Bangladesh court bars forced Islamic dress code in work place, schools

London, Aug 23 (ANI): A Bangladesh high court has ruled that people cannot be forced to wear skull caps, veils or other religious clothing in workplaces, schools and colleges.

The ruling was announced in the wake of reports that a college in the north of the country had forced students to wear veils.

According to the BBC, the court has said that wearing any form of religious clothing, for students and employees, should be a personal choice.

In April this year, the court ordered schools and colleges not to force women to wear the burqa, a garment that covers the entire body except the eyes and hands.

The court also ruled that women should not be prevented from taking part in sports or cultural activities.

It further demanded an explanation from the authorities as why it should not be made illegal to prevent girls from taking part in sports and cultural activities.

"The difference between these two is that, this particular ruling today doesn't apply only on females it also applies to males as well," Mahbub Shafique, one of the lawyers who filed the latest litigation,

"Because any kind of religious attire is imposed, that has been declared illegal to some extent," he added. (ANI)