New Delhi, April 18 (PTI): A purported circular asking boarders of an IIT-Delhi girls' hostel to wear "decent" and "full clothes" for an annual event sparked a row today, prompting the administration to order its withdrawal.

"Residents are requested to wear full covered decent western or Indian dress on House Day," the notice put up at the institute's Himadri Hostel and allegedly signed by warden Sreedevi Upadhyayula says. House Day, scheduled for April 20, is an event where hostellers can invite guests for an hour.

Upadhyayula denied issuing such a notice and dubbed it a "prank by students as it has been circulated on social media as well". Amid a backlash, Delhi Commission for Women (DCW) chairperson Swati Maliwal called it "a horrible display of a patriarchal mindset by a prestigious institution like the IIT". "The DCW is looking into the matter."

As the uproar grew, IIT officials withdrew the "notice" while insisting they hadn't been aware of it. Dean of student welfare S. Krishna said: "I was not even aware such a notice has been put up. I have instructed that it be immediately removed. We don't interfere in the personal affairs of students, either boys or girls, and we don't have a dress code."