Sexual Harassment of Women in Higher Academia: A Study with Special Reference to Teacher–Student Relation

Abstract

Sexual harassment is one of the major challenges in academia in India and abroad. It has been manifested in various forms such as physical, verbal and non-verbal harassment. At times the issue of sexual harassment goes unreported and where it is reported, to what extent it is addressed and how effectively it is handled by the authorities responsible to prevent the same is an issue of concern. The paper explores through case studies, the nature and magnitude of sexual harassment in institutions imparting higher education. It attempts to understand the nature of sexual harassment of women in such institutions and to find the legal and procedural mechanism to prevent and control sexual harassment of students and employees in academia. The paper argues that the law on prevention of sexual harassment of women in the workplace has various gaps which need to be addressed for doing justice to the complainant and accused of sexual harassment. The paper attempts to provide suggestions for dealing with the deficiencies of the Act of 2013 and the rules made under it. The research methodology applied in this research is primarily doctrinal and is based on secondary sources such as research papers, case studies, case comments, reports, commentaries, media reporting, books, human rights instruments and judicial decisions. The researchers have made a case study of 30 cases, and 15 representative cases have been incorporated into the present study.