At a panchayat in Charthawal area of Muzaffarnagar in Uttar Pradesh, Bhartiya Kisan Mazdoor Sangathan national president Thakur Pooran Singh said boys should refrain from wearing shorts and girls should not wear jeans in the villages.
“If they do not follow this order, they could be punished socially,” he said, addressing the meeting at Peepalshah village on Tuesday.
However, following a backlash as the news of the fiat spread, Mr. Singh appeared to soften his stand and said his intention was only to preserve the village culture.
“We have no problem with girls wearing jeans when they are working in cities but when they come to the village, they should follow the rural tradition and not bring the western influence to the village,” said Mr Singh, who is also the face of the Thakur community in the region.
Mr Singh told The Hindu that he was all for educating girls and supported their employment in sectors where they are required to wear western outfits. “Our girls work in the police. They also go to schools where they wear skirts as part of the uniform. My only concern is that at home we should celebrate our traditional wear,” he said.
Agreeing that crimes against women had nothing to do with what they wear, Mr. Singh said by punishment he only meant counselling of such families who didn’t follow the panchayat’s advice.
The farmers’ leader took on the media for not reporting the fact that at the panchayat, he had also urged people not to vote for candidates who distributed free liquor during elections.
“The meeting was called in the wake of panchayat elections and social issues also came up during the discussion. Panchayats respond to local sentiments and its statements should be in context,” he said.
Mr. Singh, who led a march against the BJP government’s agriculture policies in the past, is also keen on the farmers and the government returning to the table to sort out the issue of contentious farm laws. “It is fine if the government amends the laws as long as it comes up with a law guaranteeing the MSP,” he said.
