Madhya Pradesh HC fines university, ex-VC ₹36 lakh for sexual harassment case
Lakshmibai National Physical Education University fined ₹1 lakh, former vice chancellor ₹35 lakh in sexual harassment case, six years after complaint was filed
Bhopal: The Madhya Pradesh high court has imposed a fine of ₹1 lakh on Lakshmibai National Physical Education University and ₹35 lakh on the university’s former vice chancellor, Dilip Dureha, for workplace sexual harassment, six years after a complaint was filed.
The court also imposed ₹5 lakh on the police as compensation to the petitioner, a yoga teacher who accused Dureha of touching her several times with wrongful intentions in 2019.
The lecturer had initially complained to the college committee, sports ministry, and local police, but when no action was taken, she moved to the Supreme Court. On the court’s direction, a committee was formed to probe the matter. Subsequently, on the orders of the Supreme Court, a case was registered against Dureha.
Hearing the petition on Tuesday, justice Milind Ramesh Phadke of the Gwalior bench said, “The petitioner was subjected to sexual harassment at her workplace and no steps were taken by the Institute in timely extending justice to the petitioner, which deprived her of valuable time, energy and reputation. The respondent Institute had let its administration be controlled by a person who was not even fit to be kept in service of any nature.”
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“It is held that the lecturer was subjected to unwelcome sexual harassment at her workplace, which comes within the meaning of Section 2(n) and Section 3(2) of the Act of 2013. Dureha should pay ₹35 lakhs towards loss of salary for two years, pain and suffering, loss of reputation, and emotional distress forthwith,” he added.
The court also held the police authorities responsible for not taking timely action on the complaint made by the petitioner and noted that they waited three years to register a crime, and that too only upon directions from the apex court.
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“A sum of ₹1 lakh as penalty is imposed upon the Institute for not taking appropriate action in timely extending justice to the petitioner at her workplace, which shall be paid within a period of four weeks from the date of the order of pronouncement,” the court said.
“The inhumane and unsympathetic behaviour shown by the police officials makes them also liable for a penalty of ₹5 lakh to be paid to the petitioner within a period of four weeks from the date of the order of pronouncement, which shall be recovered from the erring officials from their own pockets,” the court added.
--- With inputs from Mahesh Shivhare
