Note: This post is copy-pasted from my blog post here: https://ravisiyermisc.blogspot.com/2018/02/two-recent-money-corruption-and-sexual.html.
Here is an article that appeared in 4th Feb. 2018 newspapers: Coimbatore: Bharathiar University VC arrested for taking Rs 30 lakh bribe, https://www.deccanchronicle.com/nation/current-affairs/040218/bharathiar-university-vc-takes-rs-30-lakh-bribe-arrested.html.
The article states that the vice-chancellor of this university in the South Indian state of Tamil Nadu demanded Rs. 30 Lakh (Rs. 3 million or about USD 46,773 at current exchange rate of Rs. 64.14 for 1 U.S. Dollar) from an Assistant Professor who was on probation, to get confirmed in his job as Assistant Professor. The Asst. Professor approached the Vigilance and Anti-Corruption people (police department) who laid a trap and caught the vice-chancellor red-handed with currency notes marked with invisible ink (according to this report: http://www.thehindu.com/news/national/tamil-nadu/bharathiar-university-v-c-arrested-on-graft-charge/article22642800.ece).
When the top academic administrator of a university (which is the vice-chancellor) indulges in such money corruption, one can well imagine how lower ranked academics and administrators of the university would behave. I am quite sure at least some of the lower ranked academics and administrators of this university would be corrupt as well. This kind of behaviour poisons academic institutions from the top. When the top is rotten the whole academic institution becomes vulnerable to becoming rotten like the top academic administrator.
A few days back there were reports of a Computer Science/Information Technology professor in JNTU Kakinada (Andhra Pradesh) sexually harassing female students who he called individually for a viva voce test that he was conducting as an external examiner.
Here are the related articles:
a) Andhra police arrest JNTU Kakinada professor for alleged sexual harassment, https://www.thenewsminute.com/article/andhra-police-arrest-jntu-kakinada-professor-alleged-sexual-harassment-75754, 2nd Feb. 2018
b) Sexual harassment: Prof. removed as Director, http://www.thehindu.com/news/national/andhra-pradesh/sexual-harassment-professor-removed-from-post-of-director/article22581072.ece, 30th Jan. 2018
The students' agitation saw to it that the matter could not be suppressed. A member of the State women's commission also spoke to the alleged victims. I read in some other article about the state education minister also calling up the vice-chancellor about this matter. I think all this pressure resulted in an investigation by the university following which a police complaint was recorded against the Computer Science/Information Technology professor who also was a Director of some department/institute, and the professor was arrested by the police.
We have not heard the professor's side of the story in the media. Perhaps he has some defense. But multiple girls complaining about sexual harassment would be treated seriously by an Indian court of law, unless their complaints are shown to be false. As the letter complaint to the Registrar was made by 20 girl students, I find the complaints to be credible. I mean, I find it hard to believe that 20 girl students in Andhra Pradesh would conspire to make a false complaint of sexual harassment against the professor.
Still, the accused professor has to be proved guilty of these charges in a court of law. Till then, I will view it as an accusation only. Unfortunately, there is no CCTV kind of evidence to prove the case.
But can an Indian Computer Science/Information Technology professor sink to such depths of sexual harassment of his students? Well, my own experience of Indian academia in South India is that it is rotten. There are some good people. But many people in academic positions of power abuse their power in horrible ways. I personally experienced Shakuni poison kind of academic administrators including a vice-chancellor, registrar, director of campus and Head of Maths & Computer Science department in a deemed university in Andhra Pradesh. By default, I am deeply suspicious from ethics point of view of any Indian senior academic and any Indian academic administrator. I think the Indian academic system has become so rotten now that it poisons the ethics of any person who gets associated with it for long in positions of power.
Of course, there are academic institutions of high academic calibre (different from ethical standards) which may not be so poisonous in terms of their ethics, and there are good ethical senior academics even in lesser known Indian academic institutions. But, overall, the system has become rotten. Perhaps the reason is the lack of accountability that Indian academic system has. The perception is that nobody can question them. Therefore they get away with poisonous behaviour that in other walks of life in India (like private companies) would have put them behind bars (in jail) or at least be dismissed from employment.
When Indian academic administrators and senior academics have become so rotten in money corruption and ethical corruption including sexual harassment, what can we expect from the students they teach and mentor? It is very depressing to know about such things.
I think Indian academics should be subject to accountability like people from other walks of life. That will put some fear in them and stop them from money corruption and ethical corruption like sexual harassment and mental harassment of juniors, or at least reduce the number of such incidents.
