St Stephen's bars students from wearing shorts in key campus areas; move sparks protests

Delhi University's St Stephen's College has barred students from wearing shorts in several parts of the campus, including classrooms, the assembly hall, library, dining hall and chapel, triggering protests on the first day of the new academic session.

The restriction was outlined in an internal notice, also displayed across the campus, directing "all junior members" to "strictly adhere" to the college's dress code regulations. The notice was signed by the college's new principal, Susan Elias.

Students, however, claimed the rule also applies to senior members. Elias did not respond to queries.


Several students turned up in shorts on Tuesday in protest, describing the move as "moral policing" and an "intrusion into their choice of clothing". They said teachers had assured them that the notification would not be enforced.

A third-year student, requesting anonymity, said discouraging shorts has been an informal practice at the college for years, particularly in the dining hall and around the principal's office.

"There are certain practices that get passed on here as part of the college's tradition. This is one of them," the student said.

Another student said the practice had often inconvenienced members of the college's sports teams, who attended morning practice in official sports kits.

"Students returning from sports practice have at times been denied entry into the mess because they were wearing shorts," the student claimed.

Faculty members acknowledged that students have long been informally discouraged from wearing shorts in certain parts of the campus. However, one teacher, speaking on condition of anonymity, said this was the first time the college had issued a formal notification explicitly prohibiting the garment.

The college's rule book, published over the years, requires students to be "decently dressed" on campus but does not specifically mention shorts.

A faculty member downplayed the significance of the notification, saying, "the notice is of little consequence.. In nearly three decades of teaching here, I have never seen anyone being punished for wearing shorts."

(With TOI inputs)