Recently, the authorities at Presidency University contacted the parents and guardians of the hostel boarders, seeking their opinions on the ongoing protests about the hostel timing curfew. Earlier, the university had witnessed a protest by 200 women living in the university hostel regarding the 9:30 p.m. time curfew.
Almost all women supported the issue of doing away with the curfew because of legitimate reasons and wrote a letter to the authorities asking them for the same. Responding to the Times of India, a hosteler said that the students are adults and know their responsibilities and duties and should be allowed to move as per their wishes. She also mentioned that the students barely reach the hostel an hour or so before the set curfew hence they are unable to head out to grab a bite or watch a movie. She also highlighted the fact that such rules aren’t followed in boys hostels which becomes problematic on the grounds of gender inequality and patriarchal structures of society.
Seeing that 97% of the hostelers participated by writing a letter, the Dean, Arun Maity decided to send letters to the guardians of those 205 students, seeking their response on the issue. The university sources were reported saying that the curfew time was 7:30 p.m. earlier which was pushed to the current time, on demand of the students. “Now, the students do not want to adhere by the timing. Their security is a concern for which the cut-off time has been kept,” the source told TOI.
The women were not happy with this step of including their parents because this goes against their spirit of adulthood, freedom and right to make their own decisions. Much like the students predicted, the responses from their guardians were less than thrilling.
Most of the parents asked their children to abide by the rules and focus on their studies, more than the protest. While other parents left the decision upon the authorities as per whatever they feel to be “good for their children.”
On a similar note, Ms Rajni, mother of a student in Delhi University told Campus Watch, “If you live in a hostel, you should abide by their rules. Though, if you feel that you are an adult and responsible enough, you should rent a flat and live as per your wishes.”
On being asked about the difference in rules of the girls and boys hostel she said, “This is wrong. The rules should remain the same both for girls and boys hostel. No one is more responsible than the other, both should be treated with equality.”
While Ms Seema, mother of Surbhi, an outstation student studying in Delhi University, told Campus Watch, “It’s not that we don’t trust our children but we don’t trust the world. We are concerned about your safety and don’t want you to roam around in an unknown place, late at night.”
On being contacted by Campus Watch, a postgraduate student studying economics at Presidency University told that “though we are demoralized by the response and intervention of our parents, we’ll meet again to decide our next step.”
Curfew timings and stringent rules in hostels have been an issue on campuses for long. Initiatives like Pinjra Tod have been working against such rules continuously. While these rules are important as per the authorities in maintaining decorum and discipline, they become imposing on adults who are responsible enough to take care of themselves.