Girl power prevails! Hyderabad college rolls back ‘knee-length kurtis only’ rule after students protest

On August 1, the college had sent out a circular to the students stating that only Kurtis that were long enough to cover their knees were deemed appropriate on the college premises. While this wasn’t received well by the students, it was looked past until recently, when a video of female security personnel — appointed a week ago — tugging at a student’s kurti and yanking her to ‘check’ her clothes surfaced. (Photo | RVK Rao, EPS)

Students tried to reason with the principal, Sister Sandra, but to no avail. This forced them to plan the said protest, coordinated on WhatsApp and other social media platforms. (Photo | RVK Rao, EPS)

The circular that passed this rule mentioned that wearing kurtis that aren’t knee-length would distract their 20-member male staff. It also stated that those who wear long kurtis are more likely to get marriage proposals. (Photo | RVK Rao, EPS)

Shreya Vishwani, a third-year Mass Communication student shared, “We understand that the college needs to maintain decorum as an educational institution, which is why we settled for the earlier dress code. However, this is a big win for us, students.” (Photo | RVK Rao, EPS)

Four hours after the protest, a message was sent through a final year student stating that the dress code would stay as earlier — no crop tops, cold shoulders or sleeveless tops — and that the ‘knee-length kurti only’ rule was revoked. (Photo | RVK Rao, EPS)

“I am certain that as the day progressed, the protest gained heat and the management had to take a call in our favour,” a student said. (Photo | RVK Rao, EPS)