Madras HC sets aside suspension order against professor in Bharathiar univ
Therefore, merely based on the preliminary enquiry which was conducted against the mandatory procedure, the orders of the respondent cannot be sustained and set aside the suspension order.
Madras High Court
CHENNAI: The Madras High Court has ordered to sets aside the suspension order of Bharathiar University professor Manimekalan, in an alleged sexual harassment case.
Justice N Sathish Kumar observed that any enquiry committee which is constituted to enquire about the allegation of sexual harassment at the workplace, enquiry should be in accordance with the principle of natural justice, in this case, it has not been done.
In the present case, since the employer has suspended the petitioner based on the preliminary discreet enquiry report given by the committee, which is also not in accordance with the rules, the suspension order based on such a report cannot be sustained in the eyes of law, the Justice observed.
"When the petitioner alleged vindictive action, any action against the petitioner for suspension removal should be only based on the final report as contemplated under Section 13 of the Sexual Harassment of Women at Workplace (Prevention, Prohibition and Redressal) Act, 2013 (POSH Act)".
Therefore, merely based on the preliminary enquiry which was conducted against the mandatory procedure, the orders of the respondent cannot be sustained and set aside the suspension order.
Further, the Justice directed the Bharathiar university to constitute an internal Committee as per Section 4 of the Sexual Harassment of Women at Workplace (Prevention, Prohibition and Redressal) Act, 2013 (POSH Act) and closed the petition.
The petitioner A Manimekalan filed a batch of petitions in the Madras High Court (MHC) seeking to quash the suspension order issued against him by the Bharathiar University.
According to the petitioner, he made a representation to the university in 2021, when he was the head of the department of environmental sciences at Bharathiar university in Coimbatore explaining about an audit objection raised in respect of the redesignation of D. Prabha, assistant professor in the same department from the post of technical officer. The representation to the varsity had created a vendative act against him, claimed the petitioner.
However, in 2023, D Prabha and B. Sathiyapriya assistant professors of, department of environment of Science lodged sexual harassment complaints against him before the internal complaints committee, at Bharathiar university.
Based on the preliminary discreet enquiry said to have been conducted by an internal complaints committee, the university suspended him, said the petitioner. However, the petitioner claimed that the issued suspension order is violating all the statutory provisions of the Sexual Harassment of Women at Workplace (Prevention, Prohibition and Redressal) Act, 2013 [ POSH Act].
Challenging this order Manimekalan filed a batch of petition to quash the suspension order.
