Bengaluru professor proposed to student, booked for sexual harassment

A Bengaluru medical college professor was booked for sexual harassment after proposing to a student in class, leading to student confrontations and violence.

A professor at a medical college on the outskirts of Bengaluru has been booked on charges of sexual harassment after he proposed to a female student in a classroom, police said on Thursday.

Representative Image.

The incident at the college in Nelamangala taluk on March 23 came to light after videos of the proposal surfaced online. HT could not independently verify the veracity of the video.

In the video, the faculty member purportedly addressed students using a microphone and claimed that a student had earlier expressed romantic feelings for him. The student denied the claim, confronting him in front of the class. In the purported video, the student repeatedly asked for proof and maintained that no such exchange had occurred.

While the confrontation in the lecture hall eventually subsided, the situation escalated shortly after the professor stepped outside. The student, accompanied by several classmates, allegedly confronted him again, and he was assaulted. Videos purportedly showed people striking him with slippers while others shouted.

According to the FIR, the complainant stated that the accused, an assistant professor, had been behaving inappropriately on the college premises and sexually harassing students. Students had earlier submitted complaints seeking protection, it stated.

The complaint further alleged that despite being barred from entering the campus, the accused trespassed into the premises on March 23, misbehaved with the student, and harassed others as well, police said.

(With PTI inputs)