BJP leader Suresh Gopi, the chairperson of the Satyajit Ray Film & Television Institute (SRFTI), after facing flak for allegedly dragging his feet on implementing recommendations of the institute’s Internal Complaints Committee (ICC) regarding a sexual assault complaint, has now reportedly signed and issued a chargesheet in the case.
A former student and professor of the institute in a complaint on May 9, 2024, had alleged physical assault, sexual harassment, casteist remarks, criminal intimidation, blackmail, threats and the use of abusive and vulgar language by a top official of SRFTI against her.
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WASH charges against Gopi
In an earlier blogpost, the Women Against Sexual Harassment (WASH), a Kolkata-based forum run by survivors of sexual violence in the campus, said that Gopi was hesitant to take action against the official even though the SRFTI’s ICC submitted its preliminary findings in October last year.
It its latest post on Tuesday (January 21), WASH said that Gopi has now signed and issued a chargesheet in the case.
Hope SRFTI stands by complainant: WASH
“We have just been informed by the complainant in the SRFTI sexual harassment case we wrote about a couple of days back that the chargesheet has been signed and issued by the chairperson. We are thankful to the media, activists, and others who wrote about the matter and raised awareness,” the post said.
“While this is a victory for the complainant, we would like to point out that she has had to protest and push SRFTI authorities every step of the way just to ensure that the due process is followed. We hope that from here on, SRFTI stands by the complainant and ensures that the ICC is allowed to carry on with the second stage of the inquiry without hassles,” it said.
‘Gopi didn’t comply with ICC recommendations’
In its earlier post, WASH had said that the complainant contacted the forum because the institute was allegedly delaying taking any action in the case. According to the complainant, the report was finalised in October and the Governing Council, headed by Gopi, had not acted upon it. This has delayed the next stage of the inquiry, said WASH
In its blogpost, WASH wrote, “The ICC submitted its Preliminary Investigation Report in the case on 30th October 2024. This report was placed before the Governing Council led by the chairperson of the institute and GC, actor and Bharatiya Janata Party Union Minister of State Suresh Gopi, before the second stage of the inquiry could begin. The chairperson refused to comply with the recommendations in the ICC report fully even after two and a half months.”
Apart from the ICC complaint, the complainant had also filed a police complaint for assault against “this man who still holds his position of power in the said institute which has a long history of sexual harassment complaints”, said the blogpost.
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Dangerous message
The accused has also approached the Calcutta high court to contest the findings of the IC. The court set a six-month deadline for the final inquiry to be submitted by December. The forum has said that the delay in giving justice to the complainant sends a “dangerous message” to other women facing harassment.
Meanwhile, the complainant feared that the “delay in the issuing of the chargesheet is an attempt to dilute the charges especially considering the fact that the accused had earlier done it in the police case” she filed.
The case has once again highlighted SRFTI’s history of sexual harassment allegations, which previously led to the forced retirement of two professors.
The WASH statement said, “Currently, we are trying to rally support for the complainant and contact social workers, elected representatives of the people, and activists regarding the matter. If these efforts aren’t effective, we intend to organise protests in Calcutta, organising the students of SRFTI, Jadavpur University etc. While we can’t speculate on why the chairperson is delaying the issuing of the chargesheet, we are aware that this has been a trend in SRFTI with respect to sexual harassment cases.”