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K’taka HC upholds ban on hijab in schools & colleges, dismisses all petitions

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The Karnataka High Court’s special bench on Tuesday dismissed all petitions seeking direction for permission to wear hijab in classrooms.

The HC also stated that “wearing of hijab is not an essential part of Islam. Prescription of uniform is constitutional and students can’t object to it.” Chief Justice Ritu Raj Awasthi read the judgement.

“We are of the considered opinion that wearing a hijab by Muslim women does not form any essential form of practice in Islamic faith. The prescription of school uniforms is only a reasonable restriction and are constitutionally permissible which the students cannot object,” the bench said.

“In view of the above we are of the considered opinion that the government has power to issue the government order dated February 5, 2022 (restricting hijab in classrooms) and no case is made for its invalidation,” the bench noted.

The bench further observed, “We are of the considered opinion that no case is made out for issuance of direction of disciplinary action and warrants against the respondents. Therefore, the petition in this regard is rejected as not maintainable.

“Accordingly in above circumstances all these petitions are devoid of merits and liable to be dismissed, and all the pending applications are not maintainable and disposed of,” the bench underlined.

The bench after commencing the session said that keeping the holistic view of the entire matter, it has formulated a few questions and they have answered them.

“The questions which are formulated are whether wearing of hijab, headscarves is a part of essential religious practice in Islamic faith protected under Article 25 of the constitution?

“The second question is whether restriction of school uniforms is not legally permissible and being violative of petitions fundamental rights guaranteed under Article 19 (1) (a) freedom of expression and privacy?

“The third question whether government order dated February 5, 2022 apart from being incompetent is being issued without application of mind and further it is manifestedly arbitrary and therefore violates the Articles 13, 14 of the constitution?

“Whether any case is made out in the petition of issuance of direction initiating disciplinary enquiry and warrants against respondents? The special bench said.

As a precautionary measure security was beefed up across the state. Holiday was declared in the districts of Dakshina Kannada, Kalaburagi and Shivamogga for schools and colleges.

Most of the districts imposed prohibitory orders in the surrounding areas of educational institutions. The Bengaluru Police Commissioner Kamal Pant issued prohibitory orders restricting protests, celebrations and gatherings in the entire city for seven days from March 15.

The hijab row, which started as a protest by six students of the Udupi Pre-University Girl’s College, turned into a big crisis.

The bench headed by the Chief Justice Ritu Raj Awasthi, Justice Krishna S. Dixit and Justice Jaiunnesa Mohiyuddin Khaji heard the matter on a daily basis.

The counsels appearing for the petitioners contended that restriction on hijab to classrooms is a violation of fundamental rights and religious rights. There is no legal standing for the School Development Committee (SDC) or College Development Committee (CDMC), they said.

They also argued that wearing of hijab is an integral part of Islam. However, the Advocate General and other counsels appearing for the government argued that wearing of hijab is not an essential part of Islam. They have also stated that the government respects the wearing of hijab and it had been left to the discretion of SDMC and SDCs. It was also brought to the notice of the court that many Islamic and European countries have banned hijab.

Crime

Woman murdered by slitting her throat in Mumbai, police searching for accused

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Mumbai, April 22: A woman has been murdered by slitting her throat in Vikhroli area of ​​Mumbai. Vikhroli police have registered a case against an unknown person and started searching for the accused.

According to Mumbai Police, the deceased woman has been identified as Suman (36). She lived with her husband in Vikhroli East area. The murder was revealed when the woman’s husband returned home around 5:30 am on Tuesday after doing night duty. He found his wife lying in a pool of blood in the house.

After this, he immediately informed about the murder by calling the main control room of Mumbai Police. On receiving the information, Vikhroli police reached the spot and started investigating the case. Dog squad, fingerprint experts and forensic lab teams also reached the spot to search for the accused. In the preliminary investigation, the reason for the murder and the identity of the accused have not been clear yet.

Vikhroli police has started an in-depth investigation into the case and claimed to arrest the accused soon.

Let us tell you that recently a woman was strangled to death by unknown people in Thane district of Maharashtra. After the murder, the body of the woman was thrown by the accused on the roadside. According to the police, the age of the deceased woman was said to be between 35 to 40. The body of the woman was found in Thakurgaon area of ​​​​Bhiwandi. However, the dead woman could not be identified immediately.

