Do join the demo oct 10th – 10 am, ITO, gather at car park near Ferozeshah Kotla and march towards Police HQ. No organisational banners, placards please, as requested by DUTA.
Exactly a week after she set herself on fire in front of the Delhi secretariat, a former DU lab assistant passed away at the LNJP hospital on Monday morning.
Pavitra Bhardwaj, 40, was upset after her complaint of sexual harassment against the principal and a lab technician of B. R. Ambedkar College reportedly went unheard.
The victim was admitted to the hospital with 92 per cent burn injuries after she immolated herself on September 30 outside Gate 6 of the Delhi secretariat.
The victim, who used to live with her husband and children in Nandnagri area, had written letters to various authorities, including those of the National Commission for Women, seeking the redressal of her grievances.
Pavitra became upset after no action was taken against the duo and she was forced to take this extreme step, her husband claimed.
“We want justice. She wrote so many letters to the DU and the Delhi chief minister but without any result. My wife’s statement was recorded before the SDM on October 1. It seems as if the principal, G.K. Arora, is above the law. Police has taken no action yet,” a teary eyed Dharmendra, Pavitra’s husband, said.
Arora, on his part, refutes all allegations and says he is being framed.
“All these allegations are false. People are trying to implicate me,” he said.
While the police had registered a case of suicide against Pavitra, no formal action has been taken against the principal despite repeated demands from the family.
“A case of suicide was registered against Pavitra after she took the extreme step. So far, we have no proof to take any action against the principal,” a police officer said.
Pavitra had registered the first complaint of sexual harassment against Arora at the Jyoti Nagar police station in 2009. However, no case was registered as her charges could not be proved. She had then approached the college administration. A two-member panel, constituted to look into the allegations, had also given a clean chit to Arora.
Teachers held a protest at Ambedkar College in east Delhi
Things turned worst last year when Pavitra was dismissed by the principal without the consent of the college governing body. Meanwhile, the college administration has called a Governing Body meet on Friday to look into the allegations of sexual harassment levelled against Arora.
Delhi University has also demanded a report from the Governing Body of the college about the incident.
“Though the matter is within the purview of the college, the University has sought a reply in this matter,” DU Registrar Alka Sharma said.
On the political front, main Opposition BJP criticised the Delhi government for not implementing any effective mechanism for the redressal of sexual harassment cases.
While BJP national secretary Arti Mehra regretted that no representative from the Delhi government had met the victim’s family, Delhi BJP president Vijay Goel pointed out that the Nirbhaya Fund is yet to become functional.
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