Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU) in Delhi has terminated the services of professor Angomcha Bimol Akoijam, who is also a Congress Lok Sabha MP, following sexual harassment complaints filed by 11 students.
Akoijam served as a professor at the Centre for the Study of Social Systems under JNU’s School of Social Sciences. He represents the Inner Manipur Lok Sabha constituency.
According to the complaints submitted in May to the university’s Internal Complaints Committee (ICC), the students alleged that he made inappropriate and obscene remarks during classes. They also accused him of calling some students to his campus residence at night and sexually assaulting them, along with claims of coercion through promises of higher marks and threats.
As the university administration was accused of not acting promptly, hundreds of students staged protests on campus. The National Commission for Women later issued a notice to the university seeking an explanation for the lack of inquiry and asking for a report with relevant documents.
Following this, the ICC conducted an inquiry, recording statements from the complainants as well as faculty members, students and staff from the School of Social Sciences. The committee found the allegations to be substantiated and recommended strict action, after which Vice-Chancellor Santishree Pandit issued an order dismissing Akoijam, citing due process and the ICC report.
