NEW DELHI: The Karnataka government order that kicked up a row over hijab was "religion neutral", the state government told the Supreme Court on Tuesday. The state launched a strong defence of the state and blamed the PFI for the controversy it claimed was part of a "larger conspiracy".
Insisting that the agitation in support of wearing hijab in educational institutions was not a "spontaneous act" by a few individuals, it said the state government would have been "guilty of dereliction of constitutional duty" if it had not acted the way it did.
