The Delhi High Court has upheld its restraint order of Professor Atul Johri who was accused of sexual assault by eight women students. The High Court rejected the JNU administration's plea against challenging the ICC verdict. The Court has said that till a complete investigation is held, Johri will not be allowed to enter the School of Life Sciences and neither will be the warden of any hostel in the JNU campus.
In a statement, the JNUSU said that it "welcomed the order". The eight women who had accused the professor of sexual harassment and filed an FIR in March 2018 had challenged the ICC's report on the issue. The ICC, in its report, had said that there is no need to suspend the professor despite 8 FIRs being filed against him. The JNUSU had also protested against the verdict calling in biased and claimed the administration wasn't doing a fair job of the case. The students also held that the ICC doesn't have the power to conduct an inquiry into the allegations but only into the preliminary issue of suspension of the professor pending criminal investigation and trial.
A two-hour hearing took place on Friday, after which the High court decided that it was necessary for the ICC report to be challenged. They have also issued a notice on the new petition filed by the complainants and the previous petition has been dismissed. They further added that the issue of Johri's stay on campus will be decided in the present writ wherein the ICC report will also be examined for its legal validity. Till the matter is resolved, Johri will not be allowed to enter SLS and he cannot be a warden either. The matter is now listed for hearing on May 3.