DU, JNU Students Write To DCW After Jamia Imposes 8 PM Curfew In Girls' Hostel

Some of the most prestigious colleges of the country which harbour revolutionary minds and students who challenge social stigmas are holding on to gender inequality so hard that all that they stand for seem ironical.

Recently, Jamia Milia Islamia barred its female hostellers from coming back to the hostel after 8 pm. Following the move, students from Delhi University, Jawaharlal Nehru University and Ambedkar University have written about this issue of gender bias to the chief of Delhi Commission of Women, Swati Maliwal.

Acting on the letter, the DCW office sent a show-cause notice to the Vice-Chancellor of Jamia, demanding an explanation.

“We wish to bring to your attention that such 'sexist' practices and regulations are not limited only to Jamia, but are an integral feature of colleges and universities across Delhi and the country in general. Cultures and practices of moral policing of women students by administration abound in these institutional spaces. Lack of adequate women's hostels in the city and steep fee hikes in the existing ones make women even more vulnerable to such discriminatory practices,” are some of the points mentioned in the letter, as reported by India Today.

This moral policing of girls is definitely not expected from the places which are the epitome of knowledge, wisdom and education. This move by Jamia and others even publicises the idea of gender differentiation and a conservative outlook.

The letter, signed by 265 students, seeks reforms in the colleges and hostel rules and drawing up new rules to eradicate bias against girls.     

The students have accused the colleges of these severe practices against girls in the name of safety and protection. The letter also states that enforcing these archaic rules are not keeping girls protected and safe, but stopping them from experiencing potential life opportunities. Also, disallowing girls in college after 8 pm is not providing safety, but leaving them at risk.

“We really do feel that a safe city cannot be built by caging hundreds of young women in hostels or just by installing CCTV cameras,” states the letter.

Picture Credit- Muslim Mirror

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