France has had a long and tortured relationship with hijabs, burkas and other forms of “modest” dress favored by pious Islamic woman.

And this tussle has taken a unexpected — and we say stylishly innovative — turn with the arrival and banning of the “burkini”.

Indeed, a French Muslim woman has been barred from swimming in a public swimming pool outside of Paris for wearing a “burkini” — essentially a head-to-toe bathing suit.

Officials from the town of Emerainville say the 35 year-old woman — who was on her third burkini trip to the pool — was in violation of hygiene standards because of her outfit. Originally the on-duty life guard said the garb was ok, but town officials later said non!

Now France’s six million Muslims are up in arms over yet another attempt by the French state to control their choice of dress — which prohibits head-covering and scarves being worn in public schools.

Interestingly, the Burkini is not exactly new — but rather was developed two years back by competing fashion designers in California and Australia aiming to score a slice of the lucrative Islamic female market.

In the photos HERE you can see that Burkinis can actually be quite chic.

Now with this new French controversy, we suspect both a surge in Burkini sales and serious public outcry of religious restrictions in France.

What do you think dear reader?

Should Burkinis be welcomed — or sent home?