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LATEST NEWS UPDATES | Education institutions need law to address violence against women -Priya M Menon

Education institutions need law to address violence against women -Priya M Menon

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published Published on Mar 4, 2014   modified Modified on Mar 4, 2014
-The Times of India


CHENNAI: The rape of a 20-year-old student of Amrita University by her college mates more than a week ago has raised questions about the manner in which the university has handled the issue. Educationists and lawyers say that educational institutions need to report such criminal offences to the police and offer support to the survivor.

The student was allegedly raped on February 23 by twin brothers Akhil and Athul Suriyakiron in a flat outside the campus after she was given soft drinks laced with sedatives. When she regained consciousness the woman fled the apartment and rang up her friends. She spent the night with a friend and returned early next morning to her home.

"None of the university authorities bothered to even offer us any assistance or moral support. Their initial response was to expel the students without bringing police action against them," said the survivor's mother.

Advocate Geetha Ramaseshan feels that the institution should have responded immediately. "When in case of sexual harassment itself new laws are casting an obligation on the part of the employer and management as well as educational institutions, and where in TN we have a special legislation that addresses the responsibility to address issues of sexual violence against women in campuses, here is a case where the gravity of the offence is so much more severe," she says.

"There is a certain kind of responsibility on educational institutions under the TN Tamil Nadu Prohibition of Harassment of Women Act, 2002," she adds.

The Sexual Harassment of Women at Workplace (Prevention, Prohibition and Redressal) Act, 2013, also covers educational institutions, says Ramaseshan. "While a third party cannot be made directly liable for an act of sexual violence, they could be held responsible for negligence and prevention of safety measures," she says.

"Since the woman did not come back to campus after the incident, how could the authorities not know that a hosteller was missing? You cannot afford to have students missing from hostels without the warden having given permission for the student to leave," says Dr Sriranjini Sivasubramanian, law teacher, Ethiraj College for Women, adding that the university cannot be absolved of liability. "Every educational institution must have an anti-sexual harassment cell. Normally the head of the institution heads it. When the parents informed the authorities, they should have initiated action and, since is it a crime punishable under the IPC, filed a police complaint."

While the boys were suspended on March 3, educationists and lawyers say that the university should have taken action earlier. "At their level, they can suspend the students and conduct an enquiry," says advocate Sudha Ramalingam. "It is the duty of the educational institution to cooperate fully with the investigation and secure punishment for the culprits as well as offer support to the survivor."


The Times of India, 4 March, 2014, http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/home/education/news/Education-institutions-need-law-to-address-violence-against-women/articleshow/31372128.cms


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