The Government of Karnataka has cancelled its school uniform order of 2022 and issued new guidelines allowing students to display particular religious and traditional signs like hijab along with prescribed uniforms at schools and pre-university colleges in Karnataka.
This order is applicable to both government-run and privately-run educational institutions and effectively cancels out the old order that became the cause of the hijab controversy in 2022.
As per the new guidelines, the students will be permitted to display certain signs such as the wearing of turbans, Janeu, Shivadhara, Rudraksha beads, and hijab, provided there is no disruption caused by the students due to these signs regarding discipline, security, identity, and uniforms.
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“Permissible traditional and faith-based symbols may include items commonly worn by students such as turban, Janeu, Shivadhara, Rudraksha, hijab or similar forms,” the government order stated.
Government says education must not suffer over religious symbols
The Karnataka government clarified that no student can be denied entry into classrooms, examinations or academic activities solely for wearing permitted faith-based symbols with the prescribed uniform.
At the same time, institutions have been directed not to compel any student either to wear or remove such symbols.
The order also stated that all implementation must remain “uniform, secular, neutral and non-discriminatory” and should align with constitutional values including equality, dignity, fraternity and the right to education.
Educational institutions have further been instructed not to harass or discriminate against students over such issues.
The government said the decision was taken after representations from different communities and following a review of dress code practices in institutions such as Kendriya Vidyalayas.
Political row resurfaces over hijab issue
The move has once again reignited political reactions in Karnataka. Education Minister Madhu Bangarappa defended the revised order, saying religious accessories should not become barriers to education.
“These things shouldn’t come in between education and future. They are religious practices,” Bangarappa said while referring to complaints received over students being asked to remove sacred symbols. The BJP, however, criticised the government’s decision.
If the Karnataka State Government permits hijab in educational institutions, then Hindu students should also be allowed to wear saffron shawls. This was the demand raised by students in Karnataka when the hijab controversy first erupted.
— Girish Bharadwaj (@Girishvhp) May 13, 2026
Though the High Court had banned hijab in…
Bharat Shetty alleged that the Congress government was attempting to divert attention from governance issues, while VHP leader and advocate Girish Bharadwaj claimed the move could reopen social tensions linked to the earlier hijab row.
The controversy over hijab in Karnataka educational institutions first erupted in 2022 after several colleges barred students from attending classes while wearing headscarves. The issue eventually reached the Karnataka High Court and later the Supreme Court.
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Uniforms remain compulsory
Despite the revision, the government clarified that prescribed uniforms will continue to remain mandatory in educational institutions. Officials said the relaxation applies only to limited religious and traditional symbols worn alongside the uniform and not as replacements for it.
The state government also noted that dress codes for national and state-level examinations would continue to apply separately during those events.
