HC interim order not applicable on turban-wearing students: BC Nagesh

In a relief to the Sikh community students wearing Turban, the state government on Thursday clarified that the high court’s interim order while hearing the petitions pertaining to the Hijab is not applicable to the Sikh community students.

There was confusion among the parents and in the education circles over the turban-wearing Sikh community students after Mount Carmel College in Bengaluru reportedly asked a Sikh student to remove the turban while complying with the high court’s interim order.

Clarifying the issue, Primary and Secondary Education Minister BC Nagesh said that wearing the turban is the Constitutional right for the Sikh community people and the high court’s interim order is only applicable to the wearing of hijab, saffron stole and religious flags.

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“The Constitution has given right for the people from the Sikh community to wear turbans and the interim order of the high court pertaining to petitions on wearing of Hijab is not applicable to Sikh community students,” the minister clarified.

In the meantime, the management representatives of Mount Carmel PU College also denied the reports that they had asked a Sikh community girl to remove the turban. The college authorities revealed that they had only asked the girl if it is ‘possible’ for her to attend the classes without the turban as she turned up at the college without the turban on a particular day.

Dr Sr M Genevieve, the administrator of the college, clarified that they never forced the girl to remove the turban or restrained her from wearing a turban. “Only after a few other minority students raised objections to the turban, we had asked the student if it is possible for her to attend the class without the Turban as she turned up at the college, a few days ago, without wearing the turban. We neither forced nor insisted on the girl to remove the turban.”

Also read: Sikh girl told to remove turban by Bengaluru college

Gurucharan Singh, the parent, said, “It is true that the college never forced our daughter to remove the turban and they have allowed her to wear it. But recently she was called separately and asked if she could remove the turban in the classroom”.

“Later, I wrote an email to the principal and there was no response from the college for a week. But later, the college authorities spoke to me over the phone and I have explained to them that it is our Constitutional right to wear the turban.”

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