JNU Receives 151 Sexual Harassment Complaints Since 2017, Data Shows

Last Update:30 November 2024 10:54 IST

While JNU claims to have resolved almost 98 per cent of complaints, only three cases are currently under investigation.

Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU) has registered 151 complaints of sexual harassment since 2017, when the Internal Complaints Committee (ICC) replaced the Gender Sensitivity Committee Against Harassment (GSCASH), according to data obtained through an RTI application.

While the university claims to have resolved almost 98 percent of these complaints, only three cases are currently being investigated.

However, when asked about the nature of the complaints and action taken against the accused, JNU refused to provide information, citing confidentiality.

The decision to abolish GSCASH in 2017 has been a controversial issue, with the JNU Students’ Union and Teachers’ Union constantly demanding its reinstatement.

The association argues that the ICC lacks the transparency and autonomy provided by GSCASH and operates under administrative influence, undermining confidence in its processes.

Data shows that the highest number of cases in a year was reported in 2018-19 with 63 complaints. Before the establishment of the ICC, JNU had received a record 38 cases in 2016.

There was a significant decline during the years of the COVID-19 epidemic; Only six complaints were recorded between 2019 and 2021, likely due to reduced campus activities.

However, numbers have increased in recent years; In 2022-23 and 2023-24, each resulted in 30 complaints.

The data showed that 17 cases were recorded in 2017-18, 63 in 2018-19, five in 2019-20, one in 2020-21 and five in 2021-22.

In 2015, the Delhi Commission for Women (DCW) stated that JNU had the highest number of sexual harassment complaints among the city’s educational institutions, with 51 cases reported in the three-year period between 2013 and 2015. There were such complaints among Delhi’s educational institutions at that time.

Recently, several cases have brought JNU under intense scrutiny.

In April, a second-year female student went on an indefinite strike for 12 consecutive days by blocking the main entrance of the university on campus, following the allegation of ‘inaction’ due to her ‘sexual harassment’ complaint to the university authorities. The survivor and supporters were later punished by the university for staging a protest.

In October, some 47 female students filed a joint complaint with the ICC regarding allegations of sexual harassment and violence that occurred during a freshmen party on campus.

Similarly, in April, JNUSU alleged that a female student at the University’s Center for Chinese and Southeast Asian Studies had been sexually harassed by her professor, and the failure of the university administration to act on her complaint forced her to leave the campus.

The incidents sparked widespread protests and raised questions about the handling of complaints by the ICC.

(This story has not been edited by News18 staff and is published from a syndicated news agency feed – PTI)