Don’t dither over harassment complaints, says Stalin

The Chief Minister says only a few incidents come to light and vows to bring offenders to book

Chief Minister M.K. Stalin on Friday urged schools not to hesitate to act on complaints of sexual harassment received from women and children. And he urged parents not to decide against going public with complaints.

In his televised message on the International Day for the Elimination of Violence Against Women, he encouraged women and children to come forward and file complaints in case of sexual harassment. Mr. Stalin said he was in agony over the recent incidents of harassment of women and children, some of whom had ended their lives. While women and children were sexually harassed at public places, “only a few incidents come to light and others are being hidden”.

Pointing to the laws available to deal with such cases, Mr. Stalin said, “I assure [you] that these persons [offenders] will be brought to justice under these laws.” Children could lodge complaints with school teachers and headmasters, parents and the school management. “Those in the administration should not hesitate to act on complaints, presuming that doing so would bring disrepute to their schools.”