Following the recent hijab controversy, the Karnataka government has made uniforms must for PUC students from the 2022-23 academic year.
The department of pre-university education states that uniforms prescribed by the College Development Committee are compulsory for PUC students, citing the high court order upholding the government order on uniforms.
The circular issued came on Wednesday following the confusion over the wearing of the hijab inside PUC classrooms.
In case no uniform is prescribed by the College Development Committee or management, the new circular, says that students must wear a garment that will ‘maintain equality and unity, and which does not disturb public order”.
In the wake of the hijab row, the Karnataka government in February this year, had issued an order mandating uniforms prescribed by it or management of private institutions for its students in schools and pre-university colleges across the state.
On March 15, the Karnataka High Court had dismissed petitions filed by a group of hijab-clad Muslim students, seeking permission to wear headscarf inside classrooms. A three-judge bench comprising of Chief Justice Ritu Raj Awasthi, Justice Krishna S Dixit and Justice J M Khazi had noted that the prescription of school uniform is only a reasonable restriction and constitutionally permissible, which the students cannot object to.
