Private Relationship Beyond University’s Scope, Termination Set Aside: Madhya Pradesh High Court

The Madhya Pradesh High Court, per Justice Vivek Jain, set aside the termination of an Indira Gandhi National Tribal University professor accused of sexual harassment by a student.

The Court observed that the alleged relationship began in 2013, long before the complainant enrolled as a research scholar in 2021, and that she was a married adult over 30 years old.

The Court held that the university had “no business to inquire into” a private, consensual relationship unconnected to its academic environment.

Finding the disciplinary action legally unsustainable, the Court granted the professor relief and quashed the termination order.

[Rakesh Singh v. Indira Gandhi National Tribal University and Others]