Rashtrasant Tukadoji Maharaj Nagpur University has constituted a panel under a retired judge to enquire about allegations of sexual abuse by a research scholar against her PhD guide.
Surprisingly the issue was neither referred to the Committee to Control and Enquire into such cases, not was the Disciplinary Action Committee involved. Constitution of the Committee to look into sexual abuse of women at work place is mandatory. The Disciplinary Action Committee has handles such cases in the past and many others are pending with it. Probably the efficacy (?) of these two committees has compelled the University authorities to constitute a separate committee to enquire into the present issue.
The accused in the case (with Hindi Department) has stated that the complainant was asked to attend a seminar only. He has denied the charges of sexual abuse. The facts will come to the fore after enquiry by the committee headed by Meera Khadakkar, retired Principal Judge of Nagpur Family Court.
It is expected that delay in completing the enquiry can cause serious damage to the complainant and/or the accused. Often the name of the complainant is kept secret (being a female). However, the name of the accused is made open. The accused faces rejection by society. The social stigma is not removed even if he is found ‘Not Guilty’ in such cases. It is, therefore, important not to reveal the name of the accused in such cases. Some cases of this type are pending with the University’s Disciplinary Action Committee.
At the same time, the University will have to work out a simple method for registration for PhD. Post-registration the quality of the research should be taken more seriously. Surprisingly entry for PhD degree is very difficult, while valuation is not so. Even a cursory look at many PhD theses or summaries can indicate the quality of research carried out under the University. Under conditions of anonymity some researchers have talked about thousands of rupees they had to spend for getting the research cleared.
The person found guilty of such a heinous offence must be punished. But the enquiry into the complaint must be completed within a short period. The delay adversely affects the research and also the persons in the case psychologically.
