Sexual harassment at IIT-B? Male students file anonymous complaints

Students of Indian Institute of Technology, Bombay (IITB), have repeatedly complained about sexual harassment of male students by a senior student. These students have written anonymous letters to the administration but the administration has not approached the police as these complaints remain unsourced.

Students have been complaining since March about sexual harassment on campus and hostels. There is a specific complaint that a senior student has been touching male students inappropriately and making them feel uncomfortable in hostel rooms. A former student tweeted, “Sexual harassment complaints from students of IIT Bombay are being pushed under the carpet. Please investigate and take action.”

Last week, students wrote complaint letters to Dean of Student Affairs (DOSA) via social media. Soumyo Mukherji, DOSA of IIT-B, said, “We received anonymous complaints in March and now we again received complaints last week. Three boys complained stating they had been inappropriately touched in hostels and been made to feel uncomfortable. Students have been complaining through friends of friends.”

This senior student is a former student of IIT-B, as per the administration. Mukherji said, “This student has completed his graduation from IIT-B and is currently not studying in the institute. We initiated an investigation and took action in March. Now, we have again received complaints but we cannot take any action based on anonymous complaints. We want students to come ahead and mention their names and give a deposition. They should not fear, if they have not done anything wrong.”

IIT-B administration has not approached the police yet, as all the complaints are anonymous.