Women's Commission Takes Serious Action on Sexual Assault Case at Tirupati Sanskrit University
The driver had reportedly befriended the student under the guise of offering help before committing the assault and threatening to kill her if she reported the crime.
Vijayawada:The Andhra Pradesh State Women's Commission has launched a comprehensive investigation into allegations of sexual assault and harassment at Tirupati Sanskrit University, where two professors are accused of abusing a female student.
Commission chairperson Dr Rayapati Sailaja spoke with the Tirupati district superintendent of police on Tuesday to gather details about the disturbing case, which has sent shockwaves through the academic community.
According to allegations, assistant professor Dr Lakshman Kumar sexually assaulted a first-year BEd student over a period of time.
The situation allegedly worsened when another assistant professor, Shekhar Reddy, recorded the assaults on his phone and subsequently used the videos to blackmail and further harass the victim. The case came to light after the student became pregnant as a result of the assault.
Sailaja has ordered immediate action on multiple fronts. She directed Tirupati district Integrated Child Development Services (ICDS) officials to conduct a preliminary investigation and instructed the SP to take strict action against those involved, calling for their immediate arrest.
The victim had filed a written complaint with the university vice-chancellor Krishnamurthy ten days before the current action.
Sailaja has now ordered Rukiya Begum, a member of the university's Internal Complaints Committee (ICC), to conduct a field investigation into what actions, if any, were taken following that complaint.
The commission chairperson also responded to another incident involving a college student staying in a private hostel who was allegedly raped by autorickshaw driver of a taxi aggregator.
The driver had reportedly befriended the student under the guise of offering help before committing the assault and threatening to kill her if she reported the crime.
Sailaja has directed senior police officials to immediately register a case under the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (Pocso) Act and arrest the autorickshaw driver.
