Loudspeaker: 'Is it appropriate to prescribe a dress code for college students?'

Photo: iamplusone.com 

By Nebil Nizar

Can an educational institution insist that students must only wear a certain mode of dress during the college time? This question as like many other questions fetches us both- Yay and Nay.

Lets See what persons from different walks of life has to say on this subject.

‘The views of the students should be taken on this issue. I recently was at a women's college, where the students were in uniform. They looked disciplined and modest. The students should be modest in their clothes and a dress code may help in that respect’
-T.P Sreenivasan, Former Permanent Representative of India to the United Nations, Vienna.


'I think it is an intrusion on personal liberty guaranteed under Article 21 of the Indian Constitution. It is your right to wear the dress that you prefer. I however think, a 'college uniform' may be good enough so that economic and social inequalities cannot be reflected in the dress they wear'
-S Sreekumar, Senior Advocate, High Court of Kerala.

‘Imposing a uniform is an infringement on the Right to Personal Liberty guaranteed under the Constitution of India. I am of the opinion that management should require students to follow a dress code which is simple and at the same time descent’– R Sam, Advocate at Kerala High Court. 

‘Looking at every aspect of college life I'm undoubtedly on the side of having a dress code for college. I'm sure we have seen the cons of not having a dress code and I guess it's the time to have one. To be precise show off, exposition, inequality, jealousy, impersonate, masquerade are all the denouements of not having a dress code in college. Unity & equality being the most convincing aspects on the said issue, as with a dress code comes the feeling of togetherness. If that wasn't true, we wouldn't have had a national symbol for every country and an Army uniform for a soldier. United we stand divided we fall’. – Mohil Puri, Student at Government Law College Mumbai, India.

‘Uniform has its own merits and demerits. It's ever debatable subject on whether uniform is necessary or not. The prime intention of uniforms is to create uniformity irrespective of upper or lower class. Such amendments should be done only with prior consent from the students or organization this is imposed upon’.
- Rizwan Assainar, Student at Arizona State University, Tempe, United States

‘The uniformity in dressing doesn't merely bring out uniformity in attire but  sense of togetherness and equally in minds of students. College campuses which witnessed thought provoking discussions has now been reduced to a platform displaying ultra modern apparels and gadgets. The introduction of uniform and its compliance in strict sense is a means to ensure social and economical equality at least in the minds of young generation.’- Raveena Naz, Student at Hidayatullah National Law School, Raipur, India.

‘I would say yes to the dress code for the students, at least until their secondary school. The dress code for students in school is primarily to bring uniformity and thereby avoiding the differences in their general lifestyle (basically between the rich and the poor). And I say until their secondary schooling because that would be the age where they will get to know the real meaning (value) for uniformity’ – Rahul Ramkumar, Alumnus of Vellore Institute of Technology (VIT), India.

‘Dress is a part of one’s privacy and in a country where we give a lot of importance to life and personal liberty, we should not infringe into the right of a student to choose his or her dress’   -Nisa Fasil, Advocate and Author.


'Imposing a dress code is a bolt on our personal liberty. Heaven never fell down for the only reason that dress code was not complied with. Suppression of individual freedoms by the managements and head of the institutions are not a welcome trend. Such an action must be condemned. Academia must instead mould students to think progressively and create history'
-M Swaraj, Kerala State Secretary, DYFI.


'More than prescribing a dress code, an educational institution has the role to make students to realize their dress code. Prescribing dress code for certain occasions can be justified but not for entire college life. My attire reflects my personality. If somebody restricts me to follow a special code of conduct for a long time, that would be suppression of my individuality. Each student is unique. Colleges should not be a place to generate people having same characters. Modern jurisprudence researches are concentrating more on individual liberty and freedom. When colleges in Kerala think about dress code they should keep in mind that their students career is not going to be restricted in the Kerala circle but it should go national even international'
-Jino M Kurien, Student at NALSAR University of Law, Hydrebad, India.


'It is absolutely inappropriate to prescribe a dress code for college students. Once students enter college life, they're adults and they have every right to be independent. They shouldn't be restricted with lot of rules. Colleges here in U.S. are a good example. Freedom in dressing should absolutely be given to college students.'
-Jerlyn Jose, Student at Collin College, Texas, Dallas, United States.


'Recently several colleges in our state has been imposing uniforms and dress codes for students. It is totally against the democratic and vibrant culture of our campuses and individual freedom of the students. Majority of our college students are citizens above 18 years of age. They have the right to choose their dress style. Moreover our campuses have a history of creating new trends and ideas in everything from fashion to politics.'
-Sreeraj Natarajan, Student at Government Law College Thiruvananthapuram, Kerala, India.

‘College students should be given more freedom when it comes to the outfits unlike school going children. Plus, some of the law schools already have their own uniforms and things. It must also be noted that since our profession is one where we have to wear a specific uniform, undoubtedly, once we graduate from college, we're all going to be stuck with our black gowns for the rest of our professional lives. Also, we can't say law students don't have a dress code. We do, and that's what we all wear for moot court competitions. But because we don't have mooting events on a daily basis, the need for a dress code to be adhered to by all on all working days doesn't arise'- Navaneeth Krishnan, National University of Advanced Legal Studies (NUALS), India.

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