Some Muslim girls attended classes and appeared for internal examinations without the hijab in government colleges in Dakshina Kannada and Udupi districts on March 16, a day after the verdict on wearing a headscarf inside classrooms by a three-judge bench of the Karnataka High Court.
Sources said that of 17 Muslim girl students at the Government First Grade College in Kaup in Udupi district, four attended the internal examinations. Another nine students, who had also turned up at the college, refused to remove the hijab to appear for the examinations.
The Registrar (administration) of Mangalore University C. K. Kishor Kumar, quoting college authorities, said that the nine students initially told the college authorities that the High Court order applied only to pre-university students and not to college students. After they were apprised of the court order by the college authorities, the students said that they had not come prepared for the examinations and will appear for the examinations from March 17. The students later returned home.
According to the college authorities, these students have not been attending classes since February 5.
Mr. Kumar told The Hindu that no such incident was reported from any other college under the jurisdiction of the university.
At the Government Pre University College in Kundapur, two first-year girl students attended classes without the hijab while 11 Muslim girl students did not turn up at the college.
At the Government Pre University College for Girls in Udupi, where the hijab row originated, six students, including five who took the issue to the High Court, did not turn up for classes. College Principal Rudre Gowda said that the physical classes will be held till March 18. The preparatory examinations for second-year pre university students will commence on March 21, he said.
In Mangaluru
Two of the three Muslim post-graduate girl students turned up for the physical classes at the P. Dayanand Pai and P. Satish Pai Government First Grade College, Car Street in Mangaluru without the hijab. It is the lead government college in Dakshina Kannada. The college resumed physical classes only for post-graduate students on March 16 after remaining closed since March 5 following the row over hijab.
Principal Rajeshekar Hebbar said the college will resume internal examinations for undergraduate students on March 17. The examinations had been postponed on March 5 following the controversy over the dress code.
The college has 2,382 students of which 33 are Muslim girls, a majority of them being undergraduate students. Mr. Hebbar said students have been told to comply with the High Court order and enter the classroom as per the dress code prescribed by the College Development Committee. A separate room has been earmarked for students to remove the hijab before entering classrooms.
At the University College in Mangaluru, B.Sc students appeared for the practical examinations. Principal Anasuya Rai said revision holidays have been given to other degree students in view of the annual examinations in April.
