Public Sector Bank Withdraws Navratri Dress-Code Orders After Furore

The circular also mandates daily group photos of all employees (File)

New Delhi:

A public sector bank was forced to withdraw a dress code circular for its employees for the Navratri celebrations following strong protests from the bank’s employee union and outcry on social media.

A circular entitled “Navratri Celebration and Dress Code”, was issued by AR Raghavendra, general manager, Digitization Department of Union Bank Of India head office in Mumbai.

Imposing a dress code on all its workers for Navratri to be followed between October 7-15, the circular also imposes a fine of Rs 200 if the rules are not followed.

#UnionBankofIndia introduced a dress code for all its employees to #Navratri must be followed between 7 October and 15 October and incur a fine of Rs 200 if the rules are not complied with.

The circular was withdrawn after a stir on social media. pic.twitter.com/kHFlar2xVm

NDTV (@ndtv) October 10, 2021

Issued on October 1, it also mandates daily group photos of all employees. Colors range from yellow, green, orange, white, dark blue, pink, purple, gray, red for the nine days of celebration, the bank said in its list of instructions. In check shirts, the base color will be considered, he further said.

The federation of employees argues that issuing “official instructions for celebrating religious festivals in offices, improving dress codes and imposition of punishments are not the official issues of the digitization department”.

The federation gave the bank the impression that the order was against the spirit of secularism.

“Navratri is a religious festival and one that should be observed and celebrated privately and unofficially in a public sector bank that maintains a high regard for the secular structure of our society. The celebration of any festival is a voluntary phenomenon which has no room for any instruction. talk about the imposition of any punishment,” the All India Federation of Union Bank Employees said in a letter to Union Bank of India.

It further said that this had “never happened in the 100 year history of the bank”.