Andhra police arrest JNTU Kakinada professor for alleged sexual harassment

Days after he was booked by the police for sexually harassing girl students, Jawaharlal Nehru Technological University (JNTU) professor K Babulu was arrested by the Andhra Pradesh police on Wednesday.

The JNTU-Kakinada professor was picked up from Rajahmundry, the police said.

This comes less than a week after students of the university staged a protest, demanding that the tainted professor be sacked.

Babulu, who was the Director of Information, Computer Science and Technology department, was accused of sexual harassment.

The students protested for several hours as both the police and university registrar, Subba Rao, failed to convince the students. However, they later withdrew the protest after an assurance from Vice-Chancellor Professor VVS Kumar, that strict action would be taken.

According to reports, the Sarpavaram police had registered an FIR on January 30 on the basis of a complaint lodged by JNTU Registrar Subba Rao, who had forwarded a letter submitted by 20 girl students.

The accused had been booked under Section 354 (Assault or criminal force to woman with intent to outrage her modesty), 354A (Sexual harassment) and 509 (Word, gesture or act intended to insult the modesty of a woman) of the IPC, besides relevant sections of the Nirbhaya Act. 

After he was arrested at Rajahmundry, the accused was produced in court and sent to judicial custody.

Last week, the university constituted a five member-committee to verify the allegations against Babulu, based on the complaint of a MTech student.

The complainant levelled the allegation that the accused professor touched them inappropriately and made vulgar comments during a viva held on January 23, 24 and 25 in the laboratory. The accused professor was the external examiner.

As the incident came to fore, first-year students wrote a letter to the university administration asking the administration to prevent Babulu from giving any important assignment as he preyed on girls with his sexual advances.

He had been absconding since then.

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