Girls college hai ladke toh aas paas ghumenge hirsquo Harassment is routine say allgirlsrsquo college students in Jaipur

  • | Friday | 29th March, 2019

So this is not a case unique to IIS University, students in almost all girls’ college in the city have to face harassment. They say, “Tumhara girls college hai isliye ladke yahaan ghumte hain’ or ‘Girls college hai, ladke toh aas paas ghumenge hi’.”Yashika Choudhary, a first-year student of BA Pass course, says, "Despite the #MeToo movement and widespread rage against sexual assaulters, some men simply can't get hold of themselves. A man was masturbating inside the car parked near the college and before we could call the police, he ran away. There are a lot of cafes around the university, which are frequented by men, some of whom pass lewd comments on girls. A similar incident happened near Kanoria College and I was an eyewitness to it.

While the recent case of a man masturbating in front of IIS University drew anger, the students of the varsity say that it’s hardly the first time they’ve had to deal with harassment. Men waiting outside the gate to pass obscene comments or ogle at the girls is rampant, the students tell us.On Tuesday afternoon, a man was caught allegedly masturbating in front of the entrance of IIS University – an all-girls university – in Mansarovar. He was spotted by a student who called up her brother, who reported the matter to the police. The man was taken to the Shipra Path Police Station, but no FIR was lodged against him and the police released him after a few hours stating that he was 'mentally unstable'. This incident has again brought to light the problems the students of not just IIS University, but many other girls' colleges in Jaipur, have to face on a daily basis. When we spoke to a few students of the university, we got a unanimous response – men standing outside the campus passing obscene comments and leching at them is a routine, which they mostly ignore.Vipasha Bhatnagar, a third-year Psychology (Hons) student, says, "Such incidents have not only disrupted the atmosphere outside the college, but have also created fear among freshers. There are a lot of cafes around the university, which are frequented by men, some of whom pass lewd comments on girls. A similar incident happened near Kanoria College and I was an eyewitness to it. A man was masturbating inside the car parked near the college and before we could call the police, he ran away. So this is not a case unique to IIS University, students in almost all girls’ college in the city have to face harassment. The worst part is that our university is situated in a residential area and the locals living near our university blame us for all this menace. They say, “Tumhara girls college hai isliye ladke yahaan ghumte hain’ or ‘Girls college hai, ladke toh aas paas ghumenge hi’.”Yashika Choudhary, a first-year student of BA Pass course, says, "Despite the #MeToo movement and widespread rage against sexual assaulters, some men simply can't get hold of themselves. During lunch breaks, we sometimes go to nearby cafes. Boys come up to us and ask us questions like, 'Do you know where the liquor shop is? Or 'Would you like to go out with me?'. The incident which happened on Tuesday will result in knee-jerk reactions such as police patrols, anti-Romeo squad, etc, which will continue for a short time. But soon, things will return to the usual and we will have to accept the fact that ‘nothing much can be done’."Manaswini Sharma, a final-year MSc student in Environmental Science, says, “Once, I was sitting outside the college and there was a man – standing at a distance – who was continuously looking at me. When I looked closely, I saw him fondling himself. This happened in broad daylight! It is sickening, to say the least. Once, a guy grabbed my friend’s hand near the college. This incident happened when my friend, who is a hosteller, had gone to a nearby shop. More than the day scholars, it is the hostellers and those living in PGs who have to face harassment because they live in the vicinity," she shares, adding, “It's been around five years that I have been studying in this college and such incidents don’t shock me anymore.”Nisha Bharti, a final-year BA student, narrates an incident when one of her friends was groped by a man riding a bike. “And he was laughing at us,” she says. “You are not safe even while walking in a group. Harassment in the form of hooting, ogling, whistling, passing lewd comments is rampant, especially around girls’ colleges. Men think they can get away by doing anything and everything. Moreover, I have never seen police patrolling near our college. Maybe regular patrolling might instill a sense of fear among miscreants,” she adds.Jolly Jain Pant, who is pursuing PhD in Mass Communication from the university, says, "For PhD scholars, there is a rule that we are not allowed to park our vehicles inside the college campus. Once, my friends and I were standing near my car parked outside the college. We must have been there for 10 minutes, and there were two boys loitering around vying for our attention. We went inside, and when we were back after half an hour, our car’s rear-view mirror was broken. Those two boys were standing right across the road. We asked the security guards of our college and they told us that the boys were the culprit. The guards didn't stop them because the security of the vehicles parked outside the college is not their responsibility, we were told. It is a scary – such men can do anything to gain the girls’ attention. It's high time the police takes strict action against offenders.”However, Dr Raakhi Gupta, rector & registrar, IIS University, Jaipur, told us that all measures are taken to ensure girls’ safety. “Being a women’s university, we give utmost priority to girls’ safety. The university premise is always under the surveillance of a camera. We have installed a television set in the police station with access to the cameras set up in and around the campus which is regularly monitored by the police. Students of the university are not allowed to leave the campus without a gate-pass, which is issued only after seeking the permission of their parents. Only mother/father of the ward can pick their daughter from the university. Also, parents get the message as soon as their ward punches the identity card at the time of arrival and departure from the campus. The university’s security guards are active throughout the day to curb mischievous activities around the campus. Police have been informed about the undesired activities and strict action needs to be taken by the police department.”

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