Keep hijab out of school, court told.

Muslim students should not be
allowed to wear hijab (head scarf) to
school for the sake of equality, a
court has been told.
A school, which has been sued by
Muslim parents for stopping
students from wearing head
scarves, defended its decision
saying it did not, in any way,
discriminate against the rights of the
students.
Kenya High School said school
uniforms were critical in promoting
discipline in the student community.
“If the court allows the Muslim
students to wear head scarves, this
will open a can of worms for all
manner of demands for wearing of
‘religious’ regalia such as turbans,
buibui, ornaments and dreadlocks,”
the school said in an affidavit sworn
by the board of governors secretary
Rosemary Saina.
The school’s response arose out of
a case filed against it by Mrs Anisa
Bashir. She sued the school on
behalf of her daughter and 11 others
over the decision by the institution
to stop the students from wearing
hijabs.
The students and their parents want
the court to quash the school’s
decision.
Also sought is an order to bar the
school from interfering with the
rights of Muslim students to wear
hijab as a form of expression and
manifestation of their rights.
They argued the school’s admission
policy was also unlawful as it
directly discriminated against them
on religious and cultural grounds.
The school responded that it had
done everything within its powers
to ensure Muslim students were
catered for.
The school said it had done this by
ensuring its washrooms were
equipped with water bottles for the
convenience of Muslims.
It also said it had provided prayer
rooms for Muslims and arranged
for an Islamic preacher to attend to
their spiritual needs once a week..