File photo of St. Stephen's college
The Delhi High Court today granted anticipatory bail to a St. Stephen's chemistry teacher accused of molesting a doctoral student and asked him to join the investigation.
Justice Indermeet Kaur granted bail to Satish Kumar, a 40-year-old assistant professor in the chemistry department, on a personal bond of Rs 20,000 and a surety of a like amount.
Satish Kumar had moved the high court after a trial court on June 23 dismissed his anticipatory bail plea.
On a complaint by the student, police registered a case against Satish Kumar on various charges, including stalking and sexual harassment.
In the FIR lodged on June 19, the doctoral student said Satish Kumar "sexually assaulted" her on October 15, 2013, inside a laboratory.
According to the complaint, he also followed her to a Delhi Metro station close to the college when she moved away after freeing herself from the teacher's clutches.
The student alleged that she was first harassed in May 2013 in the same laboratory. She said the harassment continued despite her resistance.
The PhD student said Satish Kumar stopped guiding her in her research and kept a watch on her social media accounts. She accused college principal Valson Thampu of siding with the accused teacher.
In his plea, Satish Kumar termed the woman's charges "concocted" and said there was not a single witness to any of the alleged incidents.
He contended that he could not have molested or followed the woman as he was 85 per cent physically disabled and walks with the help of a stick.