Women studying in our colleges and universities are largely bereft of support and guidance. At a time when they are most in need of assistance, finding themselves trapped in sexually exploitative situations, they receive little help or counselling.

Seventy-six years after independence, sex continues to remain a taboo subject within our families. The result is that when young women are subject to sexual abuse, they end up having to pay a terrible price in order to preserve what they believe is their identity within our patriarchal culture.

How else can we explain this spate of suicides amongst our women students? A case that received international focus was that of the 20-year-old B.Ed. student from Fakir Mohan Autonomous College in the infamous town of Balasore in Odisha. Infamous, because just two years before, Balasore was home to a major train tragedy in which over 300 people lost their lives.

This young woman was the first member of her family to join an institute of higher studies. Unfortunately, the head of the education department at the institute, Asst. Prof. Sameer Ranjan Sahoo, sought her out, demanding sexual favours and threatening her with academic failure if she declined.

Showing extraordinary courage, she made several online complaints to the authorities and also to the Internal Complaints Committee in her college, who recommended that Sahoo be suspended for a brief period of six months. This recommendation was overruled by the principal of the college. It is common practice that those in authority support one another, and the college principal chose to side with Sahoo, insisting she withdraw her written........

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