SNDT University, Juhu campus. (Source: SNDT website) SNDT University, Juhu campus. (Source: SNDT website) A day after a second-year engineering student at SNDT Women’s University in Juhu was allegedly forced to strip inside her hostel room by a warden, who pulled her up over the length of her skirt, the warden was sent on leave and an inquiry initiated by the university. The alleged incident took place on Sunday afternoon when the student was going out of the university premises. The police said that the warden, Rachana Jhaveri, objected to the length of the student’s skirt. “The student told the warden that she was heading to see a doctor for a skin infection as a result of which she felt uncomfortable wearing pants,” said an official at Santacruz police station. The student alleged that Jhaveri did not heed her explanation and dragged her back into her hostel room, where she was forced to strip to prove that she had an infection. In a statement, the university said on Monday that it had taken a serious note of both the student’s and the hostel inmates’ complaints. “An inquiry committee has been instituted consisting of three members including from the management council. The committee will submit its report in three days. The hostel warden has been asked to go on indefinite leave and not to enter the campus. SNDTWU follows zero-tolerance policy and will not allow any act of discrimination or intimidation against any of its 50,000 students,” read the statement. After the news of the incident spread on Sunday, students protested on the campus, demanding that Jhaveri be sacked. The aggrieved student went to Santacruz police station to file a complaint. “We have registered a case of sexual assault against Jhaveri and recording statements of witnesses,” said S H Koregaonkar, senior inspector, Santacruz police station. For all the latest Mumbai News, download Indian Express App

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