News Desk: The Karnataka government has withdrawn its 2022 uniform restriction order and issued fresh guidelines allowing students to wear certain religious and traditional symbols, including the hijab, in schools and pre-university colleges across the state.
Under the revised directive, students in government, aided and private educational institutions will be permitted to wear items such as hijab, turban or peta, sacred thread (Janeu), rudraksha beads and shivadara along with prescribed uniforms. The government said these symbols would be allowed as long as they do not interfere with discipline, safety, identification or regular classroom activities.
The new order also makes it clear that no student can be denied entry into classrooms, examinations or academic activities for wearing such symbols. At the same time, institutions cannot force students either to wear or remove religious or cultural accessories.
In a surreptitious move, the Congress government in Karnataka has quietly withdrawn the February 5, 2022 uniform order and reopened the door for hijab in schools under the guise of “limited traditional and faith-based symbols”.
Read points 3 and 4 of the new circular carefully.… pic.twitter.com/AMNKqGlJhJ
— Amit Malviya (@amitmalviya) May 13, 2026
While permitting limited religious expression, the state government said uniform rules prescribed by schools and colleges would continue to remain in force. Dress codes applicable during national and state-level examinations will also remain unchanged.
Officials stated that any institutional rule contradicting the fresh government directive would automatically become invalid.
The latest order replaces the controversial 2022 directive introduced during the previous BJP government, which had enforced strict uniform compliance without visible religious symbols. The earlier order had triggered massive political and legal controversy over the wearing of hijabs in educational institutions, leading to protests, counter-protests and court battles across Karnataka.
Karnataka Education Minister Madhu Bangarappa announces new guidelines for educational institutions regarding uniform and dress codes.
He revoked 2022 order and now hijabs and sacred threads allowed in schools. pic.twitter.com/h0FPIF3C6C
— News Arena India (@NewsArenaIndia) May 13, 2026
Issued under provisions of the Karnataka Education Act, 1983, the revised notification states that educational institutions must function as constitutional spaces that uphold equality, secularism, fraternity, dignity, discipline and scientific temper.
The government argued that a blanket ban on religious symbols was unnecessary if educational discipline and institutional order were maintained properly.
Karnataka Education Minister Madhu Bangarappa defended the move, saying students should not face harassment over minor religious practices and personal accessories should never become obstacles to education.
However, the decision has drawn criticism from opposition leaders and right-wing organisations, who warned that reopening the issue could revive tensions linked to the earlier hijab controversy and create fresh law-and-order concerns in educational campuses.
Chief Minister Siddaramaiah’s government has maintained that the revised framework attempts to balance constitutional freedoms with institutional discipline while ensuring inclusive access to education for all students.
