Complainants Condemn ABVP's Politicisation Of JNU Sexual Harassment Case, Accuse NDTV, TOI, Republic Of Publishing Unverified Information
New Delhi: Complainants in an ongoing university sexual harassment investigation have issued a joint statement sharply criticising RSS’s student wing Akhil Bharatiya Vidyarthi Parishad (ABVP) for politicising their internal grievance, while calling out major news organisations including NDTV, Republic TV, Times of India, OpIndia, and News18 for circulating unverified information and breaching their privacy.
The signatories, who formally lodged a complaint against a faculty member through the university’s Internal Committee (IC), also known as GSCASH in the campus, expressed deep concern over the public spectacle surrounding their case. For the last couple of weeks, especially after Rahul Gandhi’s ‘smash patriarchy’ went viral after an event in Pune, right wing social media handles escalated the campaign on social media.
According to the statement by the complainants, members of the right-wing student organisation ABVP mounted aggressive campus demonstrations and media campaigns without the consent or knowledge of the victims.
The statement details how the issue – originally meant to be handled with strict institutional confidentiality – was co-opted to serve ideological agendas. The complainants revealed that prior to the official proceedings, individuals affiliated with ABVP had urged them not to file a formal complaint and instead pressuring them to accept an informal apology from the accused professor.
Campus Harassment Complainants Denounce ABVP Hijack And Unverified Media Coverage By NDTV, TOI & Others
The criticism extends beyond student politics to several prominent Indian media outlets. The complainants explicitly named NDTV, Republic TV, Times of India, OpIndia, and News18, alleging that these organisations published unverified information regarding the investigation. The statement noted that private class group chat screenshots detailing personal accounts of harassment were leaked and published on OpIndia, causing significant distress.
Furthermore, students reported receiving intrusive telephone calls and messages from journalists pressing for confidential details, creating a hostile environment on campus. The statement stressed that such coverage, combined with public demonstrations staged outside university dining halls and departments, undermined the complainants’ agency and placed their anonymity at severe risk.
Rejecting attempts to frame the issue as a “left versus right” political battle, the victims reiterated that their actions stem strictly from a desire for safety, bodily autonomy, and justice regarding systemic abuses of power. They firmly stated that no political group speaks on their behalf and demanded an immediate end to the public exploitation of their trauma.
