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The problem:

A professor (Dr G S Bhaduria, Tourism dept, Lucknow University) wrote and said lewd remarks for a lady professor (Dr.Nishi Pandey) in presence of teachers, media persons and students. Bhaduria is already defamed in several prima facie sexual harassment cases involving girl students in recent past. Dr.Nishi Pandey and several other girl students responded with remarkable fury, and strongly condemned the gross misconduct of Bhaduria. They demanded immediate suspension of Bhaduria, and legal action against him.

Senior lady teachers led by former Vice Chancellor Dr.Roop Rekha Verma met on Saturday 24, 2000 and called for an urgent Executive council meet on Tuesday June 27. Executive Council meeting of Lucknow University Teachers formed an enquiry commission led by a retired High Court judge to submit it's report with in a week's time. Meanwhile due to the delay in any action, Bhaduria mobilized students and male teachers on caste and gender base, and unsuccessfully tried to negate the campaign against him spearheaded largely by female fraternity of Lucknow University. Boys wrote abuses on walls, took out processions, burned the effigy of Nishi Pandey, indulged in stone pelting at girls hostel, and tried hard to terrorise and demoralise girls. But Nishi Pandey and girl students, did not lose the agony and continued their fight against this patrilineal social structure. All India Democratic Woman's Association (AIDWA), SURAKSHA, ASHA and other women organizations all have come to the fore. Bhaduria is playing the gender card and lobbying for support from 'real' men.

Crackling Shell Of Indifference

Men have become used to pass lewd remarks, tease girls and prey them with a voluptuous eye. Women on the other hand, have become used to suffer this ignominy. They take it as 'a part of life'. Nevertheless despite of best efforts to throttle the steaming agony singing over years, the anguish - piled from ages - bursts one day. And the day for Lucknow University girls has come. This time, the precipitating factor happens to be Dr.Nishi Pandey. Not only girls, lady teachers and few men have also begun to break their shell of indifference. The sound of crackling shells, was never so piercing. Hardly a girl fails to identify with Dr.Nishi Pandey. Another surprising streak in this episode, is the emergence of men who are willing to publicly voice their support, despite of the fact that Bhaduria is unsuccessfully trying hard to paint a different colour - colour of Men Vs Women fight.

How unfortunate it is to note few male teachers and students opposing this tide of change, that too on fabricated pretexts which do not work at all. Pretexts like 'inciting girls to come on streets', 'anti-male propaganda' float in the air. Have they really spoken to these girls? Have they cared enough to witness them with a closer perspective? Have they ever been able to differentiate that these are not trapped girls forced by someone else to fight for a cause in which they do not believe in, rather individuals voicing their opinion on the heap of shattered shells of apathy. They are very much out of the cocoon. Out in the open, breathing free, and struggling for a common cause. And among these girls are many men, and grown up ladies, who have till now, hid behind a 'decent' drape on such issues. A bit of diplomacy, and a tinge of behavioural navigation, is no more evident. Suddenly, all diplomacy has vanished and they have begun to take a stand. And instead of polite decent chit-chat, they are vociferously voicing their concern and anguish. This is indeed a remarkable transition. May be, a boiling point of tolerance.

We feel concerned that girl students and lady teachers of this prestigious institution of learning, have been feeling increasingly insecure about their safety and honour, moreso when teachers like BHADURIA throng on the campus. Stigmatised by a history of sexual harassment of girl students in past, Bhaduria has now fallen so low, to target lady teachers. This is extremely outrageous and perhaps, Bhaduria must have taken this for granted that women community is to bear his misdemeanour silently. He himself is in a state of shock and fear to confront the "Durga Avtaar" of not only Dr.Nishi Pandey but all those lady teachers and girl students who had earlier suffered sexual harassment countless times but had remained mum.

Another significant achievement of this Dr.Nishi Pandey's campaign is that lewd remarks against her has shattered the general APATHY prevalent among masses. This is perhaps for the first time in history of Lucknow University that teachers, students, parents of girl students, media fraternity and even Dr.Nishi Pandey's past students have shared the agony and voiced their concern condemning Bhaduria's alleged misbehaviour. Parents of girl students have formed a Parents' Federation to protect the interests of their daughters. Past students of Loreto Convent settled in UK have assured financial aid to Dr.Nishi Pandey to meet the surmounting charges of legal proceedings against Bhadauria. Several women organizations, social bodies, individuals and non-traditional allies on women's issue like anti-tobacco activists, global nuclear disarmament activists, Narmada Bachao Andolan activists, have also strengthened Dr.Nishi Pandey's crusade to weed out this patriarchal tumour.

This is indeed significant because masses, have become habitual of indifference. Chronic Apathy is something predominant everywhere. Moreso because Indifference is a safer alternative. Apathy is relatively comfortable to opt for. And that is what we have been doing since ages. And this is exactly what has bred monsters like Bhaduria to gain enough voice to level absolute nonsensical words against his own colleagues. Lewd remarks of Bhaduria against Dr.Nishi Pandey had sparked a self-mobilization process of students and shattering of their cocoon of apathy. Is this not a strong indicator of the regard which Dr.Nishi Pandey commands from her students? Teachers, Head of the departments and even Vice Chancellors have faced charges, physical assaults and more derogatory remarks, but never before such a reaction was perceived, and that too, largely from lady teachers and girl students. Is this not an enough testimony of the immense faith which students and lady teachers endorse in Dr.Nishi Pandey?

This is not a focussed case of Dr.Nishi Pandey or perverts like Bhaduria. This is a generalized case of a problem that stinks in every nook and corner of this bad-bad-world. Every soul that believes gender exploitation and sexual harassment of women is demeaning and simply intolerable, must strengthen Dr.Nishi Pandey's struggle to weed out this problem. This is the need of the hour.

A problem, that cries for urgency. A problem, that has effected every soul - is there a woman who can boast of living a life sans even one incident of sexual harassment? Is there a man, who can claim never to have indulged in such acts, or remained mute when others were flinging lewd remarks at girls? Only that man who has never participated in such offences, or has never remained mum when girls unrelated to him were being targeted by others, and only those women who have never suffered even a solitary case of sexual harassment or gender discrimination, CAN REMAIN ALOOF of this imbroglio?

For how long will we be paralysed with Ostrich Syndrome? Will turning our face or passing the buck of responsibility, solve the problem? Suppose, if next victim of Bhaduria, or his likes, is YOU? Or ME?

We demand immediate suspension of GS Bhaduria and strict legal proceedings against him. This will be a deterrence for such future offenders in the campus.

Credits

• Copy Edited : Kusum Verma
• Authored by : Bobby Ramakant,
  C-2211, C- Block Crossing, Indira Nagar, Lucknow-16. India.
  Phone : (0522) 358230, 98380 86584, Fax : (0522) 380610 ,
  e_mail : ramakant@globalink.org

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