Several top city-based colleges still do not have an Internal Complaints Committee (ICC). In other colleges, the committees exist only on paper.
There were some of the findings of a survey conducted by The Student’s Outpost, a students’ collective that aims to promote the welfare and rights of children in campuses. A total of 235 students were surveyed across 20 colleges.
The survey stated that even in institutes where an ICC was established, students were neither aware of the committee members nor had they any idea of how to contact them. Information pertaining to the ICC has to be placed on notice boards, but this is not being done in several colleges.
Another finding showed that 40% of the students surveyed said they were not comfortable approaching the ICC. The collective has recommended that students be more involved in the committee in an effort to build trust and transparency.
In many instances, students pointed out that their colleges had refused to engage with complaints pertaining to sexual harassment as they wanted to avoid ‘tarnishing’ the institutes’s reputation.
A final-year B.A student had approached her principal in October 2016 after being sexually harassed by a classmate at a dinner in her friend’s place. “The college did not take up the case and the person who harassed me continues to sit in my class. The college also dissuaded me from filing a police complaint,” the student alleged.
Monica Sreesai, who is part of the collective, said that the group has submitted their report to the University Grants Commission, Karnataka State Commission for Women (KSCW) and the National Assessment and Accreditation Council (NAAC). “Our demand is to ensure that all colleges in the city establish an ICC, which is was on par with UGC guidelines,” she said.
Students will hold a protest at Town Hall on Monday to drive home their message.
KSCW Chairperson Nagalakshmi Bai said that it was mandatory for colleges to have a functioning ICC. “I will recommend action against those colleges that do not have a committee,” she said.
