High Court takes suo motu cognisance of voyeurism at IIT-Delhi [Read Order]

The Delhi High Court has taken suo motu cognisance of the October 6 incident in which a sweeper allegedly filmed nearly 10 girl students secretly while they were changing inside an washroom at IIT Delhi.

Delhi police have arrested a 20- year-old contractual sweeper was arrested in the case.

A bench of Chief Justice Satish Chandra Sharma and Justice Sanjeev Narula said the incident highlighted the lapse in the security measures employed for college festivals across the State, resulting in injuries, violations, and trauma for students.

The bench asked the police to file a status report about the incident in two weeks.

The court asked the investigating officer to ensure that the identity of the victims is not revealed. It said prompt action should be taken to prevent the dissemination of the photographs or video recorded by the accused.

The court also ordered IIT Delhi, Guru Gobind Singh Indraprastha University to submit a report about their existing policy on the security measures undertaken while hosting cultural festivals.

“This episode has left the victims distraught, and has understandably raised concerns regarding misuse of the videos, including their circulation on various social media platforms,” the bench said.

“In our opinion, it is imperative that adequate security measures are put in place, allowing the students to attend such events without any impending fear of experiencing such acts of violation. Thus, in view of the afore-noted episode, this Court deems it appropriate to take suo motu cognisance of the issue of security breaches, particularly in respect of female attendees, at the festivals organized by colleges/ universities in Delhi-NCR,” the bench added.

The High Court had earlier dealt with the incident of alleged sexual harassment of girl students during a cultural festival at Delhi University's Gargi College in February 2020.

The bench said it has been confronted with several cases of student harassment during such festivals.

"Over the past year, Delhi have reported several cases of sexual harassment. In March, a group of men scaled the boundary walls of Indraprastha College for Women and harassed several students who were celebrating the college's annual festival," it said.

A similar incident occurred at Miranda House on October 14, 2022.

[Read Order]