A team of Tamil Nadu police officials probing the Chennai Kalakshetra sexual harassment case left for Kerala on Sunday, April 2 to record the statements of witnesses in the sexual harassment case against Hari Padman, who is one of the accused. Hari is one of the four faculty members who has been accused of sexual harassment at Kalakshetra Foundation’s Rukmini Devi College of Fine Arts. Police sources told TNM that an investigative team will meet the complainant and others involved in order to record witness statements. Meanwhile, according to the police, Hari Padman is on an official tour to Hyderabad to participate in a cultural event. He has been asked by the Kalakshetra management not to return to the campus.
A First Information Report (FIR) was registered against Hari Padman at the Adyar All Women Police Station on Friday. He has been booked under sections 354A (sexual harassment) and 506 (criminal intimidation) of the Indian Penal Code (IPC), and section 4 (penalty for harassment of woman) of the Tamil Nadu Prohibition of Harassment of Women Act. The FIR was registered on the second day of protests by the students of Kalakshetra against the accused and against the institution for its inaction.
Earlier the same day, Tamil Nadu State Commission for Women chairperson AS Kumari had visited the Kalakshetra campus. Her visit took place the morning after students staged a night-long protest demanding action against the four accused. During the protest, the students also voiced their disappointment with the Kalakshetra administration, especially director Revathi Ramachandran, for failing to take action against the perpetrators.
Speaking to TNM earlier, AS Kumari had said that the State Commission for Women would evaluate around 90 written complaints submitted to her. She had also said that the complaints have been filed regarding various issues faced by students inside Kalakshetra. “I will submit my report to Chief Minister MK Stalin. After his assessment, the government will direct the police to take action,” Kumari had told TNM.
Kalakshetra Foundation is a Union government-funded institution and has been declared an institute of national importance. Several students have accused the institution of propagating a toxic culture, and many allegations of sexual harassment were levelled against four faculty members: Hari Padman, Sanjith Lal, Sai Krishnan, and Sreenath.