Ipoh Barat MP M. Kulasegaran said Parliament is supposed to bring the rakyat together but people are still being judged by their dress in this day and age. ― Picture by Saw Siow Feng

KUALA LUMPUR, April 9 — Pants too tight, skirts not covering knees and inappropriate footwear are among the excuses Ipoh Barat MP M. Kulasegaran has heard from security personnel who had barred some of his guests from entering Parliament.

On Thursday, Kulasegaran had to rush to the Parliament guard house to assist Tevi Darshini to get into the building. Tevi, 19, is the daughter of M. Indira Gandhi, who is involved in a court battle with her estranged ex-husband over the custody of her nine-year-old daughter Prasana Diksa.

The guards had deemed Tevi’s pants to be too tight. The guards only relented after he made a fuss.

Kulasegaran said this was the second time moral policing was being practised in Parliament in recent days.

“Several days ago, several women from the Ipoh Barat constituency came to Parliament to meet me but they were stopped at the guard house on the grounds they were not dressed appropriately,” he said.

“I went to the guard house to find they were dressed in traditional Indian attire and footwear.”

Kulasegaran said Parliament is supposed to bring the rakyat together but people are still being judged by their dress in this day and age.

“Security personnel should focus on security issues rather than measuring the length of one’s skirt.”