The Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU) administration has informed the new JNU Students’ Union (JNUSU) that it wants to replace the Gender Sensitization Committee Against Sexual Harassment (GSCASH) with an Internal Complaints Committee (ICC) and “therefore election to GSCASH, hereinafter called as ICC, should be kept on hold till further notice”.
The administration said that the matter will be taken up in the Executive Council meeting on September 18.
The JNUSU said the move was an attack on the autonomous character and democratic composition of GSCASH, and an attempt by the administration to replace the members with hand-picked ‘nominated’ members.
“Such attempts to throttle GSCASH and subordinate it to administrative diktats will be robustly rebuffed,” said the union.
In a statement, the JNUSU assured the students that it would fight against any attempts to undermine GSCASH. “We appeal to the students’ community to rally behind the JNUSU to protect the autonomy of GSCASH and further strengthen it,” it read.