Several alumni of Union Christian College, Aluva in Kerala have come forward and accused a prominent ‘intellectual’ professor who is also a State Film Award winner of sexual harassment.
In a video released by the Instagram video handle Papicha, several women alumni of the college have come out in support of another woman who narrates her traumatic experience.
“Our campus is one of the spaces which made us strong.. But in that space where we were becoming strong, where we had power to get justice, we stayed silent. Today.. in this space, we want to confess it”, starts Azra, a student of the college.
Haritha another student says that they were shocked when they came to know of the incident. She says that they wanted to do something about it but couldn’t. “We were filled with guilt that we couldn’t do anything then. This should not be repeated. What happened to our friend should not happen to any other girl.”
Amrita, an alumnus of the college goes on to recollect the incident. She says that she was sexually harassed by a prominent ‘intellectual’ professor during her third year of undergraduation when she was coming out of the canteen. Amrita says that this professor had seen her coming and extended his arm as if to shake hands but instead grabbed her hip and walked away casually. “I was shocked, my body was numb, my vision went dark and I couldn’t control my tears. I managed to reach the class but could not sit through. Later, I went to the washroom and cried.” Amrita narrates.
She gathered up courage and went on to confront him but was not to be found at his table. Amrita then found him walking outside the canteen. She went up to him and asked him to stop. Pretending nothing wrong had happened, he asked her what was the matter.
“Why did you grab me like that? Don’t you know that you are teacher and I am student? Do you find this behaviour to be normal? Is this the politics you talk about?”, she had reportedly asked to which the professor replied “Amruta, I did it thinking you will take it in ‘that’ sense. You are one of the very few people I have felt attached to in this campus, that’s why I was being ‘free’ with you.
She goes on to say that the professor kept implying that since he’s a teacher and she’s only a student, he has the power and freedom to behave like that with her. “I kept arguing with him but he never accepted that what he did was wrong. I kept crying and told him his action hurt me but every time he kept replying that ‘no, it was your mistake, what you understood is wrong’, Amrita says.
She says that it took her several months to come out of the trauma and was hesitant to speak out about the incident as she was not sure how many would come in support of her against the ‘popular, intellectual and State Film Award winner’. “I was doubtful of myself whether what I did was wrong. I later realised how big a blunder it was, when we are subjected to sexual harassment, how can we be the culprit?” she asks in the video. Also, she adds that as she was in her third year, she did not have the time to go after him and that he won’t come behind her once she is done with college.
But what triggered her was that he was later promoted as the head of the department and a lot of students unaware of her plight had posted about his achievements and innocence online.
That is when Amrita realized that it was important for her to speak up. She says that though she graduated, he still remains a faculty there which makes several girls vulnerable to harassment.
“I could come out of the trauma but there is a chance that others might be exploited or could not stand up to him.”, Amrita says.
Another student Anna says that they were all affected even though it was Amrita who was abused. She says that they did not lodge a complaint as he might hurt them using his power and influence.
“We are now aware of our mistake. We are going forward by correcting our mistake. Be it a teacher or anyone else, we cannot tolerate this kind of action from anyone. May we have the strength to support one among us if they have to go through something similar. Let there be more “opening up”, and true faces of people be known”, another student Anagha says.
The Commune upon going through the website of the college found that the unnamed accused in the above video happens to be one Cheri Jacob K, HoD of Department of English. He has been an Assistant Professor with the Department of English since 2006. He had completed his masters from Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU), New Delhi. He had received the Kerala State Film Award for the Best Book on Cinema in 2016 for his Cinema Muthal Cinema Vare: Chalachitra Samskara Patanangal. He had won the state film award for the Best Article on Cinema: Sepia: Cinemayile Nirangalude Soundarya Rashtreeyangal in 2012.