M A I N   N E W S

No end to Nisha’s harassment
Jangveer Singh
Tribune News Service

Patiala, July 23
Three years after she first complained of sexual harassment against the Principal of the Government Polytechnic for Women, Jalandhar, local girl Nisha Bharti has reaped a bitter harvest. Despite having topped her electronics and communications diploma course in the first semester, Nisha has in her final year failed in two papers and has had her appeal for re-evaluation turned down.

Nisha submitted an application to the Chairperson and the Registrar of the Punjab State Board of Technical Education and Industrial Training on July 21. In an interview with TNS at her residence today, she said she had been told that her re-evaluation could not be done as she had not scored the requisite 75 per cent to be eligible for it. Nisha has scored 72 per cent in the final year without taking into account the subjects in which she had failed.

Left with no alternative, Nisha has now appealed to the Chief Minister to come to her rescue. The girl’s mother, Rattan Bhatti, submitted a letter to the Chief Minister two days back at a meeting organised to listen to grievances of the people in the city. “My daughter has been fighting against Mr Naresh Nagpal, who is presently the Additional Director of the Technical Education Board, besides holding the charge of Principal of the Jalandhar colleges since the past three years but instead of getting justice all doors are being shut on her”, said Nisha’s mother. She said Nisha had been reduced to such a state during this tenure that she had taken poison twice.

Nisha said she joined the Jalandhar polytechnic in 1999. She said in the first semester itself she had topped her class. She said her woes started after this as her immediate competitor was the daughter of the Principal. She said in the second semester she had stood second with the daughter of the Principal coming first. She said she did not mind this but the resultant happenings forced her to protest against the “sexual harassment” meted out to girl students of the polytechnic.

She said in the year 2000 her room-mate committed suicide under mysterious circumstances as she herself had been facing sexual harassment. The girl said as the case was to be inquired, the Principal did not let her face the inquiry committee and asked her to go home for some time. She said when she came back to give the practical examinations she was not allowed to do so. She said when she made an appeal to the Principal he made a sexual overture at her.

Nisha said following this when she made an issue of the matter, she was subjected to further harassment and had to ultimately seek transfer to Women Polytechnic in Ludhiana.

Nisha said she had “been failed” in two papers because they had been checked by a lecturer from the Jalandhar polytechnic. She said she had brought this fact to the notice of the Technical Education and Industrial Training Board authorities but to no avail.

Mr Naresh Nagpal could not be contacted despite several attempts in his Chandigarh office.