SC’s Split Verdict on Karnataka Hijab Ban

• The Supreme Court's two-judge panel recently rendered a divided decision on the Karnataka government's ban on the hijab on state pre-university campuses.

Details about the news

Controversy:

• A dispute sprang out at the Government College in December 2021 after students wrote the principal a memo requesting permission to wear hijabs (headscarves) in class. They were refused authorization.
• Since then, numerous Karnataka schools and colleges have prohibited students from entering their buildings while donning hijabs.

Petitioners' Defenses

• They choose to wear the "hijab," which is essential to their religious practice. How a student's decision to wear a hijab could affect public order?
• The task of evaluating whether the hijab was damaging to public order cannot be delegated by the government to committees made up of college students.

The split decision by the Supreme Court:

The decision in favor of the ban:

• The Karnataka High Court judgment validating the prohibition was supported by one of the judges, who said that "it was only to establish consistency and encourage a secular environment" in classrooms.
• He contends that religious conviction cannot be practiced at a public, secular school.
• In light of the Government Order Verdict rejecting the prohibition, the State may impose restrictions on the wearing of the hijab.
• While the other judge emphasized that the girl's education was the only thing that mattered and directed the state and high court rulings to be overturned.
• He referred to the girl's right to "dignity and her privacy even when she is inside the school gates" as well as her "option" to wear the hijab in the classroom.
• No matter whether wearing the hijab is a religious practice, a necessary religious practice, or social behavior for women of the Islamic faith, the bench also concluded that "interpretations by the followers of the faith about wearing of a headscarf is the belief or faith of an individual."

What happens if the jury is split?

• Due to the divided ruling, the case will now be brought before the Chief Justice of India for further guidance; it will probably be heard by a bigger court.
• And the prohibition on the hijab in Karnataka schools would continue to be in effect till the Supreme Court gives any instructions.

Concerning Important Religious Practices

• The Ratilal Panachand Gandhi v. The State of Bombay (1954) decision was cited by the petitioners. The court held that "no outside authority has any right to say that these are not essential parts of religion, and it is not open to the secular authority of the State to restrict or prohibit them in any manner they like under the pretext of administering the trust estate."
• Only when a religious activity is violent and violates another person's freedom does the issue of essential religious practice come into question.
• The petitioners argued that wearing a hijab had no effect on anyone's freedom.

What are the fundamental religious tenets?

• The "essential ingredient of religion" theory was established by the supreme court of India to describe what constitutes a religion.
• Prior to this, the supreme court had to define what exactly constitutes religion, rule on challenges to laws seen to be in control of religious organizations, and establish the limits of religious institutions.
• The fundamental practices of religion include rituals, forms of worship, and ceremonies.
• These must be safeguarded to the degree that they fall under the purview of Articles 25 and 26 of the Indian Constitution.

Argumentative conflict in the hijab ban case

Arguments in favor of banning the hijab include:

• Unity & Integrity:
• The right of a girl kid to wear a hijab does not end at the school gate; it extends to both inside and outside of her home.
• Even inside the school's walls, in her classroom, the youngster maintains her dignity and her privacy.
• Fundamental Right: Under the conditions of public order, morality, and health, Article 25 of the Constitution guarantees everyone the right to freedom of conscience, as well as the ability to freely profess, practise, and propagate religion.
• Muslim girls already at a disadvantage: According to the data, Muslim girls already had a lower level of education than girls of other religions.
• In practically all States, with the exception of Kerala, the National Family Health Survey (NFHS)-5 found that the percentage of Muslim girl pupils in the 6-17 age range who attended schools in 2019–20 was much lower than that of their Hindu and Christian counterparts.

Way Forward

• In spirit, the Indian Constitution forbids extremism of any kind.
• It stipulates that the rights to equality, education, and religion coexist and that none of them is more important than the others in terms of excluding others.
• The "middle way" that the Indian Constitution advocates are therefore the solution. If those maintaining the Constitution remain committed to it, all disputes will eventually come to an end in this way.

