UK Navy allows women to wear saris as uniform

In a decision that has been hailed by inclusivity advocates but slammed by conservatives, the British Royal Navy has allowed women officers to wear sari as part of their uniform in mess functions.

As per the new dress code, women officers can wear sari among other cultural dress beneath their mess jackets on formal occasions.

In a post in LinkedIn, Lance Corporal Jack Kanani, the Chairman of the Royal Navy Race Diversity Network (RDN), shared a photo in which Honourable Captain Durdana Ansari is seen wearing a sari under uniform jacket. He said the policy is in line with gradual expansion of cultural clothes incorporated in uniforms.

“Existing policy (BR3) already allowed for Scottish, Irish, Welsh, Cornish and Manx heritage to be represented through the wearing of kilts and tartan dresses. The update in policy now widens that to be inclusive of other British cultures that serve within the Royal Navy,” said Kanani.

Separately, Kanani told The Daily Telegraph that dress code update is “inclusive of other British cultures”.

Kanani said, “The network canvassed opinions from ethnic minority service personnel to understand how widening existing policy on cultural mess dress would make them feel able to celebrate both their Royal Navy and cultural heritage. Existing policy already allowed for Scottish, Irish, Welsh, Cornish and Manx heritage to be represented through the wearing of kilts and tartan dresses. The update in policy now widens that to be inclusive of other British cultures that serve within the Royal Navy.”

The Telegraph reported that the photo shared by Kanani does not represent how women officers would actually look wearing saris as part of uniform under the updated policy. Instead, the photo was taken during trials in the run-up to the policy’s announcement.

A source confirmed to the newspaper that previous mess rules remain in force that say that officers must still wear a mess jacket, shirt, and bow tie, above the waist even if they are wearing cultural attire underneath, such a kilt or a sari.

While advocates of the policy update have hailed it and have said it is a welcome step as cultural attires of Scottish, Irish, Welsh, Cornish, and Manx communities were already included in uniform, conservative commentators have slammed the move.

Rear Admiral (Retired) Philip Mathias, a former nuclear submarine commander, told the newspaper that the British Navy had “exposed itself to ridicule” with the update.

Mathias said, “Apart from those who are diversity, equality [sic] and inclusion (DEI) fanatics, I suspect this image will shock many members of the public given the diminished state of the Navy.

“Its entire focus should be on maintaining its war-fighting capability in an increasingly dangerous world. The whole point of uniform in a disciplined fighting service –even in a social setting– is to achieve a sense of common identity, not to accentuate differences.

“If members of the Armed Forces want to wear civilian clothing that represents their cultural identity, they should of course be encouraged to do so whenever possible. But it should not be mixed with uniform.

“The trouble with DEI fanatics is they have an unshakeable belief that they are always right. But you don’t need to be a DEI believer to know that treating everyone equally and fairly is always the right thing to do.”