Maharashtra
Wearing hijab not essential religious practice, K’taka AG to HC
Wearing hijab is not an essential religious practice in Islam and it can’t come under the Constitution’s Article 25 (Freedom of conscience and free profession, practice and propagation of religion), Advocate General Prabhuling Navadagi argued in the Karnataka High Court on Monday.
He said that petitioner students have approached the court not just seeking the permission to wear headscarves, but want to wear hijabs to attend classes as part of their religious right.
Contending that the petitioners can’t press for right to wear a hijab under Article 25, he said that the provision doesn’t state it as a fundamental right.
“It is impossible to define religion. Article 25 does not protects the practice of the religion but, which is essential religious practice, so they narrowed it to essential religious practices. In Sabarimala case also, they used the word ‘essential’,” he said.
The core religious practices, those things without which any religion is no religion, shall be considered as religious practices which could be considered under the right to religion, he said.
The practice which is prevented and feared to cause fundamental change in the character of religion is essential practice, he said, adding that essential practice is what causes a religion to vanish if the practice is not allowed.
Food and dress shouldn’t be considered as essential part, Navadagi said, and went on to quote Dr. B.R. Ambedkar’s statement of not allowing religion into the institutions and how it should be consciously kept out, which could be in the present context of religious symbols.
He also cited imposition of religion on others and noted when the Parliament discussed adoption of secularism, it was argued if is it necessary to have religious rights? The Parliament, at the time of throwing open of temples to all Hindus, stated that social reform must be brought to all religions.
The Advocate General maintained that the question of whether wearing of hijab is an essential religious practice must be settled and then other issues could be addressed. He reiterated that the petitioners simply would not come to the court with a request to permit them to wear headscarves, but seeking they be permitted to wear it as a religious practice.
At this, the bench questioned Navadagi as to what is the stand of the government on wearing of hijab, and if the government order is not specifying anything on hijab, what is the stand – can hijab can be permitted or not?
“If institutions are permitting students with hijab, will the government has any problem?” it asked.
The bench also asked the that the petitioners are seeking to wear same colour headscarf as the uniform, can be treated as part of the uniform? If they are wearing dupattas, can they wear it around their neck?
As he said that complete freedom is being given to the College Development Committees, and as a matter of principle, students are proposed to have secular outlook and can’t display religious symbols, the bench asked whether wearing of cloth around neck is religious?
He said that it is left to the discretion of the institutions, and they would find difficulties in matters of discipline.
Maharashtra
Mega Block Alert: Local Trains to be Rerouted & Delayed On Feb 23 For Maintenance Work, Check Details
Mumbai: Central Railway announced a major change in the UP and Down fast local trains in the Central route for February 23. Meanwhile, Western Railway also announced a major mega block on the line. The jumbo block is carried out for maintenance work on signals and tracks, which will lead to rerouting and delays in train schedules.
Central Railway Rerouting Details
On the Thane to Kalyan route, Down Fast and Semi-Fast local trains departing from Chhatrapati Shivaji Maharaj Terminus (CSMT) Mumbai will be diverted to the Down Slow line between Thane and Kalyan stations. These trains will have additional halts at Kalva, Mumbra, and Diva stations, which will result in a delay of approximately 10 minutes in reaching their destinations.
Similarly, Up Fast and Semi-Fast trains departing from Kalyan towards CSMT will be rerouted onto the Up Slow line between Kalyan and Thane stations. They will also halt at Diva, Mumbra, and Kalva before merging onto the Up Fast line at Mulund station, causing a delay of around 10 minutes.
Western Railway’s Five-Hour Jumbo Block
On the Western line, a significant five-hour Jumbo Block has been scheduled on February 23, between Santacruz and Goregaon stations. From 10:00 AM to 3:00 PM, both Up and Down Fast lines due to maintenance work of tracks, signalling systems, and overhead equipment.
Trans-Harbour Line
According to railway officials, there will be no block on the Uran and Harbour routes.
However, services on the Trans-Harbour line will be temporarily suspended. Up Trans-Harbour services from Panvel, Nerul, and Vashi towards Thane starting with the 10:25 AM departure from Vashi and the 4:09 PM departure from Nerul will remain non-operational. Likewise, Down Trans-Harbour services from Thane to Vashi, Nerul, and Panvel, running from 10:35 AM to 4:07 PM, will also be suspended during this period.
Mumbai, Feb 22: After Telangana and Andhra Pradesh permitted Muslim government employees to leave offices early during the fasting month of Ramzan, similar demands are now being raised in Maharashtra and other states.
Maharashtra Minority Commission Chairman Pyare Khan confirmed that the commission has received multiple applications requesting the state government to allow Muslim employees to leave work an hour early during Ramzan.
“We have received several requests from people asking for permission to leave offices an hour early during Ramzan. India is a great example of ‘Ganga Jamuna Tehzeeb,’ where people from different communities live together in harmony,” Khan told media.
He added that he plans to present this demand to Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis through an official letter.
The demand follows orders issued by the Telangana and Andhra Pradesh governments, allowing Muslim employees, including teachers and contract workers, to leave work at 4 p.m. instead of the usual 5 p.m. from March 2 to March 30 to perform religious rituals.
“The government hereby permits all the employees who profess Islam, including teachers and persons hired on contract, out-sourcing basis, and Village/Ward Secretaries, to leave their offices/schools early by an hour before closing time on all working days during the Holy month of ‘Ramzan’ to perform necessary rituals,” read the Andhra Pradesh government order.
Similarly, the Telangana government order stated: “Government hereby permits all Muslim government employees/teachers/contract/out-sourcing/boards/corporations and public sector employees working in the state to leave their offices/schools at 4 p.m. during the holy month of Ramzan, i.e., from March 2 to 31, to offer necessary prayers, except when their presence is required due to exigencies of services.”
The demand is also gaining traction in Karnataka, where Pradesh Congress Committee (KPCC) Vice Presidents M.R.M. Hussain and Syed Ahmad recently wrote to Chief Minister Siddaramaiah, urging the state government to grant Muslim employees a one-hour exemption from duty to facilitate prayers and iftar.
However, the Karnataka government has yet to make a decision on the request.
Mumbai: A massive fire broke out in Mumbai’s Marine Lines on Saturday. The blaze rupted on the top floor of a residential building, Marine Chambers. The building is located near Gol Masjid.
The fire broke out at around 12.30 pm on Saturday. After receiving information, several fire tenders reached the spot. Senior officials also rushed to the place where the blaze erupted.
Visuals of the fire also surfaced online. In the video, an envelope of black smoke could seen billowing out of the building. This led to panic among the locals.
A firefighting operation is currently underway.
The reason for the blaze is not yet known. There are no reports of any injuries.
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