"Hijab is our dignity" graffiti surfaces in Karnataka's Hospet, civic officials remove it later

A day after the Karnataka High Court dismissed a batch of petitions from some Muslim girls seeking permission to wear hijab inside classrooms, graffiti surfaced in a few government education institutions and public walls in Hospet, the district headquarters of Vijayanagara district, saying "Hijab is our Dignity." The graffiti was, however, removed by civic officials later.

Four separate cases were registered in three police stations in the district in connection with the incident.

According to the information received, "Hijab is our Dignity" was written on the walls of Vijayanagara College, Sardar Vallabh Bhai Patel School, district stadium and Guru Undergraduate College.

Based on a complaint by Vijayanagara College Principal Shankar Anand Singh, Chittawadgi police registered a case.

Sensing that the issue could trigger tension in the town, the municipal staff was called in and they erased the graffiti. Police suspect that spray paint was used for writing the slogan.

Investigation has been launched to find out the people behind the incident.

The Karnataka HC on Tuesday dismissed petitions filed by a section of Muslim students from the Government Pre-University Girls College in Udupi, seeking permission to wear hijab inside the classroom, saying the headscarf is not a part of the essential religious practice in Islamic faith.

The prescription of school uniform is only a reasonable restriction, constitutionally permissible which the students cannot object to, a three-judge bench headed by Chief Justice Ritu Raj Awasthi said.