Petitioners had sought early listing of the issue citing upcoming school examinations. Petitioners were challenging the Karnataka High Court verdict on the ban on hijabs inside classrooms. The petitioners had asked for an early hearing on the case due to the high court’s decision.

The Chief Justice of India chided Advocate Devdutt Kamat, who was representing the petitioner Muslim student Aishat Shifa, asking him to not “sensationalise the issue”.

Mr Kamat sought urgent listing of the matter saying students are being denied the option to wear hijabs while appearing for exams. He said that exams are starting on March 28 and the student would lose a year as authorities are not allowing entry with a hijab.

“This has nothing to do with exams. Don’t sensationalise the issue,” the CJI said while also refusing to entertain an intervention from the Solicitor General Tushar Mehta as well. 

The High Court said the issue of hijab is generated and blown out of proportion by the powers that be. It added that “some unseen hands are at work to engineer social unrest and disharmony”.

The hijab ban issue has snowballed into a national headline-grabbing controversy as political parties have turned it into an opportunity to attack their rivals. Many students have said they would now have no option but to drop out of government schools, and the restrictive cost of private education would mean not continuing with school at all.

A court in India’s Karnataka state has rejected a petition by five women seeking that hijab be allowed in classrooms. They say they will not drop out of college as a result of the setback.