Read Also: Population Policy in India

Population Policy in India

• India will overtake China as the world's most populated nation by 2023, according to figures just published in the United Department of Economic and Social Affairs World Population Prospects, 2022 report.

Present National Population Policy (NPP) 2000

• It was founded on the tenets of free will, informed consent, and achieving a level of fertility equivalent to replacement.
• It attempted to tackle the problems of contraception, maternal health, and child survival all at once.
• The National Family Planning Programme of the Ministry of Health & Family Welfare directs and coordinates the execution of the National Population Policy 2000.

New population policy is required, and NPP 2000 has to be changed.

• Data from the Economic Survey 2018–19: The peak of India's demographic dividend is anticipated to occur around 2041, when 59% of the population will be of working age. By the end of the century, however, it is anticipated that global population will peak and then begin to decline.
• Aging: The globe is ageing significantly as lifespans increase and fertility rates decline globally. By 2025, the elderly would make up 12% of India's overall population. By 2050, every fifth Indian will be older than 65.
• Productivity: According to Thomas Malthus' population theory, population increase and productivity should be in balance. The current population needs to receive targeted skills training and better economic planning in order to become productive and employable.
• Chinese experience teaches us that population management policies should not be drastically altered lest unintended effects result. For instance, China's one child policy resulted in a steep decline in the pace of population growth but also in a high increase in the number of elderly people.
• Evidence-based policy: Rather than putting an excessive amount of emphasis on lowering the fertility rate, the Indian government should concentrate on setting up conditions to ensure progressive adjustments in family size within the framework of a developing economy.
• Automation: In the modern world, people's productivity is significantly impacted by automation, which can occasionally result in job loss. But it doesn't take the place of human nature and touch. Consider the unregulated care industry.
• India has a very small window of time (the next few decades) to capitalize on the potential of its young people by investing in their education, skills, and general well-being. Otherwise, India's demographic advantage could turn into a demographic catastrophe.
• Gender issues: The fall in fertility lessens the load on women. However, as women typically live longer than men, they make up two-thirds of the senior population. India must therefore acknowledge the gender component of population policy in order to benefit from these changes.
• Gender-neutral employment: India needs to raise the percentage of women employed and boost work possibilities for young women. Elderly women require networks of financial and social assistance.
• India's future depends on maximizing the potential of its youth, particularly in the states of Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, and Madhya Pradesh, where the Total Fertility Rate (TFR) is greater than the country's average. These States require greater funding and assistance to guarantee their employment, skill development, and education lest they incur a significant financial liability.
• It was a well-intentioned initiative that aimed to lower maternal death rates and promote family planning. Additionally, states have their own population plans. However, it must give attention to both reproductive health and the ageing population.
• Discussion of population policy has changed: The conventional narrative of population control can give way to a policy that values people as resources for India's growth. The emphasis must shift to ensuring a contented, healthy, and effective populace.
• The two-child norm suggests a coercive method that targets a single population in particular. It draws attention away from the contemporary, intricate population-related issues. It shouldn't be the main goal of population strategy, but it can be one at most.

Favorable developments

• The Total Fertility Rate (TFR) in India reached 2.0 in the National Family Health Survey 5 in 2021, which is the first time it has fallen below the replacement level of 2.1 and from a TFR of 2.2 in NFHS. 4. Encourage more people to take contraceptives, space their pregnancies out, have access to healthcare, and encourage family planning.
• TFR, MMR, and increases in wealth and education have all decreased thanks in part to India.
• Replacement level fertility of 2.1 or less has already been reached in 25 of the 37 States and UTs.
• From 1999 to 2000, the decadal growth rate was 21.54%; from 2001 to 2011, it was 17.64%.
• From 2005 to 2017, the crude birth rate (CBR) decreased from 23.8 to 20.2 (SRS).

