Sanitation workers in Rohtak forced to click photos of sanitary pads

Sanitary supervisors of the college asked the sanitation workers to prove their periods after the women said they were unwell and couldn't work fast.

Three women sanitation workers at Maharshi Dayanand University (MDU), Rohtak, have filed a shocking complaint alleging that two male supervisors forced them to take photos of their sanitary pads to prove they were menstruating.

The supervisors told the women that they were acting on the directions of assistant registrar Shyam Sundar. (Representative Image/Unsplash)

In a written complaint to MDU registrar Krishan Kant, the women demanded action against three university employees, the assistant registrar and two sanitation supervisors, who allegedly harassed them and pressured them to work faster during their menstrual cycle on October 26 (Sunday) — a few hours before Haryana governor Ashim Kumar Ghosh’s scheduled visit to the campus.

One of the complainants, who has been working at MDU for 11 years, stated that she and two female colleagues were cleaning the sports complex when sanitary supervisors Vinod Hooda and Vitender asked them to speed up. “We told them we were unwell and couldn’t work fast. Then both of them asked us to click photos of our sanitary pads to prove that we were on our periods. They even told two other women employees to click the pictures, but they refused. The supervisors then started abusing all of us. They kept pressuring us until we finally went into the washroom and clicked photos to prove it,” she alleged.

She further claimed that the supervisors told them they were acting on the directions of assistant registrar Shyam Sundar. When questioned, Shyam Sunder said that he had given no such instructions to the supervisors.

Registrar Krishan Kant confirmed that the complaint has been received and that an inquiry has been initiated. “Action will be taken against those found guilty,” he said.

According to sources, both supervisors — who are contractual employees hired through Haryana Kaushal Rozgar Nigam Limited — have been suspended, and a committee has been formed to probe the incident.

Haryana State Safai Karamcharis Commission chairperson Krishan Kumar, Rohtak mayor Ram Avtar Valmiki, and the registrar met the women workers on Monday and assured them of a fair investigation. The complaint has also been forwarded to Rohtak PGIMS police station.

PGIMS station house officer Roshan Lal said he had received a phone call from the women regarding the matter but was not at the station when contacted.

During a meeting, university authorities assured the panel’s chairperson Krishan Kumar that an internal sexual harassment committee will submit its report within four days and an FIR will be lodged against accused immediately.

Moreover, the varsity officials further assured to fix working hours of the sanitation workers and that they will not do any work except sanitation.

Dr Ambedkar Missionaries Vidhyarthi Association president Vikram Singh Dumolia condemned the incident, calling it “deeply shameful.” “How can supervisors order women workers to click photos of sanitary pads to prove they are menstruating? The police must file an FIR and ensure strict action. The women were working on a Sunday and were still humiliated and traumatised,” he said.