After two weeks of daily hearings of a batch of petitions filed by Muslim girls from government pre-university colleges in the Udupi district, the Karnataka high court on Friday reserved its ruling in the matter relating the limits imposed on wearing the hijab in classrooms.

S Balan, a social activist and lawyer, filed a public interest litigation (PIL) before the hijab-related petitions were reserved for judgement, alleging that Muslim girls were being harassed by the media and education authorities by being forced to remove their headscarves outside of school and college campuses.

He requested a court order prohibiting the media from pursuing and photographing students in order to protect their privacy.