Biswabrata Goswami
KRISHNAGAR, 23 FEB: The Kalyani University community is in an uproar after the Internal Complaints Committee’s recommendation regarding an assistant professor accused of rape was not discussed in the recent Executive Committee meeting. The accused, Vivekananda Mukherjee, a Visual Arts department assistant professor, was accused of repeatedly raping his student over a period of time.
The complaint was filed by a PhD research scholar of Kalyani University’s Visual Arts department, alleging that since her joining as a research scholar in May 2021, her guide enforced her to be involved in sexual relations with him. The student also alleged that her guide sometimes used to threaten her with dire consequences if she didn’t comply.
The Internal Complaints Committee, which was formed on the basis of a High Court instruction (WPA No 11530 of 2022 dat 18/07/22), recently recommended the suspension of the accused teacher for six months from its 50th meeting held on 24/01/23. However, for unknown reasons, the Vice-Chancellor Prof Manas Kumar Sanyal did not put the matter on the agenda for the EC meeting held on 22 February.
The accused teacher filed a case against the move, but his case was disposed of simultaneously. In the meantime, the university authority removed the accused teacher from the post of departmental head as well as from the guide of the victim student.
The university’s inaction has led to the student filing a complaint with the Kalyani police station, and an investigation has been initiated into the matter. However, the accused teacher got interim bail from the court, and the police could not take any action against him, a police source said.
A section of teachers and students alleged that the accused teacher often used his high political influence to suppress his crime. “We think university authority is trying to suppress his crime due to his political nexus,” a teacher on condition of anonymity said.
When asked, Prof Sanyal declined to comment anything about the matter.
The university community is now calling for action to be taken against the accused teacher, with many expressing their disappointment and frustration at the lack of action taken by the university authorities. The case highlights the need for universities to take sexual harassment and assault allegations seriously and take appropriate action to ensure the safety and well-being of their students.
Tags: #KalyaniUniversity #VisualArts #InternalComplaintsCommittee #Professor #Rape
