Kolkata, Sept. 21 -- Applications of over 1,000 Muslim girls were rejected by the West Bengal Police Recruitment Board (WBPRB) because they were seen wearing headscarves or hijabs in the photos that they had attached with their forms.

The rejection of the application of these candidates has created a controversy with many of the candidates contesting the government decision.

In fact, WBPRB has rejected more than 30,000 application forms submitted for recruitment of constables and lady constables. The board said that this was done owing to "mistakes" in the forms that include wearing hijab or headscarves in photos attached with the forms.

WBPRB guidelines say that the faces of the applicants should not be covered in any way in the photo...