In a reply to contemporary philosopher Sundar Sarukkai’s argument editorial comment, “Uniformity or Equality?” (EPW, 12 February 2022) that school uniforms symbolise disciplinary order, this article argues that school uniforms, at the same time, uphold the essential patriarchal order. It extends the argument by underlining that the hijab controversy can be read as a call to seek a shift within the prevalent patriarchal order to instal a more overarching and homogenising one in its place .