At around 3 PM, a second-year undergraduate student entered her hostel’s lift to get to her room. In the lift, there was a male worker who unzipped his pants and started masturbating in front of her. When the girl attempted to run out of the lift, the man blocked her path. When she did finally run out of the lift, she screamed and informed the warden, hoping to file a complaint at the hostel reception. When the warden was informed about the incident, he asked the girl to write a letter to access the CCTV footage in order to identify the man. There were no CCTV cameras in the lift, however, the CCTV camera right outside the lift was used to identify the man.
However, no action was taken then.
At 7 PM, when the students of the hostel went to the reception to demand action, they were met with disgusting and, unfortunately, common responses. They were told that these things happen because they were dressed in “inappropriate short clothes” and because they smoke and drink. The authorities, however, did nothing to ensure that the girls in the hostel felt safe. There were strong undertones of victim shaming in the way the authorities were answering the students. One of the people in the hostel management allegedly said that these things will happen when North Indian girls live in a South Indian city.
Enraged by the lethargic and shameful handling of the situation by the authorities, the boys and girls from the hostel came out and started protesting in large numbers, demanding that the man gets apprehended and an official complaint gets filed, and most importantly, demanding that things change in the college.
“In the girl’s hostel, male workers come infrequently. There is no protection for the girls. They have installed CCTVs but most of them aren’t functional. A similar thing has happened before but they just took a letter from the girl and no action was taken. They silenced the issue. They tried to do it this time too but we won’t be silenced,” says a girl from the hostel who does not want to be named. When asked if any steps have been taken to protect the girls from sexual harassment and if there is any system to report such cases, she reveals: “The only option is reporting to the warden, who cares more about silencing the issue rather than the protection and safety of the girls.”
Initially, there was news that the perpetrator has been arrested but this was denied by the police, stating that no formal complaint had been made.
Public speaks up:
Ever since the news broke, few former students of the college have taken to Twitter to share what their experience was like when they were part of the college.
“Not at all surprised with the warden’s reaction. The teachers (mainly the women) were the biggest slut-shamers when I was at SRM, yelling at us for not wearing a dupatta, wearing jeans, etc.. We also used to be berated for talking to the boys in our class & wearing makeup,” shared a former female student.
Celebrities, too have expressed their disgust at the college authorities:
“WTF. Man masturbated at student in elevator. When she complained , the hostel warden insinuated that she deserved what she got because of the way she was dressed!!!???” wrote actress Kasturi Shankar.
“It’s very shameful to hear the stories coming from SRM..hope these kids find justice and not intimidated by the caretakers..” wrote actress Khushbu.
What’s next?
It truly is sickening that one of the most popular colleges in the city is this incompetent when it comes to handling such sensitive situations. The safety of the students seem to be low on the priority list, and dismissing such issues with no noise is the way they handle things. Victim blaming is the common go-to, and this just proves that in 2018, we’ve still got a long way to go before rape culture is finally a thing of the past.
As of the latest update, reports state that the sexual harasser has been arrested and that the hostel warden who had indulged in victim shaming has been asked not to enter campus till an inquiry was over. Arjun, the worker, has been charged under section 294 B and 354, reports Maraimalai Nagar police.
ALSO READ: Protests Break Out In Chennai’s SRM College After Man Sexually Harasses Girl Student!