The protests in the Banaras Hindu University (BHU) following a student’s molestation on campus on September 21 gathered into a movement. Protesters sought solutions to four issues: 1) unnecessary restrictions on women’s mobility, 2) moral policing in the name of concern, 3) demand for a more egalitarian and affordable space where women can stay and 4) proper implementation of laws against sexual harassment.

The agitation by women students drew national attention after a brutal police crackdown on protesters and the subsequent shutdown of BHU. Soon after this, there were many headlines which let us mistakenly believe that we either won or maybe things will be now better as the administration was supposedly working on sensitising guards and hostel wardens. The appointment of the first woman chief protector in the BHU’s 101-year-old history added to our hope.

But things are not working the way they seemed to be. The entire episode was redefined in a manner the BHU administration thought sensitisation should be done, as a result, four extra restrictions have been put in place in the name of women’s safety.

1) Female proctors sit on campus entries to ensure that female students are not using mobile phones while they are walking in and out of campus.

2) Every girl, who covers her face with a scarf, has been asked to show her face and only then will she be allowed to enter the campus. This act has been justified by the guards saying this will prevent outsiders from entering the campus.

The question, however, is how can guards remember someone’s face and recognise whether she is an insider or outsider in a campus of over 12,000 students?

3) You can no longer sit with a boy (it could be anyone, including brother, relative, friend, boyfriend) in the visiting area. It doesn’t matter whether you know the person or you are sitting in the visiting area where people are allowed to come and visit.

Although this was previously allowed, there is a new kind of ‘sensitisation’ in the campus where I may not be protected from a molester but will be ‘protected’ from every male I choose to be with. While the security guards are very adamant on imposing these unwritten rules saying that they have been instructed to do so, they don’t have any written permission or document to prove it.

Now, here comes the fourth and the most interesting one.

4) “No restriction on mobility” was verbally announced by the chief proctor that got page one headlines and she said that the curfew timings will be extended to 10.30 pm. But the curfew timing still is 8 pm and guards say that they can’t permit it because they have no written permission and obviously they would not have been instructed to do so.

Not just that our mobility continues to be limited, restrictions even exist in the case of emergencies. I myself came across such a horrible experience on Friday when I wanted to visit one of my friends in the trauma centre as he had been in an accident and it was around 11 pm. I thought I would be given permission to go there because it is an emergency. When I told the housekeeper that it is an emergency and I need to leave, she said, “We need permission from authorities to allow you” and made me call our chief proctor and she said she needs to inform the head office first. Meanwhile, my housekeeper said she also needed the warden’s permission. When I called the warden, she said she would need my parents’ permission. Permission formalities continued for around two hours only to hear a ‘No’ from Seema Tiwari, the admin warden.

According to whatever the administrative officials have told the media, it is as simple as I just need to inform my warden through an application and I can stay out. But it wasn’t working that way as I was not only asked to inform, but request permission and that too from all the authorities (Fortunately, I had all their numbers which need not be the case with other students).

I am 21 and why should I take permission from the entire world for a decision I make? Perhaps, this was one of the urgent situations I needed to get out for and if I was not allowed for this, what would they allow me out for? When will we actually experience “no restrictions” that was there in bold letters in newspaper headlines?

[When Newslaundry contacted the Chief Proctor Royana Singh, she said that she hasn’t given any instruction to restrict the usage of mobile phones. “The only instruction that I have given to security guards is that whoever comes to BHU should have an identity card with them.” When asked about her assurance of extending the curfew timing, she agreed that they are yet to take a decision on it. “We can only decide it in a meeting with all deans of schools. Most of them are on leave for Diwali and we will be having a meeting soon after Diwali,” said Singh.

She also denied all the unwritten laws on campus. “I haven’t received any complaint regarding such unwritten laws on campus. I will be looking into it, if I get any complaint,” said Singh].