A Muslim student at a British school filed an appeal with the High Court challenging the school’s policy prohibiting prayers on school property, however, the court dismissed the petition and clarified that students must abide by school policies in order to continue their education there. The student and her parents are allowed to leave the school if they disagree with any of the guidelines.
The case pertains to Michaela Community School in Brent, north London which is a state secondary non-religious institution and one of the strictest schools in Britain that forbids religious education. The school grounds are off-limits to any form of religious activity. The institution has 700 students, more than half of whom are Muslim. 30 students spread their blazers and prayed on them in March 2023, in defiance of the school’s policy against prayers. Afterwards, the school issued stern warnings and took severe measures. The schoolgirl then filed an appeal with the High Court.
In an 83-page ruling, High Court Judge Linden stated that before admission, the school notifies the students and their parents that religion isn’t allowed on the premises. This institution is intended to be non-religious. Justice Linden pronounced, “The claimant at the very least impliedly accepted when she enrolled at the school, that she would be subject to restrictions on her ability to manifest her religion.” Judge Linden rejected the student’s claims and supported the school, which had maintained that its policy was appropriate in light of threats of bombing and death connected to its on-site religious observance.
“She (the pupil) knew that the school is secular and her own evidence is that her mother wished her to go there because it was known to be strict. She herself says that, long before the prayer ritual policy was introduced, she and her friends believed that prayer was not permitted at school and she therefore made up for missed prayers when she got home,” the judgement mentioned.
“A school should be free to do what is right for the pupils it serves. The court’s decision is, therefore, a victory for all schools,” declared founder and headteacher of the school, Katharine Birbalsingh, a former government social mobility tsar who co-founded the non-faith senior public school with former home secretary Suella Braverman.
“Schools should not be forced by one child and her mother to change their approach simply because they have decided they don’t like something at the school. Parents are under no obligation to send their children to us if they don’t like something such as Michela,” the school stated during the High Court hearing and added that allowing prayer rituals risked “undermining inclusion” among pupils.
Attorneys representing the school asserted that images of students praying outside fueled a “concerted campaign” against the school’s religious policies on social media. They additionally disclosed that Muslim children were “observed to be applying peer pressure” on their fellow Muslim students to “act certain ways.” The court was also informed that the school was the subject of “false” accusations of Islamophobia, harassment and a “bomb hoax.” Attorneys stated that lifting the “emergency” prohibition would put the school under “an unacceptable risk of threats” once more and prevent “the logistical disruption and detriments to other school activities”.
Hijab controversy in India
The Udupi Hijab conflict originated in late 2021 in Karnataka and involved Muslim female students seeking to wear hijabs as part of their school uniforms in violation of uniform dress code. The dispute resulted in significant demonstrations, court cases and even spread to other regions of the nation. The debate commenced in January 2022. A college in Udupi drove away several Muslim students who came to class wearing hijabs.
The High Court pronounced that wearing a hijab is not required by Islam. Chief Justice Rituraj Awasthi of the High Court affirmed the state government’s directive that universities and schools conform completely to the uniform policy. The matter made it to the Supreme Court which also maintained the High Court’s judgement. However, Siddaramaiah was appointed Chief Minister in 2023 when Congress won the assembly elections in Karnataka and the restriction on wearing the hijab in colleges and schools was repealed by his administration.