supreme Court on Monday shot a volley of questions at petitioners’ counsel challenging the ban on wearing of hijab in government colleges in Karnataka, wondering whether a student’s choice of wearing minis to the classroom would be justified, and highlighted that a dress code is applicable on a golf course, restaurant, and courtroom.

A bench of Justices Hemant Gupta and Sudhanshu Dhulia said wearing hijab might be a religious practice, but the question is can one take hijab to a school where a uniform is prescribed? The bench orally observed Karnataka’s government’s order allowing college development committees to prescribe uniforms did not appear to violate the right to education.

Justice Gupta queried senior advocate Sanjay Hedge, representing one of the petitioners, if the absence of a prescription of a dress code would enable the students to wear anything to the classroom. “Can students come in minis… whatever they want when there is no prescription, would the executive power of state come in?”

“You are saying Act (Karnataka Education Act) doesn’t prescribe dress code and does not debar prescription either. Does it exclude the state then?”

“You may have a religious right…. can you take that right within an educational institution where a uniform is prescribed. You may be entitled to wear the hijab or scarf; can you carry the right within an educational institution (where a uniform has been prescribed).”

At the beginning of the hearing, senior advocate Rajeev Dhavan, representing one of the petitioners, submitted the case raises an important question, whether hijab is essential to Islam or not. He said hijab is worn in a large number of countries throughout the world and the case involves a constitutional question which has not been dealt with earlier.

The Karnataka government, led by Advocate General Prabhuling K. Navadgi submitted that “we have left it to the institution concerned. The government purposefully left it to the college development council.” He added that to his knowledge, at least two colleges in Udupi allowed Hijab.

Additional Solicitor General K.M. Nataraj, also representing Karnataka, submitted discipline in colleges was only the issue, but petitioners were unnecessarily expanding it and some under the guise of religious practices wanted to violate it.

Hedge tried to link wearing of hijab with modesty and dignity of girls, and added that most girls’ colleges prescribe salwar kameez and dupatta. He argued further, can one ask women not to wear a chunni on head, for example in Patiala? Can one control the modesty of a woman?

The bench said even courtrooms have a dress code, for example could a woman wear jeans to the courtroom saying it’s her choice, there is a dress code on a golf course, which is a public space, and also certain restaurants have a dress code and they do not allow people in shorts. “Can a person say I won’t follow dress code but still have access?” it asked.

Hedge said the golf course is private property. The bench replied that this is not always the case.

Hedge argued that under the rule making power of the Karnataka Education Act, the executive cannot violate the fundamental rights. The bench noted that the government is not denying the right to education, but they are saying that you have to come in uniform. The bench has scheduled the matter for further hearing on Wednesday at 2 pm.

The top court was hearing a clutch of petitions against the Karnataka High Court judgment, which upheld the right of educational institutions to ban wearing of hijab in pre-university colleges in the state.

Mumbai Press Exclusive News

Controversy and tension over removal of ‘I Love Muhammad’ banner in Mumbai’s Kurla VB Nagar, ‘I Love Muhammad’ banners and widespread protests in Maharashtra

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Mumbai: After an FIR was registered in Kanpur, Uttar Pradesh, UP, after peaceful protests across the country and the world, banners of Maharashtra and Mumbai ‘I Love Muhammad’ were displayed, after which last night the Kurla VB Nagar Police along with the BMC issued an order to remove the banners of ‘I Love Muhammad’, after which Muslim youth protested against it and the youth said that they are ready to take a case in this matter but will not remove the banners. The ‘I Love Muhammad’ movement has intensified in Maharashtra and Mumbai. In this matter, Senior Inspector Popat Ahwad of Kurla VB Nagar confirmed this and said that the situation is peaceful and there was some mistrust, which has been resolved. At present, the police in Mumbai and Maharashtra have temporarily stopped the process of removing the banners, this has been confirmed by a senior police officer. Similarly, at 8:30 pm last night, an ‘I Love Muhammad’ banner was placed by unknown persons near the Bhiwandi ACP office. Mumbai And now in Maharashtra, communal elements are trying to spoil the atmosphere under the guise of the banner of I Love Muhammad. A senior police officer has emphasized the need to be alert. The I Love Muhammad movement intensified in Maharashtra and Mumbai on Friday. In such a situation, communal elements are conspiring to spoil the atmosphere on this issue. In Mumbai and Maharashtra, there was a huge protest against the registration of an FIR against Muslim youth in Kanpur for writing I Love Muhammad. In Mumbai, Muslims protested carrying placards of I Love Muhammad. The streets echoed with the name of I Love Muhammad. Mumbai Police has now started monitoring the situation after this controversy, along with this, monitoring is also going on on social media.