Initial investigation revealed that the woman died due to strangulation. An FIR of murder was registered at Kongaon police station. An officer had told that who is the woman? Police investigation is being done to find out who committed the murder. Further action will be taken after the investigation.

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Crime

Woman’s body with sealed lips found in dumped trolley bag in Kolkata

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Kolkata, April 22: The body of a woman with sealed lips was recovered from a trolley bag dumped at the roadside at Baguihati in the northern outskirts of Kolkata on Tuesday.

Local people said that some people from the locality noticed the trolley bag dumped at the roadside on Monday night only. However, all of them chose to ignore it.

However, a newspaper vendor became inquisitive after spotting the trolley bag in the same position on Tuesday morning. He immediately consulted a senior citizen, and they thought it wise to inform the local police station.

On being informed, the cops arrived at the spot. After opening the trolley bag, they saw the dumped body of a young woman in a salwar kurta and her lips sealed with brown tape.

The cops recovered the body and sent it for post-mortem purposes.

“The exact reason behind the death will surface only after the final autopsy report is available. Prima facie, it seems that the woman was murdered somewhere else, and then her body was placed in the trolley bag, and finally, the bag was dumped at the roadside. We have started our investigation into the matter. Our prime aim is to know the identity of women,” said an investigating official.

He also said that the footage from the CCTV cameras is being checked to get any clues in the matter. The missing persons’ diaries registered with the different police stations are also being examined.

To recall, in February this year, two women were arrested at the bank of the River Ganges at Kumartuli in north Kolkata as they were trying to dispose of a trolley bag carrying the headless and chopped body of a third woman in the river.

The two women, mother and daughter, were identified as Falguni Ghosh and Aarati Ghosh. The woman, whose chopped and headless body had been recovered from within the trolley bag, was reportedly that of Sumita Ghosh, an elderly relative of the two arrested women.

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Crime

Bengaluru Police file FIR against Air Force officer in road rage case

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Bengaluru, April 22: The Bengaluru Police lodged an FIR against an Indian Air Force officer on Tuesday in connection with a road rage incident involving him and a bike rider.

The case was registered under the jurisdiction of the Byappanahalli police station. The FIR has been filed against Wing Commander Shiladitya Bose. Earlier, the bike rider, Vikas Kumar, was arrested in connection with the case. The incident came to light after Bose uploaded a video on social media claiming he was attacked by a local youth for not speaking in Kannada.

However, later CCTV footage revealed Bose overpowering the bike rider, banging, kicking, and punching him.

The FIR has been filed under IPC Sections 109 (attempt to murder), 115(2) (voluntarily causing hurt), 304 (snatching forcefully), 324 (mischief), and 352 (intentional insult to provoke breach of peace).

The complaint was lodged by Vikas Kumar, a call centre employee. According to him, while he was returning a friend’s bike, a car touched his vehicle. “When I questioned why they hit the bike, the officer kicked it. When I objected, he continuously assaulted me. When I tried to call my friend, he snatched my phone and threw it. He also threw away the bike keys and attempted to choke me,” Kumar alleged.

The incident escalated after Kannada organisations condemned the officer’s video and the alleged assault, criticising him for giving the issue a Kannada versus Hindi language twist. After Kumar’s arrest, they also slammed the police for taking one-sided action.

DCP East D. Devaraju had stated earlier that the incident occurred around 6 a.m. on Monday while the Air Force officer was travelling from DRDO Quarters to the Bengaluru International Airport. “An altercation broke out between the officer, his wife, and the biker. His wife, Squadron Leader Madhumita Das, was driving the car. The situation escalated, and we have CCTV footage along with videos taken by bystanders,” he said.

“It’s a clear case of road rage. Both parties could have avoided the incident. Around 6.30 a.m., they came to the police station, and the SHO advised them to seek first aid as they were bleeding,” he added.

He also stated that Bose had left for the airport due to a delay. “Once he went live on social media, we traced the details and contacted Madhumita Das at the DRDO quarters. She later came to the police station and filed a complaint. This is a clear road rage incident,” DCP Devaraju reiterated.

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