A Greater Noida group housing society issued a dress code for its residents, advising them not to wear ‘lungis’ or ‘nighties’ within the complex, only to withdraw the diktat on Wednesday, June 14 reported PTI. This dress code was issued through a notice by the residents’ body of Himsagar Apartments on June 10 following a complaint about “objectionable dressing” by some residents.
“All of you are expected to take care of your behaviour and dressing when venturing out in the society so that nobody gets a chance to raise any objection. Your children also learn from you. Hence, it is requested to you that lungi or nighty, which are worn inside homes, should not be used outdoors,” the notice issued by the secretary of the residents’ body stated.
Soon, however, the move drew mixed reactions from the residents and “hurt” the sentiments of some, prompting the society to withdraw it after four days.
“The notice related to the dress code on June 10 was issued on the basis of a complaint raised by some residents. Nobody was forced for this nor the decision imposed on anyone. The society does not intend to hurt anyone’s sentiments,” the notice issued on Wednesday said.
By the time the media got wind of the same, society residents’ body president C B Kalra told PTI that the June 10 notice stands withdrawn. He said the notice was issued after some women complained about a co-resident doing yoga in the park wearing a ‘lungi’.
“We got positive feedback after the notice and so far not one resident of the society has come to complain about the notice but only outsiders, especially on social media, are bothered about it,” the retired government officer told PTI.
The society’s dress code announcement also found its way on social media, where users had varying opinions over the decision, with some backing it for “decency” while others criticising the “regressive” and “anti-South India” move.
The strange way that the controversy unravelled was when Kalra said the society does not have any residents belonging to south India and added that many people in north Indian states like Bihar and Uttar Pradesh also wear a lungi. The housing society has around 250 families.
Greater Noida has been in the news since the midst of Covid-19 lockdown with controversial, even violent diktats against minority groups and their right to prayer were reported widely.
In 2021, the case of anti-Muslim aggression went to impossible heights when a 62-year-old man, Kazim Ahmed, was attacked by three Hindu youth in Noida Sector 37 in the National Capital Region. This was reported by Maktoob media on July 4, 2021.Kazim Ahmed, resident of Zakir Nagar in Delhi said to Maktoob that he was brutally beaten, harassed and attacked by the group while he was on his way to Aligarh to attend a relative’s wedding. He approached the Supreme Court thereafter.
Finally, in February 2023 following a notice from Supreme Court, four policemen from Noida sector 39 have been suspended as they failed to register a case against the culprits involved in the attack, robbery and abuse of 62-year-old Kazim Ahmed. The police station in-charge of Sector 113 Kotwali, Pramod Kumar, and the then Sector 39 Kotwali in-charge, Azad Tomar, were among those suspended on February 24, reported Maktoob Media. The FIR was finally registered on January 10, 2023 against some members of the Pechkas gang after the victim identified the assailants and a chargesheet has also been filed.
Scroll.in had reported how in the first week of Ramzan this year, 2023, after the first three night when prayers (namaaz) went smoothly, on the fourth day, on March 26, Mohammad Inam got a call from the security officer of the Supertech Eco-village II apartment complex in Greater Noida, Uttar Pradesh. The area falls under the aggressive and controversial Ajay Bisht aka Adityanath government in Uttar Pradesh. It was the Cherry Country police post that led to the entire cycle with residents being told to “stop namaz.” When prayers were finally allowed, some aggressive groups from the majority community had started performing Hanuman Chalisia. Finally, Muslim residents were compelled to call off the Taraweeh namaz at the society.
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