Burqa-clad student denied entry to SSC exam in Pune, allowed after police intervention
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A Class 10 student in Pimpri-Chinchwad was initially stopped from appearing for her SSC exam while wearing a burqa, leading to a controversy that required police intervention.
The incident took place on Saturday at CMS School, Nigdi Pradhikaran, where the student was eventually permitted to take the exam after officers arrived at the scene.
The student, who studies at Beena School, arrived at the exam center with her father at 10:15 am. As she was about to enter her classroom, teachers at the school gate allegedly asked her to remove her burqa. She refused but assured them they could verify her identity without requiring her to remove the garment. When the teachers denied her entry, she contacted her father, who in turn called the police.
“I lost 20-25 minutes due to this issue, time that I could have used for last-minute revision,” the student said.
Her father, Mehboob Shaikh, alleged that the authorities had insisted that she leave her burqa outside the examination hall. “She was never against the identity verification process. When I asked them to show an official government rule supporting their demand, they couldn’t provide one. That’s when we called the police,” he said.
T. P. Vijayan, chairman of CMS School, denied the claim that teachers had asked the girl to remove her burqa completely. He explained that the staff was merely following official procedures to match her face with the photograph on her hall ticket. “This was not about banning the burqa. The teachers were only following the guidelines. The student will be allowed to take the remaining exams while wearing her burqa,” he said.
Nigdi Police Inspector Shatrughan Mali confirmed that officers responded immediately after receiving a call from the student’s father. “We mediated between the parents and the school authorities, and the student was allowed to sit for the exam. However, this is primarily an issue for the school and education department to address,” he said.
Pimpri-Chinchwad Municipal Corporation (PCMC) Education Officer Sangeeta Bangar also stated that the student was permitted to appear for the exam after a brief delay. She clarified that the teachers were only conducting identity verification as part of the state board’s copy-free initiative.
“The student had appeared for the first exam without a burqa or hijab but wore one for the second paper. Her friends did not face any issues, and no other student objected to the verification process,” Bangar added.