NCW meets girls who were made to undergo menstruation check

A seven-member team of the National Commission for Women (NCW) on Sunday met the girl inmates of a

hostel at Bhuj in Kutch district of Gujarat, who were allegedly forced by the hostel authorities to remove their

undergarments to check if they were menstruating. The police said they have also formed a special

investigation team (SIT) to probe the alleged incident that took place on February 11 in the Shree Sahajanand Girls

Institute (SSGI), run by a trust of the Swaminarayan Temple. After meeting the girl inmates, a member of the NCW

said they were shocked to find that a register was being maintained at the hostel to identify the menstruating girls,

who were asked to eat and sleep separately. "An educational institution works for social

transformation. This transformation requires a change in our dogmatic tradition. But if such an incident takes place in

21st century, then this is definitely a matter of shame and disgrace," NCW member Rajulben Desai said after meeting the

hostel inmates and the hostel staff. "We will get to know about the whole thing only after

proper investigation. But we were shocked to find that a majority of girls agreed to this practice being followed in

the name of religion," she said. "The response of the girls was shocking. While we talk

about right to education, and while the commission is working to bring about legal awareness among women, the girls here

said they consented to the rules framed by the hostel authorities regarding how they should eat and sleep during

days of menstruation. We object to this," Desai said. "Why are girls making such statements? We will

investigate if they are giving such statements under pressure," she said.

She said the NCW members talked to 47 girls who were present there on Sunday.

"But we will also talk to the girls who were not present at the meeting today, besides the main complainant.

The question is about good and bad impact on the society," she said.

"Should women in an educational institution be asked to follow such rules that put to question their right to

dignity? No educational institute can force such a rule on girl students. Even if the institution is associated with

religion, it cannot compel girls to follow such rules," she said.

"The hostel authorities maintain a register on menstruating women. The management has a lot to answer. The

matter that has come to us will be probed over the next two days. We would like to find out if the colleges have internal

anti-sexual harassment committee, and if it is there, then whether it has well-trained members?" she said.

The hostel has a rule that girls having periods are not supposed to take meals with other inmates, Desai added.

Meanwhile, police said that an SIT has been formed with woman police officials as its members, to probe the

incident. "We have formed an SIT which includes women police

personnel, including inspectors and sub inspectors. As part of the probe, statements of students have been recorded, apart

from those of the hostel staff members and others who knew about the incident," a police official said.

The girl students had alleged that hostel authorities asked them to remove their undergarments to check if they were

menstruating. A girl student had said the incident took place in the

hostel located in campus of the SSGI, which offers graduate and under-graduate courses.

She had said that on Tuesday, over 60 students were taken to the washroom by a woman staffer and made to remove

their undergarments to check if they were menstruating after it was learnt that some menstruating girls.

The NCW team will continue to hold meetings with the hostel inmates and others for two more days.