Kerala High Court Directs Police to Ensure Principal's Entry After Churidar Ban

The Kerala High Court recently directed the police to ensure that a headmistress of a high school in Kottarakkara is allowed to enter the educational institution freely after she was allegedly stopped at the gate for wearing a churidar [Sindhu S Nair v Secretary, General Education Department & ors]Justice PV Kunhikrishnan said that a person's choice of attire cannot be dictated by another person or by societal customs unless such a restriction has the backing of law.The Court emphasised that when such dictates are issued against the individual choices of a citizen, it is the duty of the law-enforcing authority to take appropriate legal steps."What dress one wears is ordinarily a matter of personal choice of every citizen of this country. No one or society as a whole can dictate how a citizen should dress without the backing of the law. This is a part of the fundamental rights of every citizen," the Court said.It added that clothes are an expression of culture, comfort, and individual choice which cannot be used to measure a person's worth or dignity. The Court declared that a citizen's attire is her choice and cannot be restricted by any societal customs."I declare that a citizen's attire is his/her choice, and nobody can insist that it conform to society's customs, nor can anybody dictate that it be in a manner acceptable to society, especially when no law backs it."Justice PV KunhikrishnanThough the dispute appears to be a simple issue of whether a headmistress could w