Muslim woman wins right to wear headscarf at work in Germany
Image for representation only.
A Muslim lawyer in Germany has won the right to wear a headscarf at
work after a court ruled that there was no legal basis for the state of
Bavaria to prevent her from doing so.
Aqilah Sandhu, 25, a star student at AugsburgUniversity law faculty,
began a traineeship with the Bavarian judicial system after completing
her state law exams, but was told in a letter that she was not allowed
to interrogate witnesses or appear in courtrooms while wearing her
headscarf.
The battle started after Sandhu successfully completed her state
exams and started a traineeship with the Bavarian judicial system.
In July 2014, the highest court in the state sent her a letter
informing her that she was forbidden from interrogating witnesses or
fulfilling other legal duties as long as she continued to wear a
headscarf, the Local reported.
"As soon as I saw the letter I knew it was unlawful," she told the court on Thursday.
She immediately asked for an explanation of the ban, to which she was
told "(religious) clothing and symbols can impair the trust in the
religious neutrality of the administration of justice."
But the state of Bavaria has no law forbidding legal trainees from
wearing religious symbols, so Sandhu took the country’s legal system to
court.
"I felt very strongly discriminated against. I felt neglected in my training," Sandhu was quoted as saying.
She described how she was excluded from certain activities of the traineeship because of her headscarf.
On one occasion the judge who was training her would only allow her
to see pictures that were part of a court process after the process was
over, as otherwise she would have had to step up to the judges' desk --
an area she was forbidden from entering.
"I believe in the principle of merit in Germany and I think it is a
shame that I am being reduced to my outward appearance," Sandhu said.
Judge Bernhard Rothinger decided that the young lawyer was in the
right, agreeing that there was no legal basis for the state's attack on
her religious freedom.
Sandhu is now seeking compensation of €2,000 (approximately 1.49 lakh), Bild reported.
But the Bavarian state has rejected the court's decision and says it will appeal.
"I don't want legal apprentices sitting in court or carrying out
other high duties of the state wearing headscarves," said Bavarian
justice minister Winfried Bausback.
Last year, the Constitutional Court ruled against blanket bans on
teachers wearing headscarves -- in force in half of Germany's 16 states
-- saying that they were "constitutionally limiting".
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