Turkish presidential adviser Oktay Saral should resign after his public criticism of Azerbaijan’s school-uniform rules damaged relations between Baku and Ankara, Azerbaijani journalist Azer Hasrat said.
Hasrat described Saral’s intervention in the dispute over headscarves in state schools as unacceptable and said the Turkish official had crossed a line by publicly challenging a domestic Azerbaijani policy.
“Oktay Saral really should leave his post because he dealt a very serious blow to relations between the two countries,” Hasrat said in a video interview.
Hasrat said resignation should be understood as an expectation voiced in Azerbaijan, rather than a formal demand directed at the leadership of another country. If Saral had concerns about Baku’s decision, he said, the issue should have been raised through diplomatic channels and discussed between the two presidents.
Saral’s October 12 Statement
Saral, chief adviser to Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, entered the debate on Oct. 12 with a post on X criticizing reports that students wearing hijabs were being denied access to education in Azerbaijan.
He called such restrictions unacceptable and urged Azerbaijan to reconsider its approach. The statement came amid protests and a broader public dispute over the enforcement of revised school-uniform requirements.
Hasrat said Saral’s remarks touched an especially sensitive issue and harmed both Azerbaijan and Türkiye by turning a domestic regulatory debate into a public dispute between allied countries.
“Azerbaijan Is a Secular State”
Hasrat argued that state schools must retain their secular character and that uniform requirements should be assessed within that framework.
He said Azerbaijan was governed by its Constitution rather than religious law and stressed that public schools were secular institutions financed by the state.
Hasrat also rejected claims that spending by families on tutoring, tests or supplementary materials meant state education was not free. He said those expenses should be distinguished from classroom instruction and the provision of school textbooks.
What Resolution No. 309 Says
The dispute centers on Cabinet of Ministers Resolution No. 309, adopted on Sept. 21, 2026. The measure amended Azerbaijan’s state-school uniform rules and bars additional clothing elements that disrupt the uniform’s consistency or do not comply with the principle of secular education.
The resolution does not use the word “hijab.” It also permits national clothing or national dress elements at events related to Azerbaijani history, culture and national values when approved by a school’s Pedagogical Council.
The wording and enforcement of the rule, rather than an explicit reference to Islam, have driven the public controversy.
Hasrat Accuses Critics of Selectivity
Hasrat accused Baku’s critics of applying a selective standard. He referred to restrictions on religious clothing in schools in other Turkic countries and Northern Cyprus and asked why those policies had not produced the same level of criticism.
He said Azerbaijan’s uniform requirements had been introduced gradually and were not a sudden decision. Hasrat also claimed that representatives of other religious communities had accepted the rules without organizing a similar public campaign, citing Jewish students who, he said, no longer wore kippahs during classes.
Earlier, Allahshukur Pashazade, chairman of the Caucasus Muslims Office, said the hijab was not banned in Azerbaijan and drew a distinction between the rules governing state schools and religious educational institutions.
The latest comments add to a dispute that has already prompted criticism from Turkish political figures and sharp responses in Azerbaijan over sovereignty, secular education and the boundaries of public intervention between close allies.
Sources: Vesti Baku; Azer Hasrat interview; Cabinet of Ministers Resolution No. 309.