Indian governor Ram Naik orders universities to ban ‘European graduate gown culture’

(Jens Schlueter/Getty Images)

India’s ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has been accused of pushing religion into the country's education system after a governor asked every university in his state to abolish ‘European graduate gown culture’.

Making the announcement at Ambedkar University in New Delhi, Governor Ram Naik - who is chancellor of all 25 universities in the northern Indian state of Uttar Pradesh - told The Times of India (TOI) he admired the traditional dress adopted by Ambedkar and has since requested others follow suit by laying emphasis on ‘creating a dress code with an Indian essence’.

Naik, who took up the post of governor in July 2014, described how a letter had been sent to all the state’s universities to ‘do away with the black gown and introduce Indian attire’.

Despite telling TOI it has been left to the discretion of the vice-chancellors of the universities about what they want students to wear, he said ‘it should depict Indian culture’ and added: “Institutions have also been asked to inculcate folk culture in the convocation dress if they have any regional speciality.”

Now, though, leaders with the National Students’ Union of India have referred to Naik as being a ‘BJP agent’ with one member, Amit Singh, telling TOI how all students dream of wearing a black gown and raising their cap in the air upon graduation.

Emphasising how the BJP is contradicting itself, Singh added: “Are we not using the rail tracks made by the British? Are we not using the highways and roads made by them? Then why do away with the gown?”