A court has granted female Muslim students of the University of Ibadan International School (ISI) in the Oyo State capital the right to wear hijab over their school uniforms.
Female Muslim students and parents had dragged the school to court following a 2018 controversy over the wearing of the Muslim head-cover by female students.
The plaintiffs were mainly students of the school: Faridah Akerele, Aaliyah Dopesi, Akhifah Dokpesi, Raheemah Akinlusi, Imam Akinoso, Hamdallah Olosunde, Aliyyah Adebayo, Moriddiyah Yekinni, Ikhlas Badiru, Mahmuda Babarinde, and Fareedah Moshood.
Ruling on the lawsuit on Wednesday, May 22, Justice Moshood Ishola of the Oyo State High Court sitting in Ibadan, the state capital, held that the school, as a public institution, should allow female Muslim students to wear hijab.
He added that the school did not have the right to deny the students their fundamental human rights.
Ishola said he based all his verdicts on the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria and other charters, which grant freedom of religion and association.
The Judge said: “The school, staff, or its agents have no right to punish students for using hijab on the school premises or outside the school premises.
“Fundamental human rights are inalienable rights and cannot be taken, even by the powerful government. The school is a public institution.”
The Judge also noted in addition to the constitutional provisions, some charters granted freedom of religion and association.
