An assistant professor at the National Institute of Technology (NIT) Silchar in Assam has been suspended after a female student accused him of inappropriate behavior. The student, who is in her second semester, reported that Dr. D Koteswara Raju touched her inappropriately during a meeting in his office.
The student explained that when she went to talk about her low grades, he made her uncomfortable by touching her and suggesting that her grades could improve if she listened to him. She noted that he touched her thighs, belly, neck, and lips, and when a friend called her, she managed to escape his office.
Following this incident, students from different classes protested on campus, demanding Dr. Raju’s removal. The protest continued overnight until school authorities promised to temporarily suspend him while an investigation takes place.
The school’s Internal Complaint Committee (ICC), which handles reports of sexual harassment, is looking into the matter after the student formally complained. The director of the institute, Professor Dilip Kumar Baidya, held a meeting about the situation, although he could not be reached for comment.
Assam Police also responded to social media posts about the incident and are speaking with NIT authorities. However, they mentioned that they have some limits on handling incidents that happen on campus.
Some students shared concerns that Dr. Raju had a history of complaints. In fact, he allegedly faced a similar accusation in 2021 but was cleared due to a lack of evidence when the previous complainant couldn’t attend the court proceedings.
Students stated they don’t want someone like him teaching at their school.
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