Way Forward

• Family planning and young capacity building require adequate investments (at least 5% of GDP) and proper implementation of programmes like the Samagra Shiksha Abhiyan, Skill India Mission, PM Kaushal Vikas Yojana, etc.
• India must change its focus from family planning to family welfare.
• Empowering men and women to make educated decisions about their fertility, health, and wellbeing should be the main policy priority.
• Pandemic of COVID-19: The pandemic's effects on India's adolescents and young people need to be addressed with particular care.
• To care for an ageing population, institutional or state capacity must be developed together with an improved system for protecting the aged.

Read Also: Global Hunger Index 2022

The Places of Worship Act, 1991

• The Solicitor General told the Supreme Court that the opinion of its five-judge Constitution bench in the Ayodhya case "may not cover" the validity of the Places of Worship Act, 1991.

About Places of Worship Act:

• It is described as "An Act to prohibit the conversion of any place of worship and to provide for the preservation of the religious character of any place of worship as it existed on the 15th day of August 1947, and for matters connected with or incidental thereto," and it was passed on August 15, 1947.
• The disputed site at Ayodhya has been exempted from the Act. Because of this exemption, the trial in the Ayodhya case continued even after the law was implemented.
• In addition to the Ayodhya dispute, the Act exempted any place of worship that is an ancient and historical monument or an archaeological site covered by the Ancient Monuments and Archaeological Sites and Remains Act, 1958.
• A suit that has been resolved or disposed of.
• Any dispute settled by the parties or conversion of any place that occurred by acquiescence prior to the commencement of the Act

Penalty:

• Section 6 of the Act provides for a maximum sentence of three years in prison and a fine for violating the Act's provisions.

Criticism:

• The law has been challenged on the grounds that it prohibits judicial review, which is a fundamental feature of the Constitution, imposes a "arbitrary irrational retrospective cutoff date," and restricts Hindus, Jains, Buddhists, and Sikhs' right to religion.
• It violates the principle of secularism by prohibiting the power of judicial review, which is a fundamental feature of the Constitution, and thus falls outside of Parliament's legislative competence.
• As a result, Hindu devotees will be unable to raise their grievances by filing a civil suit or invoking the jurisdiction of the Hon'ble High Court under Article 226 of the Indian Constitution against the high handiness of ultras, and will be unable to reclaim the religious character of Hindu endowments, temples, mutts, and so on from hoodlums if they encroached upon such property prior to August 15, 1947, and such illegal and barbarian act

What are the Places of Worship Act's provisions?

• Section 3: This prohibits the conversion, in whole or in part, of any religious denomination's place of worship into a place of worship of a different religious denomination or even a different segment of the same religious denomination.
• Section 4(1) states that a place of worship's religious character "shall continue to be the same as it existed" on August 15, 1947.
• Section 4(2) states that any suit or legal proceeding pending before any court regarding the conversion of the religious character of any place of worship existing on August 15, 1947, shall be dismissed, and no new suit or legal proceeding shall be instituted.
• The proviso to this subsection saves suits, appeals, and legal proceedings that are pending on the date of the Act's enactment if they relate to the conversion of a place of worship's religious character after the cut-off date.
• Section 5 states that the Act does not apply to the Ramjanmabhoomi-Babri Masjid case or any related suit, appeal, or proceeding.

What was the Supreme Court's position during the Ayodhya decision?

• The Constitution Bench referred to the law in its 2019 Ayodhya verdict, saying it embodies the secular values of the Constitution and prohibits retrogression.
• As a result, the law is a legislative instrument designed to protect the secular features of the Indian polity, which is one of the Constitution's fundamental features.

Way Forward

Regardless of the shortcomings of the Act, the importance of the Places of Worship Act cannot be overstated. This is a fantastic legislative intervention that keeps non-regression as a core feature of our secular values.

Read Also: 1991-Analysis