Justice GK Ilanthirayan passed the order after hearing a petition filed by four journalists from Chennai. The journalists claimed that the all-women SIT was harassing them in the name of questioning. They said they had been summoned several times and even had their mobile phones seized.
Madras: The Madras High Court has directed the Special Investigation Team (SIT) to stop harassing journalists while probing the leak of a sexual harassment victim’s identity in the Anna University case. The Court made it clear that while journalists should not be troubled, they must also cooperate with the investigation.
Justice GK Ilanthirayan passed the order after hearing a petition filed by four journalists from Chennai. The journalists claimed that the all-women SIT was harassing them in the name of questioning. They said they had been summoned several times and even had their mobile phones seized.
The petitioners also alleged that the SIT was asking them irrelevant questions, including details about their family members, which had no connection to the case. The Court directed the SIT to ensure that journalists are not harassed while being questioned.
The issue began when journalists downloaded the First Information Report (FIR) from the official Tamil Nadu police website. Initially, the FIR failed to hide the name and address of the victim. By the time police realized the mistake and corrected it, the document had already been downloaded by multiple people, including journalists. This led to the victim’s personal details becoming public.
The journalists argued in Court that they had done nothing wrong by downloading the FIR, as it was publicly available on the police website. They also stated that while they had access to the victim’s details, they never published any of it in their news reports.
Anna University Sexual Harassment Case
On December 25, the Chennai Police arrested a roadside biryani vendor, Gnanasekaran, for allegedly sexually assaulting a student of Anna University. The incident reportedly took place on December 23 on the university campus. The victim later lodged a complaint with both the police and the University’s Internal Complaints Committee, which deals with sexual harassment cases.
The Madras High Court took suo motu (on its own) cognisance of the matter after receiving a letter from an advocate. The letter raised concerns about the overall law and order situation in Tamil Nadu and the safety of students in the state.
A special vacation bench, comprising Justices SM Subramaniam and V Lakshminarayan, directed the Tamil Nadu government to submit a detailed report on the incident and the progress of the investigation. The report was to be submitted by 2.15 PM on the same day.
The bench acted upon a letter written by advocate R Varalakshmi. The letter raised urgent concerns about the safety of students in Chennai and highlighted broader issues of law and order in Tamil Nadu.
The disturbing event occurred on December 23, when a 19-year-old student of Anna University was allegedly sexually assaulted on the campus. According to the complainant, the student reported the incident promptly to the police. In addition to filing a police report, the student also submitted a complaint to the University’s Internal Complaints Committee for the prevention of sexual harassment.
The suo motu action by the High Court was initiated after advocate R Varalakshmi’s letter emphasized the need for stringent safety measures.
She urged the authorities to ensure that students feel secure, both on and off campuses, and stressed the importance of maintaining law and order.
