The Karnataka Examination Authority has prohibited candidates from wearing any form of headgear or head dress for the upcoming competitive exams to fill vacancies in some state government bodies.

While the circular doesn’t specify hijab, whose banning by the previous BJP government in educational institutions had kicked up a controversy, the description of the prohibited items include any cap or headdress covering the ears and head.

The KEA circular is linked to the competitive exams scheduled for November 18 and 19 to fill vacancies in some government departments, boards and corporations.

This is seen as a major turnaround from its earlier position when the KEA had allowed candidates to wear hijab and other religious attire at the competitive exams held on October 28 and 29 and on November 6.

The latest circular, however, allows candidates to wear mangalasutra and toe rings, traditionally worn by Hindu women. This is seen as a response to Sangh parivar protests since a candidate was forced to remove her mangalasutra and toe rings at the November 6 exam.

Education minister M.C. Sudhakar had earlier said there would be no bar on candidates wearing the hijab since the KEA followed the NEET guidelines for competitive exams which allows religious attire including the Islamic headscarf.

But Hindu Right-wing groups had protested against the permission for the hijab.

Among other items prohibited by the latest circular are metal ornaments — except mangalasutra and toe rings — electronic items, Bluetooth devices, pen drives, ear phones, microphones and eatables.

The revision of the conditions is seen as a consequence of the use of Bluetooth devices, which are affixed to the ear, in the recently held exams in Gulbarga. Police arrested an individual identified as Trimurthy for allegedly using a tiny bluetooth device.

The arrest led to the unravelling of a scam involving many more candidates for obtaining Bluetooth devices that helped them communicate with those part of the network pitched outside the exam centres. The government had on November 11 ordered a probe by the Criminal Investigation Department into the malpractices and the network behind it.

The ban on any kind of clothing covering the ears and head comes as the hijab row is still fresh in the memory of the people. The Muslim headscarf became a contentious issue in 2022 when the then BJP government empowered educational institutions to prescribe uniforms.

This was seen as a virtual ban on the hijab, as no state-run educational institution would dare to defy the government.

In late December 2021, the administration of the Government Pre-University College in Kundapura, Udupi district, some 400km from Bangalore, banned the hijab in classrooms and labs. While a majority of girls complied with the order, six girls launched a resistance by spending their class hours on the campus since they were not allowed entry to classrooms.

The hijab ban caught on as more government-run educational institutions came out with similar orders. While Muslim students and those who supported them protested, students owing allegiance to the Sangh parivar launched counter-protests wearing saffron stoles in classrooms.

A three-judge bench of Karnataka High Court that heard a batch of petitions from Muslim students seeking their right to wear the hijab upheld the ban in March 2022. The court held that the hijab was not part of the essential religious practices for Muslim women. The matter is currently pending before the Supreme Court.

In reply to a question raised by Congress MLA Sowmya Reddy in the Assembly, the then BJP government had on September 22, 2022, put the number of Muslim female dropouts over the hijab ban at 828.