Pregnant professor accuses JNU administration of harassment

NEW DELHI: An assistant professor at the Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU), who is eight months pregnant, on Friday accused the varsity administration of "insulting, harassing and intimidating" her. Addressing a press conference, Gayettri Dixit, assistant professor at the Centre for African Studies, said, "I am being severely harassed and punished continuously physically, mentally and socially.

Due to the atrocities by the administration, I fell unconscious at my university residence and was rushed to the...hospital in ambulance on July 26." Dixit alleged that she and her husband were being threatened after she had availed leave, and added if any harm was caused to the child she was carrying, the administration would be responsible.

The JNU administration did not respond to calls from PTI to seek its response. In a statement, the JNU Teachers Federation (JNUTF) said the administration should refrain from attempting to violate teachers' dignity. It also urged Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan to give justice to the assistant professor who has been subjected to "sustained humiliation".

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"The actions not only caused trauma for the victim but also put the life of the unborn child in danger. The victim has also revealed that she has...filed a complaint at the police station," the JNUTF said in a statement. "We demand safety and security for the female faculty member and her family," the JNUTF said.