MUMBAI, JULY 19: Two officers of the Central Railway have been suspended and a departmental inquiry instituted against them for sexually harassing a 41-year-old typist at the railway's Parel workshop where there were employed. The officers - Prabhat Nivte and Ashok Kumar Singh - have also been charged under Sections 509, 506(ii) and 354 of the Indian Penal Code (outraging the modesty of a woman and using obscene language) by the Bhoiwada police, who registered a case on June 26.Spokesperson for the railway, Y G Kale, told Express Newsline that showcause notices have aslo been served and a police investigation is also underway.In her complaint to the police, Pushpila Jairaj says the harassment had grown severe over the last two to three years though there were several incidents since she had been employed with the CR after her husband, also an employee, died in 1987. Apart from making suggestive remarks, both Nivte and Singh had also tried to make bodily contact.Though other women employeeswere also victims of harassment, the accused had singled her out, Jairaj states in her complaint. On one occasion, they even turned up at her residence at Vashi and demanded sexual favours from her, she adds. On another occasion, Singh, the office superintendent, had tried very hard to coax her to accompany him home while returning from an official assignment to Mulund. He was so insistent that she had threatened to hit him with her slipper and then fled to avoid his advances, Jairaj adds.After that, things only worsened. Jairaj says Singh had repeated his demands for sexual favours, when she had applied for a promotion in May 1999. He would oblige her if she agreed, Singh had promised. Both Singh and Nivte would also follow her to various places including her residence. However, Jairaj's resistence only aggravated Singh, who threatened to make adverse remarks on her service record.Summoning the courage in June, Jairaj finally approached the Lokadhikar Samiti, the CR's staff union, and an inquiry wasinstituted last month. Despite the action, the brazen Nivte threatened to throw acid on Jairaj if she failed to withdraw her complaint to the management. Following this, Jairaj filed a complaint with the Bhoiwada police.Both Nivte and Singh have since secured anticipatory bail.
