In a case that has reignited the gay sex debate after the Delhi High Court decriminalised adult consensual intercourse seven months ago, S R Siras, a 64-year-old professor, was suspended for performing alleged homosexual acts in his official residence on campus. Dr. Siras, who headed the department of modern Indian languages at Aligarh Muslim University and where he had taught for 22 years, is due to retire this September.
The source of the video clip is unknown, even as rumours suggest that the professor was the victim of a 'sting' operation by a local news channel or by students who had broken into his home.
Dr. Siras, a well known poet who received the Maharashtra Sahitya Parishad’s award for his 2002 collection, Grass Under My Feet however alleges that several senior staff members of the university had a hand in the incident. The university had officially clarified that it was not a party to the incident.
Dr. Siras and his male friend were being intimate in the bedroom of his home on the evening of February 8 when three men pounced on them. The men are believed to have had entered his flat (at some point during the evening) before suddenly taking photographs, according to a report which was the result of a fact-finding mission conducted by a team of five lawyers and activists including Arvind Narrain of the Bangalore-based Alternative Law Forum (ALF).
The professor was also quoted as saying that as he pleaded with the three persons not to publish the pictures, pictures some of the professors from AMU including Dr. Zubair Khan (Proctor), Dr. Fareed Ahmad Khan (Dy. Proctor), Dr. Rahat Abrar (Public Relations Officer), Prof. N.A.K. Durrani (Media Advisor), Dr. Afzal Anees (Reader) entered his flat.
Dr. Siras said he was shocked to see his colleagues in his flat as he had never called for any help or invited any of the professors to his house that day except for Dr. Afzal Anees whom he had called for as he was not feeling well.
One of the men who claimed to be from the media told Dr. Siras that if he admits in front of the Proctor that he was having homosexual sex, then they will delete the recording. Dr. Siras immediately apologised and the Proctor told him to not to worry and that nothing will happen on this matter. Dr. Siras thought the matter had been settled and only realised the next day that the 'incident' had been reported in many newspapers. He was served with a suspension notice and was ordered to vacate his campus residence within a week the same day.
According to the fact-finding report which was released on Mar 10, Dr. Siras had repeatedly tried to file a First Information Report (FIR) about the various offences which were committed against him including criminal intimidation, assault, trespass and wrongful confinement on 3 and 4 March.
[A FIR is a written document prepared by the police when they receive information about the commission of a cognisable offence. An FIR is a very important document as it sets the process of criminal justice in motion. It is only after the FIR is registered in the police station that the police takes up investigation of the case. From: www.humanrightsinitiative.org]
Prof Siras 'named' three unknown persons with a physical description and mentions that he would be able to identify them, if he saw them. He also named four professors of the AMU as having perpetrated the offences against him: Prof. Zubair Khan (Proctor, AMU, Aligarh), Dr. Fareed Ahmad Khan (Dy. Proctor), Dr. Rahat Abrar (Public Relations Officer) and Prof. N.A.K. Durrani (Media Advisor).
On 3rd March, 2009, he was sent back because the police said FIR was in English language and the police would only register an FIR in Hindi. The next day when he returned with a Hindi translation of the same, he was sent back again saying he should personally give it to Mr. Vijay Prakash,Senior Superintendent of Police (SSP), Aligarh, in the evening. Accompanied by the team of lawyers and activists, he eventually met with Mr. M.S. Chauhan, SP City, Aligarh who said the FIR it cannot be registered at the time point because Dr. Siras has named some very prominent figures in AMU.
The report read: ‘He (Chauhan) offered to accept the application but said that only after this matter has been further investigated will Dr. Siras be able to register an FIR. We informed the SP City that every citizen has a right to register an FIR and to this his response (in Hindi) was “kal tum log District Magistrate ke khilaf FIR karoge; aisa thodi na hota hai” meaning “tomorrow you people will go do an FIR against the District Magistrate and that will not be acceptable”.
‘As the Team refused to leave, the SSP had no option but to show up. He began by shouting at us saying “ahbi isi waqt yeh FIR kyun karni hai, kya aasman sirr pe gir pada hai?” meaning “has the sky fallen on your head that you have to do this FIR right now?” The SSP too refused to file an FIR and asked us to come to his office the next day.
‘The Team and Dr. Siras soon reached the Civil Lines police station and the process of registering the FIR started immediately. Mr. Singh, the police person in charge on duty told us that it will take several hours for this long FIR (in Hindi) to get typed and we can come next day early in the morning to collect a copy. He repeatedly assured us that it will be certainly ready by morning.
‘That night (04.03.10), the Team left Aligarh. Next day (05.03.10), Dr. Siras informed the Team that the police have refused to file his FIR. A Team member called Mr. Singh at the Civil Lines police station and was informed that there is pressure from ‘the top’ to not register this FIR. Attempts were made to contact both the SSP and the SP City – SSP refused to talk about this and SP City was apparently too busy to talk.’
The update from Dr. Siras as on 9 March is that the FIR has still not been registered.
Meanwhile, over 80 academics from universities across India and elsewhere have signed an open letter in support of Dr. Siras.
‘The outrage of the university authorities is deeply misdirected. Instead of suspending Dr Siras, they should have taken stern and serious action against those who so blatantly took on the role of playing moral police with no regard whatsoever for Dr Siras’ constitutionally recognised right to privacy and dignity within his home and the university.’ Reads the letter titled “Whose Morality is This?”.
A Facebook group ‘We support Dr. S.R. Siras!’ has also been set up.