Russian Supreme Court upholds ban on hijabs in schools

Russian Supreme Court has upheld a ban on pupils wearing the head-scarf in schools in the Mordovia region, setting a precedent on a divisive issue.

The decision came on Wednesday after the Muslim Tatar community in Mordovia appealed against the ban, which was approved by the Supreme Court of Russia's Mordovia region in October 2014.

The court rejected the appeal filed by Mufti Fagim Shafiyev, senior Muslim cleric in Mordovia, who had urged the Supreme Court to reverse the ruling made by Mordovia's top court, TNA reported

Shafiyev said the ban on head scarves at schools is 'discriminatory' and violates the rights of Muslim Tatars who make up some 5 percent of Mordovia's population.

The Supreme Court rejected his appeal, ruling that the decision 'to ban head scarves for girls in secondary schools must be left without changes.'

It is noteworthy that Mordovia is the second region in Russia to slap a ban on hijabs after Stavropol Krai, which banned the wearing of the head scarf in schools in October, 2012.