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Syed Zarir Hussain in Guwahati
Women's rights activists in Manipur are outraged after a separatist group issued a dress code banning women from wearing trousers and saris in public.
The banned Kanglei Yawol Kanna Lup, a rebel group fighting for an independent homeland for the predominantly Hindu Meitei community, has asked women to wear only the traditional phanek or sarong.
The KYLK faction headed by guerrilla leader Kangjamba, fearing a threat to the centuries-old traditions of the community from increasing 'Western and Indian influence', has warned of a 'death penalty' for women violating the new dress code.
Despite reservations, women in Manipur, who number about 50 per cent of the state's population of 2.4 million, have taken the rebel threat seriously and panic has gripped society.
A meeting of the powerful All-Manipur Democratic Women's Association held on Monday in Manipur's capital Imphal termed the rebels' dress code a bit too harsh and urged the outfit to soften its stand.
"We are definitely in favour of women and girls against wearing immodest dresses, but women have the right to dress according to the occasion," a resolution adopted at the association's meeting said.
Earlier both Indian and Western dresses, including skirts, pants, saris and salwars, were fancied by local women in Manipur, with the traditional phaneks being worn mostly by elderly women.
Women in Manipur have since long been taking a lead in rooting out social evils like drug addiction and crime with groups of women patrolling neighbourhoods at night with torch flames.
Police say the KYKL (Kangjamba) is a small rag-tag outfit, though its cadres possess some sophisticated weapons. "The number of the cadres is not important. Anybody having a gun can create trouble," a top police officer said.
Some women have, however, decided to ignore the rebel warning, saying wearing skirts and jeans makes them more comfortable at their workplaces.
"Women in general would revolt if any girl or woman is attacked by the KYKL for flouting the dress code," Ranjita Singh, a teacher in Imphal, said. "You cannot just impose something on a fast-changing society," Singh told the Indo-Asian News Service.
Witnesses, however, say that after the rebels' warning, more and more women have taken to wearing traditional dresses.
The KYKL's dress code is the latest in a series of dictates issued by rebels to check local traditions from being swamped by outside influence.
The influential Revolutionary People's Front, a frontline militant group, had earlier banned the screening of Hindi movies and playing of Hindi songs in public. The ban is still in force with cinema owners forced to show only English and other language movies.
There are at least 19 rebel groups active in Manipur, bordering Burma, with demands ranging from secession to greater autonomy and the right to self-rule. More than 10,000 people have lost their lives to insurgency in Manipur over the past two decades.
Indo-Asian News Service
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