Members of the Women in Cinema Collective (WCC) have urged the establishment of an Internal Complaint Committee (ICC) in all arts institutions, following the alleged sexual assault of a first-year student at the School of Drama and Fine Arts, Thrissur by the college dean.
Students from the institution began to protest after the accused went on the run last week. Subsequently, WCC, an organisation for women working in Malayalam cinema, issued a statement on Monday noting that the strike for the dismissal of the dean, led by the institution’s female students, was an important move.
“The number of girls who study in art educational institutions is generally quite low. It is shocking that a girl who came to study drama after overcoming many obstacles tried to commit suicide after being sexually assaulted by her teacher,” the statement read.
The WCC added that the incident highlighted the importance of having an ICC in all art institutions. “Creative spaces belong to women too. It is the responsibility of all such institutions and the government, to ensure safety and justice for women,” said the statement.
The accused dean, S Sunilkumar, was arrested on Tuesday by Thrissur West police and booked under IPC section 376 (Rape) based on a complaint from the undergraduate female student. He was immediately suspended by Calicut University, which manages the School of Drama and Fine Arts.
The WCC was formed by a group of female artists and technicians from the Malayalam film industry, including actors Manju Warrier, Parvathy Thiruvothu, Rima Kallingal, Geethu Mohandas, and editor Bina Paul, in the aftermath of the 2017 female actor abduction and sexual assault incident.
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Since then, they have been constantly demanding the establishment of ICC/Grievance Redressal Cell in the Malayalam film industry, as mandated by the Supreme Court in the Vishaka case and the Sexual Harassment at Work Places (Prevention, Prohibition and Redressal) Act 2013. A PIL was filed by the WCC seeking the same, and in February, Kerala’s Women Commission also stressed the same and added itself as a respondent in the petition.
While that PIL is still pending, the makers of the upcoming Malayalam film 1744 WA (White Alto), Kabinii Films, have voluntarily established an ICC to address sexual harassment and misconduct complaints on their sets.