Maybe the issue isn’t whether something is too much or too little, justified or not, but rather the need or desire by the authority figures to shape (control??) the discussion and the maskonoh in these communities. And maybe that control is what most of the constituents of those communities want?
I used to think that desire for control was absolutely wrong and unjustified. Maybe sometimes it is. But often enough people make choices about who they want to be led by and how they want to be led. Especially if that is leading them to a continuing Torahdik life.