Governing body finds PGI faculty member guilty

CHANDIGARH: The governing body (GB), in its recent meeting held in Delhi, found a faculty member guilty of sexual harassment at PGI. The internal committee of the institute has recommended disciplinary proceedings against the member as there are strong evidence against him. Sources said the recommendations would be sent to the GB for approval.

As the case is sensitive, the faculty is tightlipped, but sources said the matter would not be dealt with mildly and the punishment could range from demotion, no further promotion to dismissal. "The appointing authority is the GB, so all recommendations will be sent to it for a final decision," said PGI director Dr Jagat Ram.

Last month, a researcher had accused the PGI professor of sexual harassment. The researcher resigned from her project work after she lodged a complaint with the sexual harassment committee.

"The committee had recommended strong punishment in its report as there were ample proofs against him, including text messages. These were forwarded by the director to the GB, which endorsed the findings and asked the institute to take strict action," said an official.

Sources said the complainant was a meritorious research scholar and had done PhD from the institute two years ago. She was a gold medalist and a fellow in a prestigious institute abroad. "The complainant had alleged that despite repeated apologies from her, the professor continued to harass her. Finally, she decided to go directly to the sexual harassment committee," said the official. The accused professor could not be contacted despite repeated attempts.

In 2012, PGI had sacked an assistant professor after an inquiry found allegations of sexual harassment against him true. In 2016, a woman staffer had complained against a senior doctor to the committee. However, this is the first case where a faculty member has been accused of sexual harassment by a student.