Hindu student denied entry in classroom for wearing Ayyappa Deeksha attire and Mala

Case ID : a04916d | Location : Hyderabad, Telangana, India | Date of Incident : Wed, 29 October, 2025

Case ID : a04916d

Hyderabad, Telangana, India

29 October, 2025

Hindu student denied entry in classroom for wearing Ayyappa Deeksha attire and Mala

Undecided cases

Case Summary

In Hyderabad, Telangana, a Hindu student was denied entry to his classroom for wearing the Ayyappa Mala and Ayyappa Deeksha attire—the traditional black religious clothing worn by devotees during the pilgrimage preparations to Sabarimala. The school barred the student from attending classes, citing non-compliance with the official school uniform policy. According to reports, the incident occurred at Sherwood International School, Hyderabad. The student’s parents and Hindu student union groups protested outside the school, questioning why the Hindu student was barred from attending classes while wearing the Mala and the sacred attire. Following this, student union leaders entered the school premises, and tensions escalated significantly. The police were alerted and arrived at the scene, attempting to disperse the protestors. The victim’s family, relatives, and Hindu student leaders remained outside the school demanding strict action against the school management. However, the police instructed them to disperse, which they eventually did. Media coverage included statements from the school’s principal and vice-principal, who said that they were not against the boy’s religious beliefs. They said he was permitted to wear the Mala and attire, but the school rule required students to wear the uniform over their religious dress, including shoes. They added that multiple other students who wore the Ayyappa Mala and Deeksha attire followed this rule and that the school had no issue with it.

Why it is Hate Crime ?

In this case, the school refused to grant entry into the classroom to a Hindu student for wearing the Ayyappa Mala and Ayyappa Deeksha attire—the black religious clothes worn by Ayyappa devotees. This decision sparked outrage among Hindus, who said that the action of the school administration was driven by prejudice against their faith. This is not the first time such controversy has erupted. In 2022, in Karnataka, a heated debate erupted when Muslim girls insisted on wearing burqas and hijabs in schools and classrooms. At that time, politicians, social commentators, Hindu activists, and even the judiciary argued that schools have the right to enforce uniform rules. Uniformity was seen as a means to promote harmony and equality within classrooms. Therefore, disallowing hijabs was deemed enforcement of uniform policy rather than religious discrimination. Similar logic can apply here. The school's restriction on wearing the black Ayyappa Deeksha attire may well have been an enforcement of uniform regulations rather than an act motivated by religious bias. However, if the school allowed Muslim students to wear hijabs but barred Hindu students from wearing their religious symbols, it would certainly amount to a hate crime, exposing blatant discrimination and double standards. At present, based on available information, such differential treatment does not appear evident in this case. Therefore, this case is being added to the 'Undecided' database of the Hinduphobia Tracker. If any further information emerges indicating religious bias, it will be reclassified and added to the Hate Crime database. Disclaimer: The Hinduphobia Tracker records the date of an incident based on when the crime actually occurred rather than when the media reports it. However, in this particular case, the exact date when the Hindu student was first denied entry to the classroom for wearing the Ayyappa Mala and Ayyappa Deeksha attire has not been specified in media coverage. Therefore, for documentation purposes, the date when the incident was first reported by the media—30th October 2025—is being used as the indicative date of the incident.