Here is an article that appeared in 4th Feb. 2018 newspapers: Coimbatore: Bharathiar University VC arrested for taking Rs 30 lakh bribe, https://www.deccanchronicle.com/nation/current-affairs/040218/bharathiar-university-vc-takes-rs-30-lakh-bribe-arrested.html.
The article states that the vice-chancellor of this university in the South Indian state of Tamil Nadu demanded Rs. 30 Lakh (Rs. 3 million or about USD 46,773 at current exchange rate of Rs. 64.14 for 1 U.S. Dollar) from an Assistant Professor who was on probation, to get confirmed in his job as Assistant Professor. The Asst. Professor approached the Vigilance and Anti-Corruption people (police department) who laid a trap and caught the vice-chancellor red-handed with currency notes marked with invisible ink (according to this report: http://www.thehindu.com/news/national/tamil-nadu/bharathiar-university-v-c-arrested-on-graft-charge/article22642800.ece).
When the top academic administrator of a university (which is the vice-chancellor) indulges in such money corruption, one can well imagine how lower ranked academics and administrators of the university would behave. I am quite sure at least some of the lower ranked academics and administrators of this university would be corrupt as well. This kind of behaviour poisons academic institutions from the top. When the top is rotten the whole academic institution becomes vulnerable to becoming rotten like the top academic administrator.
A few days back there were reports of a Computer Science/Information Technology professor in JNTU Kakinada (Andhra Pradesh) sexually harassing female students who he called individually for a viva voce test that he was conducting as an external examiner.
Here are the related articles:
a) Andhra police arrest JNTU Kakinada professor for alleged sexual harassment, https://www.thenewsminute.com/article/andhra-police-arrest-jntu-kakinada-professor-alleged-sexual-harassment-75754, 2nd Feb. 2018
b) Sexual harassment: Prof. removed as Director, http://www.thehindu.com/news/national/andhra-pradesh/sexual-harassment-professor-removed-from-post-of-director/article22581072.ece, 30th Jan. 2018
The students' agitation saw to it that the matter could not be suppressed. A member of the State women's commission also spoke to the alleged victims. I read in some other article about the state education minister also calling up the vice-chancellor about this matter. I think all this pressure resulted in an investigation by the university following which a police complaint was recorded against the Computer Science/Information Technology professor who also was a Director of some department/institute, and the professor was arrested by the police.
We have not heard the professor's side of the story in the media. Perhaps he has some defense. But multiple girls complaining about sexual harassment would be treated seriously by an Indian court of law, unless their complaints are shown to be false. As the letter complaint to the Registrar was made by 20 girl students, I find the complaints to be credible. I mean, I find it hard to believe that 20 girl students in Andhra Pradesh would conspire to make a false complaint of sexual harassment against the professor.
Still, the accused professor has to be proved guilty of these charges in a court of law. Till then, I will view it as an accusation only. Unfortunately, there is no CCTV kind of evidence to prove the case.
But can an Indian Computer Science/Information Technology professor sink to such depths of sexual harassment of his students? Well, my own experience of Indian academia in South India is that it is rotten. There are some good people. But many people in academic positions of power abuse their power in horrible ways. I personally experienced Shakuni poison kind of academic administrators including a vice-chancellor, registrar, director of campus and Head of Maths & Computer Science department in a deemed university in Andhra Pradesh. By default, I am deeply suspicious from ethics point of view of any Indian senior academic and any Indian academic administrator. I think the Indian academic system has become so rotten now that it poisons the ethics of any person who gets associated with it for long in positions of power.
Of course, there are academic institutions of high academic calibre (different from ethical standards) which may not be so poisonous in terms of their ethics, and there are good ethical senior academics even in lesser known Indian academic institutions. But, overall, the system has become rotten. Perhaps the reason is the lack of accountability that Indian academic system has. The perception is that nobody can question them. Therefore they get away with poisonous behaviour that in other walks of life in India (like private companies) would have put them behind bars (in jail) or at least be dismissed from employment.
When Indian academic administrators and senior academics have become so rotten in money corruption and ethical corruption including sexual harassment, what can we expect from the students they teach and mentor? It is very depressing to know about such things.
I think Indian academics should be subject to accountability like people from other walks of life. That will put some fear in them and stop them from money corruption and ethical corruption like sexual harassment and mental harassment of juniors, or at least reduce the number of such incidents.
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