JNUTA demands public restraint orders against persons accused of sexually harassing student

NEW DELHI: The teachers’ body of the Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU) has demanded action against the persons involved in the alleged sexual harassment of a female student of the university on campus. The JNUTA warned the administration that it will take the matter in its own hands, if the university doesn’t act.

The action demanded by the teachers includes moving the accused student to a hostel other than the one complainant is staying in, not allowing the accused to enter the academic building she’s studying in, issuing public restraint orders against all accused, and protection for the complainant, witnesses, students, and faculty members who are supporting her.

The teachers also urged the university to stop persecuting the complainant and asked not to protect the ones accused in the incident . The association also demanded withdrawal of the police cases filed and proctorial enquiries issued by the university against the female student and her supporters.

“It is indeed ironical that the university administration led by the first woman VC of JNU has failed to demonstrate any commitment to gender justice and even the minimum procedural integrity required in cases of sexual harassment,” JNUTA said in a statement.

The teachers’ body talked about how the incident has raised safety and security concerns on the JNU campus and recalled a similar incident from last year alleging that no action was taken even then.

JNU administration failure, no support to complainant

Attacking the administration, JNUTA said, “The absence of standard operating procedures that are to be followed each time an incident of this nature occurs, are starkly visible in both these cases. Starting from the time of the incident when the JNU security failed to respond proactively in apprehending the culprits, to the time spent by the complainant in running from pillar to post to register their complaints demonstrates the abject failure of the university administration to rise to the occasion when the situation demands.”

The teachers expressed concern while alleging that no senior official from the university administration visited the main gate to give an assurance to the protesting students so far. The body alleged that instead of issuing a proper public restraint order, the university has issued a letter to the security department circulating on social media which reveals the complainant’s identity and thus exposes her to further risks.

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As per JNUTA, it shows the administration has no intention to guarantee the complainant’s safety by not removing one of the accused who is in the same hostel as the complainant from the hostel premises. While two accused who are outsiders have been declared ‘out of bound’, the other two are not only roaming freely without restraint, they have access to the same hostel and academic spaces which the complainant inhabits and needs to access, it said.

"The ICC has claimed that it has issued a restraint order but no copy of that order has been given to the complainant. A restraint order by definition is a public order that should be displayed prominently in all academic and administrative buildings, hostels, canteens and other common and community spaces on campus so that every space in the university community is safe for the complainant without revealing the identity of the complainant," the teachers' body further said.

A JNU student had alleged that she was sexually harassed on campus by four people when she and her male friend were taking a walk near the JNU Ring Road around 2 am on March 31.