Bhopal (Madhya Pradesh): Madhya Pradesh High Court, principal bench in Jabalpur granted bail to Damoh’s Ganga Jamna Higher Secondary School principal Asfa Shaikh and two others on Tuesday.
The school had courted controversy for allegedly forcing the Hindu students and teacher to wear Hijab and to change their religion. The court laid down terms and conditions while granting bail to principal Asfa Shaikh and two teachers Anas Athar and Rustom Ali. The court have told them that they girl students of other religion i.e. Hindu and Jain etc. shall not be compelled to wear head scarf (Hijaab) anywhere in the school premises or in the class rooms.
Advocate Manish Datt, who appeared on behalf of applicants, argued that it was the Managing Director Mohammed Idrish and members of the School Management who had prescribed the dress code and made it compulsory for all girls students to wear head scarf (Hijaab) with uniform.
The photos of the girl students wearing head scarves (Hijaab) shows that head scarves have been made mandatory by the school management and not by the present applicants (Principal and teachers) . School is a minority religious institute. Present applicants are the principal and teachers. The applicants only follow the instructions issued by the School Management, the advocate had told the court.
Bail terms and condition
* Applicants shall not repeat commission offences in which they are being released on bail.
* Girl students of other religion i.e. Hindu and Jain etc. shall not be compelled to wear head scarf (Hijaab) anywhere in the school premises or in the class rooms.
* They shall not prevent students of other religions from wearing the essentials of their own religion such as wearing a sacred thread (kalawa) and putting tilak on the forehead.
* They shall not compel the students of other religions to read/study any material or language which has not been prescribed or approved by the Madhya Pradesh Education Board.
* They shall not provide any religious education or material belonging to Islam faith to the students of other religion and shall impart only modern education as contained in Section 53(1)(iii) of the Juvenile Justice (Care and Protection of Children) Act, 2015.
