In Wednesday's heated debate, Bekir Bozdag, deputy chairman of the ruling Justice and Development Party (AKP), said the amendment bill would strengthen Turkey's characteristic principle of secularism.

"Giving equal right to education to every citizen is not against the state of law and democracy," he said.

Some women refuse to go to university because of the ban

"Isn't secularism the guarantee for everyone who wants to benefit from the equal right to education?"

But Hakki Suha Okay, a member of the strictly secular main opposition Republican People's Party (CHP), said the package "aims to render the principle of secularism ineffective".

"This step will encourage radical [Islamic] circles in Turkey, accelerate movement towards a state founded on religion, lead to further demands" against the spirit of the republic, he said.