How far will one go to enforce morality and stop gender mixing in public? Well the students of the College of Engineering Thiruvananthapuram (CET) found that some can go to the extent of cutting up a long bench into single seats so that students do not sit together as couples.
The second year students of the engineering college, when they reached the waiting shed used as a shelter and hangout place on Tuesday, found that a steel bench that could seat many had been cut up into three single seats and placed some distance apart. They realised that this could be an act by local residents who had issues with girls and boys sitting together in the bench and wanted to prevent it somehow.
However, the students showed that such shows of pettiness cannot stop them from sharing camaraderie. They decided to mark a protest by sitting on these single chairs and in small groups without gender bias and clicked pictures and shared them on social media with a tongue in caption that read: “Can’t sit next to each other but for sure we can sit on laps.” The pictures showed them sitting on laps of classmates, a rebuttal to the moral policing prank. The memes they created soon went viral bringing praise from many including CET alumni.
You just don't want us to sit next to each other, but we can sit on each other's laps right?
Speaking to TNM, Ankitha Jazy, Lady Representative of CET College Union 2021-22 said that the issue of students being harassed by residential associations has been going on for several years. “We heard that the seating changes were made by one of the residential associations. Even when we hang out around the college, many of them behave intolerantly. There are few hostels and staying options for women outside the college premises because of them. Even if we find a hostel outside, the curfew imposed is an issue. Apart from this, the residents around the college have called police to the spot several times seeing students waiting there, even for genuine reasons like transportation. This has been causing huge distress to the students,” she said.
She also said that sometimes girls have to work late at nights for college fests or functions, and being around the boys hostel premises is inevitable for the work to be completed. However, this is also seen as a case of grave concern for these local people.
Thiruvananthapuram city Mayor Arya S Rajendran visited the spot and she said, in a Facebook post, that the manner in which the bench was cut into three seats was not only "inappropriate", but also "unbecoming of a progressive society" like that of Kerala. She said that there is no ban on girls and boys sitting together in our state and those who still believe there should be such a prohibition are still living in dark ages. "One can only sympathise with those who do not understand that times have changed," she added.
Appreciating the stand taken by the CET students, Arya said that a responsive generation is the hope for the future and the local authorities were with the students in the matter. She further said the bus waiting shed was dilapidated, unauthorised and lacking clearance from the Public Works Department. Therefore, a new waiting shed with modern facilities will be built there by the municipality, she said.