Woman Cop Accuses Inspector General Of Sexual Harassment

In Tamil Nadu, a woman superintendent of police has filed a sexual harassment complaint against a male Inspector General rank officer. Following the complaint, the state government has reconstituted the internal probe committee to look into the matter.

About the Complaint

The woman cop has given a written complaint. The complaint contains of graphic details of the sexual harassment she faced. She has also mentioned about several attempts made by the IG to hug her. He reportedly started harassing her when she rejected his demands.

In her complaint, she alleged that she had been subjected to sexual harassment for the past seven months. She said that the male IG used to call her at odd hours and send obscene messages. Despite her continuous objections to his actions, he continued.

According to a report, she mentioned, “The IG displayed pornography in front of me”.

She further alleged that the accused threatened to make unfavourable entries in her annual confidential report. This would have been detrimental to her career and could affect her future career prospects. The survivor also claimed that her requests of a transfer were repeatedly ignored.

Action Taken

The state government has constituted an Internal Complaints Committee (ICC) to probe the matter. Seema Agarwal, Additional Director General of Police (ADGP) and Director of the Tamil Nadu State Crime Records Bureau, heads the Committee.

Director General T K Rajendran has nominated Thenmozhi, Deputy Inspector-General, for the committee.

"Every department already has a committee, but this was reconstituted because the complainant is a senior officer, so the people inquiring also have to be senior. I came to know about the matter on Friday. We haven't received the complaint yet. Once we do, we will begin inquiry,” explained Seema Agarwal.

The ICC will work as per the provisions of the Sexual Harassment of Women at Workplace (Prevention, Prohibition and Redressal) Act, 2013.

As per the guidelines, if prima facie the case reported against the suspect appears true, then the internal committee can recommend the police department concerned to initiate criminal proceedings.

The ICC Chairperson said that the committee will look at evidence that both parties have to offer. "We will look at the evidence required to substantiate any allegations and then come to a conclusion based on this. The probe will be fair and we will not allow any external influences to affect our decision.”

Read Also: Tamil Nadu Govt Sets Minimum Wage For Maids

Megha Thadani is an Intern with Shethepeople.tv