Kalakshetra Sexual Harassment Case: Madras High Court Closes Plea By Students For Formulation Of Safety Policies

The Madras High Court has disposed of a plea filed by a group of students from Rukmini Devi College of Fine Arts, functioning under the Kalakshetra Foundation. The students had approached the court for the formulation of proper safety policies and redressal mechanisms in the college. Justice Anita Sumanth noted that there was no necessity to issue directions as the college had finalized the Gender Neutral Policy for Prevention, Prohibition, and Redressal of Sexual Harassment Complaints. The court also noted that the Internal Complaints Committee was also re-constituted and thus the reliefs sought had been remedied. The court, however, also added that the institution's failure to address the allegations put forward by the students was a “blight on Kalakshetra”. The court added that the stakeholders in the education system were expected to adhere to the expectations that were demanded. “The allegations of omission and commission put forth by the petitioners shall now be enquired into expeditiously and matters taken to a logical conclusion. However, and undoubtedly, it is a blight on Kalakshetra that such allegations were being made for long by the students without being effectively and promptly addressed…. Whether traditional or modern, stakeholders in the education system are expected to adhere to expectations in regard to the demands of the system and how the same are to be met equitably and in keeping with societal norms,” the court observed. In December 2022, one of the former Directors of the foundation made a Facebook post accusing a male teacher of molesting and threatening the students. This led to many other students coming forward with similar instances of sexual harassment. The students sat on dharna demanding action from the college. A police complaint was made by one of the students, based on which, a faculty member was arrested. The students had argued that the establishment was not taking up any responsibility and had rejected the complaints saying that the time limit of three months under The Protection of Women against Sexual Harassment at Workplace Act, 2013 (POSH) had expired. The petitioners also submitted that the institution, instead of taking up the issue and suspending the accused professor, had merely stone-walled the complaints. The court had previously asked the college to not take any adverse action against the students who raised complaints and sat for dharna against the institution. The court had also asked the foundation to frame policies and constitute a complaints committee in the schools run by it. Noting that the present policy was not comprehensive enough to cover the interests of the students in the school, the court directed the respondent authorities to draft a policy, including the applicable provisions under the POCSO Act as well as other regulations and guidelines within 6 months. Further, the court also considered the report of the Independent Committee headed by Justice K Kannan and asked the Management to consider the same, including those relating to the removal of faculty members, the court asked the management to follow these recommendations on an urgent basis, if not already done so. These recommendations include a total ban on entry of students into the teachers' quarters, dissuading students from participating in inland and global tours for public performance and emphasizing higher learning, automation of office administration including maintenance of records, selecting able administrators with efficient HR Management and organizational skills, etc. Counsel for the Petitioners: Ms.R.Vaigai, Senior Counsel for Ms.Anna Mathew Counsel for the Respondents: Mr.AR.L.Sundaresan Additional Solicitor General Assisted by Mr.V.Chandrasekaran (for R1) Senior Panel Counsel and Ms.M.E.Saraswathy (for R2 and R4) Mr.Silambannan, Additional Advocate General assisted by Mr.M.Rajendran (for R3) Additional Government Pleader Mr.David Sunder Singh (for R5) Mr.Ragesh Bhagavath (for R6) Citation: 2024 LiveLaw (Mad) 79Case Title: XYZ v Kalakshetra Foundation and OthersCase No: WP.No.11764 of 2023Click here to read/download the judgment

Kalakshetra Sexual Harassment Case: Madras High Court Closes Plea By Students For Formulation Of Safety Policies

Upasana Sajeev

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