Kerala Medicine Students Seek Hijab Alternative During Surgery

Seven medicine students at a Kerala college have written to the principal expressing their concerns over not being able to wear a hijab inside the operating room and requesting permission to wear long-sleeved scrub jackets and surgical hoods.

As part of their religious belief, women have to cover their heads at all times and it is not possible to wear hijab inside the operation theatre (OT).

"Hijab-wearing Muslims have a difficult time, finding a balance between donning complaint religious attire and maintaining modesty while also complying with hospital and operation room regulations (sic)," read the letter.

The students, who are pursuing the MBBS course at Government Medical College, Thiruvananthapuram, claimed that long sleeve scrub jackets and surgical hoods would allow them to maintain sterile precautions.

The Principal said that she would form a committee of surgeons and the infection control team to discuss the issue.

"The demand of the students cannot be accepted for now. International standards are maintained in operation theatres. The patient's safety is paramount," Principal Dr Lynette Morris was quoted saying by NDTV.

The issue comes against the backdrop of the developments in Karnataka last year after the state government, then helmed by the BJP, banned hijab on campus.

Last year, the Supreme Court delivered a split verdict on pleas that challenged a judgment of the Karnataka High Court which had upheld the ban on hijab in educational institutions.

The petitioners argued that preventing Muslim girls from wearing the hijab in the classroom will put their education in jeopardy as they may stop attending classes. It was also argued that the matter be referred to a five-judge Bench.

On March 15, the Karnataka High Court had rejected petitions filed by a section of Muslim students seeking permission to wear hijab inside classrooms. The court had stated that wearing of hijab was not essential religious practice in Islam.