The Goan Network
PANAJI
In an apparent attempt at keeping alive a pseudo-controversy raked up by an RSS-affiliated students wing last month, Panaji Police on Monday afternoon booked an FIR against Shilpa Singh, assistant professor at VM Salgaonkar College of Law at Miramar.
With the subject of contention this time around being a post submitted by Singh on social networking site Facebook in April this year, the FIR has been booked for an alleged offence under Section 295A of the Indian Penal Code for deliberate and malicious acts intended to outrage the religious feelings of any class by insulting its religion or the religious beliefs.
PI Panaji Sudesh Naik acted on a complaint by one Rajiv Jha from Bicholim who claimed that the post in question allegedly outraged his religious feelings. Police have accused Singh of "deliberately and knowingly" uploading the post publicly.
Earlier last month, Singh had come under attack from the right wing especially the Akhil Bharatiya Vidhyarthi Parishad (ABVP), which threatened severe agitation if the assistant professor wasn’t dismissed within 24 hours.
ABVP's accusation against the political science professor was that she allegedly used anti-religious material in her online lecture. The accusation, however, was not supported by any evidence.
The college, however, refused to comply with the demand after an in-house 'Grievance Committee' probe found no merit in the ABVP allegations.
“In view of your said statement (demanding termination of Singh’s services within 24 hours and threatening severe agitation against the institution upon the failure of the college to do so)...we reserve our rights to file appropriate legal proceedings against you and your organization, as we may be advised,” the College stated in the letter addressed to ABVP.
Support for Singh had poured in from political science professors from across the nation who debunked the baseless complaint and questioned the locus standi of such third parties to interfere in academic matters and proceedings inside classrooms.
Prof files counter complaint, alleges criminal intimidation, harassment and outraging of dignity
PANAJI: Assistant Professor Shilpa Singh has filed a counter complaint at the Panaji Police station against Rajiv Jha alleging criminal intimidation, harassment and outraging of dignity.
“The accused is criminally intimidating me and inviting others to make derogatory remarks against me which is exhibited in his approval of the comments on his post. I am being targeted for my personal views and being called names by people on this FB post by Jha. I am being constantly vilified and abused by people in the comments section of his post,” Singh has stated in her complaint, which brings to the notice of the police the hateful and threatening posts and comments aimed at her by Jha.
