Relief granted by Bombay HC to TISS student rusticated for social media post

Mumbai: A student at the Tata Institute of Social Sciences (TISS) was given relief on Monday by the Bombay High Court from an order from December 2023 that had rusticated her for postings on social media allegedly targetting senior administrators at the institute.

In doing so, a division bench of Justices Atul S. Chandurkar and Rajesh S. Patil on Monday overturned and set aside a December 2023 ruling made by TISS, which had denied the petitioner's appeal in which she had contested the rustication notice that the Officiating Registrar had sent her in November 2022.

The petitioner's appeal against the rustication was directed by the court to be reconsidered by the institute's appellate authority. The petitioner stated that she had enrolled in a two-year course at the institute and that it was during this course that she and her spouse were accused of creating a post on social media with the intention of attacking the institute's officials, Indian Express reported.

A three-person inquiry committee was formed by the TISS to look into the petitioner's complaint, and the panel suggested that she be rusticated from the institute. She was informed of the rustication judgement when the TISS competent authority accepted the report, which led her to file an appeal with the high court that same year.

In November 2022, the petitioner's case was disposed of by the high court, which also pointed out that she had another option. The appellate authority shall take into account the undertaking-cum-apology by the petitioner, the court had stated.

Following a review of its previous findings by the three-member panel, the institute notified the petitioner in December 2022 that the problem was "very grave and serious" and that it was not inclined to change her rustication.

After the petitioner petitioned the high court once more, the TISS was instructed to establish an appellate authority and resolve her appeal in accordance with the law.

The court disposed of her second plea in the high court and asked that the authorities "consider finding a solution to put an end to the issue."

The appeal authority then turned in its report in December 2023 and found that “the petitioner had filed a frivolous sexual harassment case against a senior professor.” It had asked the institute “to show magnanimity to its students and not focus only on imposing punishments.”

In its report of December 2023 found that “the petitioner had filed a frivolous sexual harassment case against the senior professor.” The authority found that the petitioner had contravened the rules and regulations of TISS and had willfully committed offences against the senior professor,”

The authority further declared that the petitioner had not been sexually harassed by the senior professor and requested that she write a letter of apology for filing the aforementioned claim.

The petitioner's lawyer, Gauri R. Raghuwanshi, argued that the appellate authority lacked authority to hear the petitioner's allegation of sexual harassment against the senior professor and thus did not warrant an extension of the appeal's jurisdiction.

In spite of the petitioner's unequivocal apology for the social media post, Raghuwanshi continued, the appeal's broader scope had caused her "grave prejudice.”

The court held that the appellate authority’s order was “liable to be quashed for the reason that it has travelled beyond the scope of the appeal and has sought to delve into matters that were not the subject matter of the appeal.”

The court, while directing the appellate authority to reconsider her case, also declared that it would limit itself to the claim against rustication.

The high court stated that because the petitioner desired to further her education, her appeal would be determined 'dispassionately and as per law' within six months.

It stated that the proceedings resulting from the petitioner's sexual harassment allegation would be considered separately and would not be combined with problems emerging from the challenge to rustication.