HC concludes the discussion about safety during college festivals
New Delhi: On Monday, the Delhi High Court concluded its suo motu proceedings regarding the safety of students, especially female students, during college festivities in the city, taking notice of the actions being taken by the police.
Delhi University, IIT Delhi, and Guru Gobind Singh IP University all said that they will abide by the recommended course of action in addition to their own guidelines and advice about the matter.
The parties were allowed to amend the SOP, which had been created by the police in conjunction with the colleges, in a joint meeting if necessary in the future, according to a bench made up of Acting Chief Justice Manmohan and Justice Manmeet PS Arora.
Following claims by several women students from Delhi University that they were secretly filmed while changing in an IIT-Delhi washroom for a fashion show during the institute’s festival, the court took notice of security breaches at college festivals last year, especially in relation to female students.
The city police were subsequently instructed to meet with the representatives of Delhi University, IIT Delhi, and Guru Gobind Singh IP University in order to develop a standard operating procedure (SOP) for securing the campus during college celebrations.
The court was informed last week that a draft standard SOP had been created, including several recommendations for the kids’ safety, including requiring student identification cards to be shown in order to enter. The SOP further stipulates that police will be on duty to monitor the area outside the campus and that it will be governed by college management.
The instructions state that female security guards will be deployed and that female staff members will be tasked with cleaning the women’s restrooms. Fifteen days before the celebration, the station house officer of the nearby police station will be notified so that the necessary security measures may be implemented.
“It is essential that sufficient security measures are implemented to enable the students to participate in such events without worrying about encountering such violations,” the court had previously said.
