PUDUCHERRY: The Puducherry government thinks covering up women will protect them from sexual predators and is leaning towards a purdah system. In a regressive move, the territorial administration on Saturday proposed redesigning school uniforms to make it mandatory for girl students to wear overcoats, the oppressive tropical heat notwithstanding. The government is also preparing to ban cell phones in schools.

The decision was taken at a meeting of education department officials chaired by school education minister T Thiagarajan on Saturday following widespread protests in the Union territory over the kidnap and rape of a Class 12 girl by a bus conductor and an engineering student on New Year’s day.

“The meeting resolved to introduce overcoats for girl students, operate special buses for them and ban mobile phones in schools. Our government is committed to ensuring safety of women, particularly girl students,” Thiagarajan told TOI.

The decision drew flak from women’s forums and human rights activists. All India Democratic Women’s Association general secretary Sudha Sundararaman said, “It is shocking to note that the Puducherry government is unaware that dress has nothing to do with the crime. It is trivializing the issue without addressing the problem. The government must take steps to ensure safety of women and girls. Providing overcoats is not an answer. By evolving a dress code, the government has made women answerable and accountable for the crime,” she said.

Thiagarajan said the government will operate exclusive buses for girl students from the next academic year. He said the buses will have only women conductors. The number of buses to be introduced and the routes will be worked out shortly, he said. The education department has also proposed to set up flying squads to conduct periodic inspections at schools to monitor implementation of the ban on mobile phones.

Though she welcomed introduction of special buses for girl students, Sudha Sudararaman said segregation cannot solve the problem. “Women cannot be segregated forever. We need to launch campaigns to enlighten all sections of people on gender-sensitive issues. Women, who have equal right to public places, must not face violent attacks. The government must ensure stringent punishment for perpetrators,” she said.

Human rights activist and former MLA D Ravikumar said such regressive measures will not prevent crimes against women. “Now fundamentalist forces are trying to restrict the freedom and mobility of women in the name of their own safety. These measures are aimed at blaming the victims,” he said.

A 17-year-old girl was kidnapped by two men on Tuesday and taken to Villupuram where they allegedly raped her. The girl was found in a semi-conscious state at Villupuram bus stand on Wednesday morning. The incident triggered widespread outrage in Puducherry with students and political parties staging protests. The parents of the girl alleged that police did not act when they filed a complaint after she went missing.

