Bengaluru, Mar 28 (IANS): First day of the SSLC (Class 10) exams was conducted peacefully across Karnataka amid hijab row. Most of the students gave their exams in uniform and only a few abstained and some were sent back for wearing hijab.

The Department of Education has suspended an invigilator for refusing to take off hijab while conducting the examination at KSTV High School. Noor Fathima, who was on exam duty, came clad in a hijab. When she was asked to remove it, she refused and was later sent back from the examination centre and suspended, sources in the education department said.

One of the students who came for exams wearing hijab in Ilakal Government School in Bagalkot district decided not to appear for the same when she was asked to remove it.

In another incident, 6 fake candidates including a girl student appearing for exams on behalf of other students were detained by the police in Chikodi city of Belagavi district. The authorities caught them while inspecting their hall tickets.

Anushree, a class 10 student who was giving her exam collapsed and died of a heart attack at the T. Narasipur centre in Mysuru district.

Belagavi MLA Anil Benake welcomed some hijab and burqa clad students by offering them flowers. Later, these students removed hijab and burqa and attended the exams.

Many parents of the minority girl students who came to drop their wards said that education is important for them.

As many as 8,73,846 students have enrolled for SSLC exams this academic year among which 4,52,732 are boys and 4,21,110 are girl students. Four students belonging to the third gender and 5,307 specially abled children are also taking exams.

Section 144 was clamped in and around 3,444 examination centres across the state and tight police security was deployed at all examination centres to avoid any showdown or untoward incidents. As many as 60,000 government officers monitored the examinations.