Hijab Ban- Supreme Court Hearing- DAY-9 Live Updates

Kar AG : The last leg of arguments on Article 21 privacy right. They rely on Puttaswamy's case- Justice Chandracuhd's observations that without privacy, there is no dignity and without dignity there is no liberty.

Kar AG : Whether the right to wear dress as part of privacy right can be exercised anywhere? It is not so simple.

Kar AG : The carte blanche proposition cannot be accepted. Justice Gupta asked whether right to dress includes right to undress. You have right to dress, but its not absolute in all places.

Kar AG : It is very nice for petitioners to say, what happens if I wear hijab. That was not the ground reality. It has never happened in Karnataka. There were some groups which actively associated with this. These are in the chargesheet.

Kar AG : It was not a case of single student wanting to wear hijab. There were groups of students, banging the gates of children, within intimidating slogans, and it did have a ripple effect, this became a symbol of enforcement of religious faith.

Kar AG : The public order concept, though looking distant, in the facts of this case, and also based on the aspects referred to by the SG, it did have a public order element.

Kar AG : We have not prohibited hijab outside, there is no restriction on wearing in school transport. There is no restriction even in school campus. It is only in classroom.

Kar AG : When it was asserted militantly that I want to wear hijab, and there was opposition, what do I do as a school principal. My concern was to run the school, to bring the children together without animosity. The Govt order was under these considerations.

Kar AG : Right to wear dress as part of expression can't be readily given at the mere asking.

Kar AG : In Maneka Gandhi case, it was held since she did not say why she wanted to travel abroad, impounding of passport will not violate Article 19.

Kar AG from Maneka Gandhi : If a preacher wants to go abroad and his passport is impounded, his Article 19(1)(a) is violated. If a journalist's passport is impounded, his 19(1)(a) right is violated. But since Maneka Gandhi did not say why she wanted to go, it was held there is no

Kar AG : Right to wear a hijab or whatever dress in a school in defiance of uniform rule is not a fundamental right.

Kar AG: They have to establish what is the expression they want to convey and to whom they want to convey. They say they wear hijab as Islam mandates. That is no expression.

Kar AG : I am governed by the Education Act. It is a complete code. If the rules and regulations say I have to wear the particular uniform..

J Gupta : So your argument boils down to Bacchan Singh, if the dominant objective is something the ancilliary effect need not be looked

Justice Dhulia : Is it affecting somebody's health? Somebody's morality?

Kar AG : That is why reference to Bacchan Singh case, 19(1)(a) right itself is not there.

Kar AG : Right to wear a hijab in a public space, is it a 19(1)(a) right or 21 right? If 21 is the right, it can be restricted as per procedure known to law.

Justice Dhulia : 19(1) gives the right..Preamble gives the right..