Kamal Ghorui
NEW DELHI: Bharatiya Janata Party minority morcha leader Nazia Elahi Khan escalated the controversy surrounding Lenskart’s employee dress code after posting a strong message on X defending Hindu religious identity and criticising restrictions on symbols such as tilak and sindoor.In her latest post, Khan wrote: “Tilak is your pride, Hindu! Kalaava is your Sankar, Hindu! Sanatan is your identity, Hindu! The slogan of Har Har Mahadev is your pride, Hindus! Work at Lenskart or Air India! Wherever you live, or work never compromise your identity, Hindus!”Her statement came after a video surfaced showing Khan confronting staff at a Lenskart store in Mumbai over allegations that Hindu employees had been discouraged from wearing religious symbols at work.According to the video, Khan entered the store with members of her team and asked to meet the store manager. When the manager identified himself as Mohsin Khan, she questioned him over the alleged ban on tilak and other Hindu symbols. She accused him of selectively restricting Hindu expressions while allowing Islamic attire such as hijab.During the exchange, Khan demanded that Hindu staff members be called forward and asked them to identify themselves. She then applied tilak to several employees, saying, “There is no shame in bearing one, Even I have one even though I am a Muslim.”She also raised slogans and continued targeting the manager, questioning whether he ever compromised on his own religious practices while allegedly asking Hindu staff to do so. The manager repeatedly denied the accusations in the video.The incident has drawn fresh attention to an earlier controversy over Lenskart’s internal dress code. Social media backlash erupted after screenshots of an alleged company style guide were circulated online. The document appeared to restrict symbols such as tilak and bindi while providing separate guidelines for hijabs and turbans. Critics claimed the policy was discriminatory and inconsistent with constitutional protections on religious freedom.Responding to the criticism, Lenskart said it would revise and standardise its in-store style guidelines to clearly allow symbols of faith and culture. The company said the updated policy would “explicitly and unambiguously welcome every symbol of faith and culture,” including bindi, tilak, sindoor, hijab and turban.Lenskart also issued an apology, saying: “If any version of our workplace communication caused hurt or made any of our team members feel that their faith was unwelcome, we are deeply sorry.”The eyewear retailer said it operates more than 2,400 stores across India and that employees bring their “beliefs, traditions and identity” to work. It added that future workplace policies, training material and internal communication would reflect that position.The row has now widened beyond corporate policy, with Khan’s intervention adding a political and communal dimension to the debate over workplace expression and religious identity.
