Bengaluru: The Karnataka government has decided to review dress codes imposed in elite clubs, malls and other commercial spaces, raking up a debate that has been going on for decades now in the southern state and its capital, Bengaluru.
Deputy Chief Minister D.K. Shivakumar — who is also the minister in charge of Bengaluru city — promised action on dress codes Friday while referring to both malls and clubs. Speaking to reporters, he said, “In every part of the state, we wear a panche, lungi; no one can stop it…We will take action.”
Shivakumar’s remarks come three days after a farmer was denied entry to GT Mall in Benglauru’s Magadi Road for wearing a panche — traditional attire for men in several south Indian states.
Lawmakers in Karnataka and in other states have previously raised the issue of discriminatory practices, especially by elite clubs, disallowing entry for those wearing traditional or ethnic clothing.
In 2014, then Tamil Nadu chief minister J. Jayalalithaa had passed a law imposing fines on private clubs that enforced dress codes. If such an establishment denied entry to members or guests wearing Indian dress, it would face fines of up to Rs 25,000 and risk the cancellation of its licence.
‘Siddaramaiah also denied entry’
The Bengaluru city corporation sealed GT Mall late Thursday, citing unpaid property taxes. However, a minister from the Siddaramaiah cabinet said the real reason was that the authorities had “insulted state pride”.
“Panche is our identity. How can the mall deny entry to anyone wearing it? We will not tolerate this,” said the minister, requesting anonymity.
All major urban centres in India have prestigious and exclusive clubs that date back more than a century, with membership being highly sought after and aspirational. In some clubs, the waiting period can be as long as 25-30 years and membership costs several lakhs, if not more.
Karnataka has seen the same issue crop up several times in the past decade and at least two sub-committees — under Congress and BJP governments — have been formed to look into “discriminatory” dress codes.
But this hasn’t resulted in much action, especially in places like The Bangalore Club, known for its highly influential members who have resisted all attempts by governments to relax rules.
In Bengaluru’s Bowring Institute, men between the ages of 18 and 60 are mandated to wear trousers and shoes while children, senior citizens and women are exempted from this rule, according to club officials.
Several other clubs insist on collared T-Shirts and shirts.
“Siddaramaiah, around the year 2000, was not allowed to go into the Bangalore Club because he was wearing a panche,” V.S. Ugrappa, a senior Congress leader, told The Print.
Ugrappa had accompanied Siddaramaiah, and a former Bengaluru city police commissioner was also with them, but the club stuck to its rules, denying entry.
The club was shut down for a brief period as lawmakers at the time protested against the discrimination, people aware of the developments said.
“Some of these clubs continue to have colonial mindsets. The government has given these clubs land but they continue to impose rules set by the British. We need political will to change this and hopefully the minister in charge of Bengaluru, Shivakumar, can bring these changes,” Ugrappa said.