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Mumbai-Ahmedabad Highway Tragedy: 16-Month-Old Toddler Dies After Ambulance Carrying Him To Hospital Gets Stuck In Traffic On Thane’s Ghodbunder Road

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Palghar: A 16-month-old boy lost his life on Thursday after the ambulance carrying him to a Mumbai hospital was trapped in a prolonged traffic jam on the Mumbai-Ahmedabad Highway in Thane district, according to people close to his family.

The child, had been staying at his grandmother’s home in Pelhar, Palghar district, when he accidentally fell from the fourth-floor balcony while playing. He sustained serious abdominal injuries in the fall.

Neighbours said that the child was initially rushed on a motorbike to a private hospital in Naigaon, where doctors managed to stabilise him briefly before advising urgent transfer to a specialised hospital in Mumbai. His family arranged for an ambulance, but the vehicle became stranded in gridlock on the highway due to repair work on the Thane-Ghodbunder Road, which had forced closure of a key stretch from 6 am to 9 pm.

Unable to move further, the ambulance diverted to a hospital in Sasoon Navghar, between Thane and Vasai, where doctors declared the toddler dead on arrival. Hospital officials later confirmed that he had passed away before admission.

The tragedy has triggered widespread anger among residents, who blamed civic and traffic authorities for poor planning and lack of emergency measures. Citizens have demanded immediate implementation of green corridors for ambulances, stricter restrictions on heavy vehicles during peak hours, and accountability for lives lost due to prolonged congestion.

Traffic snarls have paralysed commuters for several days on both the Mumbai-Ahmedabad and Mumbai-Nashik highways, with vehicles reportedly stranded for up to six hours. In another incident on Thursday, a woman recently discharged from Bhaktivedanta Hospital had to wait for more than five hours on the roadside near Fountain Hotel as her father’s car remained stuck in traffic at Vasai.

On July 30, a 49-year-old woman, Chhaya Kaushik Purav, a resident of Madhukar Nagar in the Saphala area who suffered severe injuries in a tree fall incident, died when the ambulance ferrying her got stuck in a massive traffic jam on a highway in Palghar.

The authorities are yet to issue a formal statement on the condition of the highway, leaving commuters uncertain about when relief can be expected.

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Delhi Court Adjourns Bail Plea Of BMW Crash Accused Gaganpreet Kaur To September 24 As Police Cite Pending Probe

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New Delhi: A Delhi court on Saturday put off till September 24 the hearing on the bail application of Gaganpreet Kaur, the main accused in the Delhi BMW fatal accident case, accepting the police plea that they were yet to seize her mobile phone and driving licence.

Judicial Magistrate Ankit Garg was told by investigators that they were not in favour of granting bail to her at this stage as the probe was still at a nascent stage.

Opposing Kaur’s plea, the police said that the mobile phone used by her to contact family members after the accident was a crucial piece of evidence.

“We have not yet recovered the mobile phone and driving licence of the accused,” said the prosecution lawyer.

The defence counsel informed the court that Kaur’s phone is with her husband and it will be handed over to the police by Saturday evening.

He claimed that Kaur’s driving licence was earlier given to investigators but if it is still not on record the family shall resubmit it to the police.

Kaur has been arrested in connection with the death of Navjot Singh, Deputy Secretary in the Ministry of Finance, and serious injuries to his wife, Sandeep Kaur, in an accident on September 14 near Dhaula Kuan.

The fatal accident occurred around 1 P.M. on September 14, near the Delhi Cantt Metro Station. The victim couple was returning from Bangla Sahib Gurdwara on a motorcycle when they were hit by a BMW car, allegedly driven by Gaganpreet Kaur. Her husband, Parikshit, was seated in the passenger seat at the time of the crash.

In a parallel development, the court issued notice to the police on a separate application filed by the accused, requesting preservation of CCTV footage from the accident site.

On Thursday, the court indicated that there was no legal provision allowing sharing of CCTV footage with the accused in a criminal case.

After the accident, the police registered a case under various penal provisions, including culpable homicide not amounting to murder, and rash and negligent driving. The police is also probing possible attempts to tamper with evidence.

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