Gujarat: Professor held for bribery, sexual harassment

Ahmedabad:

A medical college professor has been arrested by the Gujarat Anti-Corruption Bureau (ACB) on the charges of sexual harassment and demanding bribe from junior teachers for favourable appraisal. The accused, Dr S K Nagar, is a Class-1 state government employee and currently serves as a professor with the state-run MP Shah Medical College in Jamnagar, the ACB said in a release on Thursday.

He had earlier served as the head of the anatomy department with Vadodara Medical College, it added. The ACB has arrested Nagar under section 354 (a) of the IPC, which dealswith sexual harassment, and under various sections of the Prevention of Corruption Act.

When he was with Vadodara Medical College some time back, the state Health and Family Welfare Department had received an application from a woman faculty member against Nagar, it said. In her application, the junior medical teacher claimed Nagar has demanded Rs 1.5 lakh for writing a favourable confidential report about her. She also alleged that Nagar had a habit of passing lewd remarks.

She also attached an audio-video evidence to prove her claim, the ACB said. For further investigation, the health department forwarded the matter to the ACB, which found substance in the allegation of bribery and sexual harassment levelled against him by the complainant and some other woman applicants, it added.

A forensic analysis of audio and video footage confirmed its authenticity, the ACB said. Nagar had earlier served in medical colleges of Surat, Ahmedabad and Patan.

A detailed investigation by the ACB also revealed that he was involved in sexual harassment of female teachers as well as medical students in the past too..