Harassment slur on BHU dept head

An FIR was lodged at Lanka police station,Varanasi,on Wednesday night after the complainant met the Varanasi SSP. “Along with 10 senior professors of BHU belonging to Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes,I met the Varanasi SSP. On his instructions,an FIR was lodged by police tonight,” the teacher said.

The FIR was lodged against five persons — three male students,a female student and professor Sisir Basu,head of the department of mass communication,BHU,under the Scheduled Caste and Scheduled Tribe (Prevention of Atrocities) Act and Section 354 A (i) (outraging modesty of a woman) of the IPC,said A K Singh,Station Officer,Lanka police station.

Taking note of her complaint,the varsity administration has set up a committee to probe the matter and submit a report within a month.

Speaking to The Indian Express over phone,the associate professor of BHU’s mass communication department said that Basu had been harassing her and also instigating students to do so.

In her complaint to the chief proctor of the university,the teacher named five students of the department,including two girls. “The male students have been passing lewd and obscene comments,and both boys and girls have been making casteist remarks on me,” said the associate professor,claiming she had already complained about it to the Vice-Chancellor in 2011. “He had formed an inquiry committee then,but nothing came out of it,” she said.

The complainant again met Vice-Chancellor Prof Lalji Singh along with Chief Proctor A K Joshi on Tuesday. “The V-C decided to form an inquiry committee,which will conclude its probe within a month,” said Joshi,adding that the complaint had been forwarded to the police as well.

The assistant professor claimed that she had visited Lanka Police Station to lodge an FIR against Basu and the students,but the police had refused and asked her to speak to the varsity administration. However,the police maintained that her complaint had already been forwarded to senior police officials for investigation.

“She had come with complaints of Scheduled Caste atrocities and sexual harassment against her. We cannot lodge an FIR immediately in these complaints but first investigate the matter. Her complaint has been forwarded to the CO and investigation is on,” said A K Singh.

The students of the department reportedly protested against the teacher on Tuesday,alleging that they were being dragged into a conflict between two teachers and that their names should be removed from the complaint.

Basu refused comment saying that the administration had set up an inquiry and investigation was on. “It would not be appropriate to comment on the issue,” he said.