National ST Commission pulls up IIM Rohtak director, orders institute to release all incentives to assistant professor

The NCST, in its order on September 19, also directed the IIM director to “take steps to release all her incentive claims with immediate effect”.

While hearing the case, Ananta Nayak, an NCST member, issued a slew of directions to Sharma and sought an Action Taken Report. The Commission said it would hear the case again in the first week of November if the director fails to comply with the directions.

The commission asked Sharma to revisit the case and “personally look into the grievances of the petitioner and solve the dispute with a humanitarian approach”.

It directed Sharma to submit the biometric attendance and the work profile with the performance of duties of the petitioner (assistant professor). Other directions to the IIM director include taking steps to release the arrear of salaries and incentive claims to the petitioner with immediate effect, submitting the findings of the internal grievance committee within a week, submitting detailed comments and feedback of external experts to close the probation of the petitioner and submitting the complete report on the incentive claim of the petitioner for the year 2019-20.

The commission has asked the director to submit an action taken report within 30 days from the date of receipt of the minutes of the NCST order.

The assistant professor had accused the IIM, Rohtak management of harassment and for denial of probation closure and withholding of her salary. The petitioner, in her petition filed on August 14, 2022 had alleged that she was being harassed by the IIM through various means such as “denial of probation closure, withholding of salary, de-activating her official email, forcing her to vacate her office and locking the office with her possessions inside it”.

“The petitioner further communicated on 24/08/2022, that after sending the complaint to NCST, she was asked to complete no dues formalities even though she has not resigned nor has been terminated. She was asked to vacate her office and after some days it was locked along with her possessions. Further, she was sent an email asking her not to attend faculty meetings and later her email address was revoked,” the NCST observed while issuing directions to redress her grievance.

Two days later, the commission issued a revised notice to the secretary of the Department of Higher Education and the director of the Indian Institute of Management Rohtak to furnish facts and comments along with ATR within 7 days. The IIM, Rohtak, in a reply, stated that they were not aware of her caste and have not discriminated against the faculty and that they have followed all the rules for the closing of probation.

“FDEC (Faculty Development and Evaluation Committee) is constituted for everyone. Performance of the petitioner was found unsatisfactory,” the IIM, Rohtak said in its reply.

Dheeraj Sharma stated that they had “followed the same procedure for closure of probation as they follow for everyone. The publication was found to be paid and hence the petitioner’s submission to that particular publication could not be accepted”.

The director further said that an email was sent to the assistant professor by the dean (IIM, Rohtak) on April 28 regarding the non-closure of probation that should be considered a ‘termination letter’. However, the NCST questioned the director as to “how it could be considered as termination when her case had also been forwarded to external examiners one month after the said email?”

The director vehemently opposed the arguments of the petitioner. However, after hearing both sides, the commission recommended numerous actions.

A local court in Rohtak last month directed the police for further probe into the sexual harassment case against Sharma, while criticizing the sleuths for ‘faulty investigation’ in the FIR registered by the female assistant professor.