{O/C} An Indian government ban on headscarves remain in place despite strong opposition and social unrest in the southern state of Karnataka.
This unprecedented ruling could set a major precedent for the rest of India.
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An Indian top court is upholding the government's ban on head scarves worn by Muslim girls in schools in Karnataka.
This follows escalating tensions between India's minority Islam community and the government of Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who has insisted on his Hindu-first policies.
The government contends that hijabs are not an essential albeit intrinsic part of religious practice under Islam.
The backlash was instigated in January after a government-run preparatory school in the southern state of Karnataka banned hijabs in schools, barring those wearing them from entering classrooms.
That led to a proliferation of anti-government demonstrations denouncing the deprivation of religious freedom, which is enshrined in the country's constitution.
But while defiant students continued to wear hijabs, they were confronted with counterprotests by scores of boys wearing saffron, the colour most associated with Hinduism.
Then, the state's top court banned hijab and any religious clothing.
Several parents of the defiant students filed a petition, requesting that hijabs be allowed in schools as the students' lawyers contended the ban affects girls' right to education.
India's constitution stipulates Indians have the right to practise religion.
Right-wing Hindus have called for the killing of Muslims.
Residents siding with the Muslims maintain some Muslim women are indignant all because they cannot enter shops or use public transportation with their headscarves.
They say the government is riding roughshod over Muslims.
Having seen the thin end of the wedge, some human rights activists have spoken out against the ban, saying the ban does not shield Muslims from danger. Instead, the ban will make India a breeding ground for Islamophobia and hate speech in the southern Indian state.
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