Who is Afraid of Gender Justice? APPSC Questions Cancellation of Bhanwari Devi Panel Discussion at IIT Bombay

Mumbai — The abrupt cancellation of a panel discussion titled "What it Takes: Re-making the Workplace (Or, How Bhanwari Devi Changed Our World)" scheduled for January 4th, by the IIT Bombay administration has drawn sharp criticism from the Ambedkar-Periyar-Phule Study Circle (APPSC). The event, organized by the institute’s Gender Cell, aimed to spotlight the transformative role of Bhanwari Devi’s struggle in shaping the Vishakha guidelines against workplace sexual harassment.

The APPSC, a student collective which respond to issues impacting students within and out side IITB. has accused the administration of suppressing critical conversations on caste and gender equity. In a strongly worded statement, the group said, "The event was organized with due adherence to procedural guidelines. The abrupt cancellation by the institute, even after sincere attempts of inclusion of suggested changes, points to an 'alarming' suppression of critical discourse on caste and gender equity."

Bhanwari Devi’s Legacy and the Vishakha Guidelines

Bhanwari Devi, a grassroots activist, became a symbol of resistance after being gang-raped in 1992 by influential members of a rural village in Rajasthan after stopping a child marriage in a Gujjar family. Her case became a landmark in India’s gender justice movement, culminating in the Supreme Court’s Vishakha guidelines, which laid the foundation for legal mechanisms to address workplace harassment.

Initially, due to a lack of evidence the accused were acquitted by the local court. Bhanwari Devi and others filed a writ petition with the Supreme Court of India under the Vishakha platform. The filed PIL sought to address the issue of sexual harassment of women in the workplace.

A three-judge bench of the Supreme Court addressed the case and issued Vishakha guidelines in 1997.

The canceled panel discussion aimed to delve into these contributions while reflecting on the broader women’s movements of the 1970s and 1980s that advocated for democratic institutions against patriarchal oppression.

The APPSC expressed concerns over the lack of transparency surrounding the decision to cancel the event. "The anonymous objections, coupled with opaque administrative interventions, undermine the autonomy of statutory bodies like the Gender Cell and betray the values of transparency, inclusivity, and academic freedom," the statement read.

The group also highlighted the broader implications of such actions, calling it a "serious attack on campus democracy, academic freedom, and the social responsibility of universities."

The APPSC emphasized the significance of the discussion in light of contemporary issues, such as the growing violence against women and the ongoing RG Kar protests. "Today, women’s movements experience attacks under neoliberalism, leading to reactionary patriarchal politics causing growing violence on women from Unnao to Hathras to women wrestlers," the statement noted.

The group argued that the canceled event could have served as a critical intervention to revitalize the discourse on gender justice and equity in academic spaces.

In its concluding remarks, the APPSC called on the administration to uphold academic freedoms and maintain a constitutional spirit in addressing gender violence. "Let us ensure that IIT Bombay remains a space for critical inquiry and transformative change," the statement urged.