A nun has been barred from writing the All India Pre-Medical/Dental Test at an examination centre in Thiruvananthapuram, Kerala, on Saturday after she refused to remove her veil and wooden cross.

All across Kerala, students appearing for the AIPMT was subjected to frisking and asked to remove ornaments and, in one instance, a girl had to discard a kurta with many buttons and wear something else. Sister Seba from Thiruvananthapuram told television channels that she had removed her veil and allowed it to be checked. She had assumed that once the frisking was over, she would be able to wear the veil and write the exam. However, she was told that she would have to keep aside the veil and the wooden cross while writing the exam. She refused to do so, saying that she was not allowed to go without her veil or habit in public. She said: "If this rule continues, I will not be allowed to write the exam next year either."

The CBSE had come out with a strict dress code for the examination on July 25. It issued a notification saying that candidates should not wear long sleeves, ornaments, belt, shoes, watches and scarf. The board was extra vigilant for the exam after the court had cancelled the May 3 test and asked it to conduct a new test in four weeks.

There were reports that the question paper for the May examination had been leaked and that students had cheated using electronic gadgets. Following this, the court had said the test was "vitiated to the core by the use of deceitful means and measures to benefit" some candidates.

While Sister Seba could not write the exam, many Muslim girls in north Kerala were allowed to write the exam with the hijab on.

The CBSE had relaxed its earlier norm, saying that nobody will be barred from writing the exam but students who wear items that need to be checked should reach the examination centre half an hour earlier. While the Kerala High Court had allowed two Muslim girls to write the exam with their hijab on, when the matter reached the Supreme Court, it refused to interfere. On July 24, a Supreme Court bench led by Chief Justice H.L. Dattu said: "This court asked CBSE to re-conduct the exam. One petition is filed saying 'I should be allowed to wear a cap'. Another petition is filed that 'I should be allowed to wear a kurta since it is my religious practice'. Merely because you are wearing something different, should we be allowing such a prayer? On a day when you have to sit for an exam, you are being asked not to wear it. Your faith won't disappear if you appear for the exam without a scarf."