Guilty will be punished: Stalin on sexual harassment in Kalakshetra

As students’ protests at the prestigious Kalakshetra Foundation demanding action against faculty involved in sexual harassment entered the second day on Friday, Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M K Stalin said the government will inquire into the allegations and ensure that the guilty will be brought to justice if allegations against them are proven.

Responding to questions raised by legislators cutting across party lines in the Assembly, Stalin said Tamil Nadu Police has not received any written complaint from students at the institute on sexual harassment. He said revenue and police officials from Chengalpattu district administration have met the students twice since Thursday, and that police protection has been provided to protesting students under the supervision of a lady inspector.

Stalin’s statement came as students wrote to him and Union Culture Minister G Kishan Reddy demanding dismissal of four faculty members, including Hari Padman, against several students have levelled allegations of sexual harassment.

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They also demanded official acknowledgment of the student council and student union as a working body for the welfare of the students, an immediate stop to the verbal and sexual harassment and body shaming and colorism, change of counsellor, and assurance of privacy and basic human rights to the students staying at the hostel.

The demands by students came a day after the institute, worried over the protests, announced its closure till April 6.

In his statement, Stalin said the chairperson of the National Commission for Women wrote to Tamil Nadu Director General of Police C Sylendra Babu with screenshots of tweets mentioning about sexual harassment at the Kalakshetra campus. It was then Kalakshetra Foundation director Revathi Ramachandran met the DGP and said there was no case of sexual harassment in the institute.

“On March 25, the NCW chairperson, in another letter to the DGP, said they have completed the investigations. However, on March 29, the NCW chairperson met 210 students of the institute and told the DGP that police need not accompany her,” the Chief Minister added.

Maintaining that the police have not received any “written complaint” on the matter, the Chief Minister said he contacted the district administration and sought details on the issue the moment he heard about student protests on the campus. A team of officials from the revenue department and police went to the institute on Thursday and interacted with the protesting students, Stalin said, adding that another team held talks with students and the management on Friday.

“As far as the government is concerned, we will conduct an inquiry into the incident and ensure that the guilty is brought to justice if allegations against them are proved,” Stalin told the Assembly.

The students began their protest on Thursday the morning after boycotting the mandatory morning prayer against the institute’s callous attitude in handling allegations of sexual harassment against Hari Padman. Several students at the institute had last week levelled several allegations of sexual harassment against Padman and accused the institute of not acting against their complaints.