Mangaluru : Muslim girl students in most of the 197 pre-university (PU) colleges across Dakshina Kannada skipped preparatory exams on the second consecutive day on Friday, after their demand to take the test in hijab was turned down. These include about 25 second PUC students from Uppinangady PU college, who staged a dharna on the campus.

The protests come against the backdrop of the Karnataka High Court order which upheld the ban on hijab in classrooms.

Deputy Director of PU (DDPU), Education, Jayanna confirmed that several students returned home without appearing for the exams. “The list of absentees is compiled at the college level and not submitted to the office of the DDPU,” he said when asked how many skipped the exams.

Earlier in the day, tension prevailed at the Uppinangady college after girl students staged a dharna. A few male students also boycotted exams in solidarity. Lecturers attempted to counsel the girl students but they remained firm on their decision not to remove hijab.

Uppinangady Malik Deenar Juma Masjid president Mustafa Kempi, Gram Panchayat member U T Mohammed Touseef, and parents held a meeting with the principal. The principal told them that as per the HC order, students in hijab won’t be allowed inside classrooms. Sources told that some Muslim leaders also tried to talk the students into writing the exams, but they refused to remove hijab.