More NIFT students complaint against 'tainted' Kothari

In a new twist to the sexual harassment case at National Institute of Fashion Technology (NIFT), Bhopal about 15 second and third year students leveled fresh charges of harassment against former joint director Vasant Kothari on Monday.
The students submitted a written complaint to police in presence of women's panel chairperson Upma Rai at the state women's commission office.
"A second FIR against Kothari is likely to be filed by police soon," Rai told TOI.
Students came to register their complaint during visit of National Commission for Women (NCW), member Charu WaliKhanna to NIFT campus at Bhoj (Open) University.
WaliKhanna, meanwhile, slammed the director general (DG), NIFT, Prem Kumar Gera and director NIFT Bhopal U S Tolia, terming the episode an 'institutional failure'.
Khanna visited the NIFT campus in connection with the sexual harassment case levelled by 30 students and three professors in November.
She strongly criticised NIFT higher authority's for their stand in the case.
"This shows severe deficiency and incapability of authorities in running an institution. After the incident, five internal complaint committees have been constituted. However, none of them follow Vishakha guidelines or the new sexual harassment at Workplace Act. Also, students were put under pressure to stop them from complaining," Khanna told TOI.
She also took a strong view of Gera's comments as reported to her by students that "such incidents are common in fashion industry and one has to put up with it. The DG's comments are highly insensitive and misogynistic. We condemn it strongly. Besides, it is also failure on the part of NIFT that accused Kothari has not yet been suspended; only transferred according to his choice."
Addressing a press conference later she said, "Till date no action has been taken against Kothari. This is shameful as NIFT is a prestigious institute under Union ministry of textile. If such a crime can go unpunished for so long in the state capital, then I can only shudder to imagine what would happen elsewhere."
She also told media that initially the students who were being sent alone were scared and would turn hostile as they were under lot of pressure. "They were terrified. Later, they all came together and told me their plight."
A sex-scam?
After meeting the students at NIFT, Charu WaliKhanna called it a 'sex scam' before the media. Later, she told TOI over phone that she referred it as a scam because of its nature. "The matter was blown up in September after freshers' party, however it had been going on since Kothari joined in July. State women's commission (SWC) chairperson Upma Rai said that this was definitely not a sex-scam or a scandal.
Statements not recorded
NCW member Khanna had requested that an SDM should be present to record statement of students under section 164 of CrPc. She even ensured that students go to SWC where SDM was supposed to arrive. She travelled with them in NIFT bus but on reaching there, SDM T T Nagar C M Mishra pleaded he was not authorized to record their statements under section 164. So the students gave an application to the police.