Will ensure action against all who shielded Hathras prof: Aparna Yadav
UP state women commission vice chairperson said the commission may soon start a campaign to spread awareness among female students
Uttar Pradesh state women commission vice-chairperson Aparna Yadav has said she will ensure strict action against all those who tried to save the Hathras college professor accused of sexual harassment and exploitation of women students for the past 20 years.
She also said the commission may soon start a campaign to spread awareness among female students on how to deal with such incidents in educational institutions.
“We received this report a day before Holi. I was shocked to know that the accused has been involved in such heinous activities for almost two decades. The female student came to the commission. She mustered courage to give an application in this regard and appealed to the government and us to ensure that the accused is caught,” Yadav said while talking to HT on Monday.
“It is our commitment that we will put him behind the bars and strict action will be taken against him,” she added.
On how the accused got away for last so many years even after repeated complaints, she said, “I think that first thing is that he should be caught. Once he is caught, his accomplices will also be known automatically. Secondly, I will ensure action against all. How the accused got away. Whether it was the people of his college or its administration.”
“The female students will not report anything without facts and if they had facts and if any college employee also tried to suppress them, action will be taken against them too. Our honourable CM Yogi Adityanath has given strict instructions that all girls and women should get justice,” she added.
On the question of any POSH like committees for educational institutions or any campaign to create awareness among girls, Yadav said, “I will talk to all our members. We will discuss among ourselves and put it in front of the members of our committee. We may work towards such an awareness campaign at school and university level.”
The Hathras police filed a first information report on Thursday against the accused professor, Rajneesh Kumar, 59, after videos of his alleged sexual harassment surfaced online. Kumar, who was the chief proctor, was suspended by the state government-run Seth Phool Chand Bagla PG College administration on Saturday.
Hathras SP Chiranjeev Nath Sinha said the FIR was lodged after information was given by UP state women commission on receiving an anonymous complaint from a survivor, addressed to the PM, the CM and other authorities. The accused has been on the run since then and three teams have been constituted for his arrest.
