The Delhi High Court on Tuesday ordered that the records of complaints lying in the office of Jawaharlal Nehru University’s disbanded sexual harassment panel be taken out in order to enable the newly formed Internal Complaint Committee (ICC) to proceed with its inquiries.
The court’s direction came on a plea filed by some teachers and students of JNU, opposing the quashing of the university order superseding the Gender Sensitisation Against Sexual Harassment (GSCASH) by the ICC and a Registrar’s circular putting on hold the election of the students’ representatives to the dissolved independent body.
A Bench of Justices Sanjiv Khanna and Pratibha M. Singh directed that the sealed office be opened in the presence of members of the erstwhile GSCASH and the ICC and the records of pending complaints be taken out.
Pending matters
It ordered preparation of a list of pending matters by suppressing the names of victims, accused and witnesses, which should be brought before it in a sealed cover on December 19, the next date of hearing. It said that the office room should be re-sealed thereafter.
The court had earlier asked the JNU to maintain status quo on sealing of the office of GSCASH committee which was superseded by the ICC.
