#MeToo: IISc professor Giridhar Madras handed compulsory retirement over sexual harassment charge
BENGALURU: A decorated senior researcher of the reputed Indian Institute of Science (IISc) here, Prof Giridhar Madras, has been asked to take “compulsory retirement” after an internal committee inquiry found evidence of him sexually harassing one of his former students who is currently a PhD scholar.
His faculty profile has already been taken down from the IISc website. “A complaint was received from a PhD student about sexual harassment by a senior professor. The complaint was enquired into by the internal complaints committee of the institute,” IISc said in a statement.
“The governing council being the appointing authority for faculty deliberated on the inquiry report and resolved to compulsorily retire the faculty with immediate effect,” it said.“The orders were served on the faculty on October 22, 2018 and he stands compulsorily retired,” it said. The IISc officials did not say whether he would be entitled to retirement benefits.
The 51-year-old Giridhar Madras, an alumnus of IIT Madras, has been with IISc since 1998 and is the recipient of the Shanti Swarup Bhatnagar award (2009), JC Bose National Fellowship, and the IISc award for excellence in research. He holds fellowships from all three national science academies as well as the Indian National Academy of Engineering. Now, there is uncertainty over his awards and fellowships being rescinded.
The institute’s internal complaints committee found Giridhar guilty of sexual misconduct after a month-long investigation. The disciplinary action against him was recommended by the IISc’s council.
According to sources, Prof Giridhar was accused by one of his former students. The student accused him of making “sexually coloured” remarks and of harassing her with repeated late-night phone calls.
The disciplinary body took action citing Rule 11 mentioned in the Central Civil Services Classification Control and Appeal Rules. The rule applies to employees of IISc. “IISc does not tolerate any form of harassment and has vowed to take all measures to make sure that women on the campus do not face any harassment,” a senior professor, who asked not to be identified, said. However, when questioned about what exactly was the complaint and when the incident came to light, IISc officials said they cannot divulge any information.
The New Indian Express found that the institute’s policy of dealing with sexual harassment at workplace includes a clause, among other common provisions, that protects the privacy of the complainant and the respondent even after the committee has completed its enquiries and recommended a course of action to the institute. When TNIE contacted the institute’s director Prof Anurag Kumar for comments on the case, he did not respond to calls.