The High Court has held that asking to meet in private for leave is not sexual harassment. Along with this, the High Court has also quashed the FIR of molestation registered against the Assistant Professor.
Chhattisgarh: The case is related to Bilaspur DP Vipra College. Assistant Professor Manish Tiwari posted here was booked for sexual harassment by a female colleague working with him. Manish challenged this in the court. The High Court did not consider the statement ‘Madam, if you want leave, meet me alone’ as a basis for sexual harassment.It was told in the petition that the female colleague had filed a case against Manish by asking to meet alone for leave. It was said in the petition that the petitioner has not said anything like having physical relations or sexually abusing or harassing her. After hearing the arguments of the petitioner’s lawyer, the High Court has dismissed the FIR considering it false at first sight.
Taking into consideration the facts of the complaint in this case, Justice Narendra Kumar Vyas said that if we see the facts of the complaint in which the complainant has stated that the petitioner said that “Madam, if you want leave, meet me alone”, it cannot be inferred that any sexual remark has been made against her.
Apart from Section 354 (A) (iv) a case was registered against the petitioner assistant professor under Section 3(1)(xii) of the Atrocity Act 1989. This too was dismissed by the court saying that the accused assistant professor was not in a position to sexually assault the victim woman. The woman belongs to the Scheduled Caste community and the accused belongs to another community. There is nothing on record to show the fact related to this. This does not prove that the crime was committed by the petitioner.
