Kolkata Professor Getting Fired Over Leaked Private Photos Is Peak Misogyny

A former assistant professor of St Xavier’s University in Kolkata alleged that she was forced to resign and asked to pay a compensation of ₹99 crores as “damages” to the institution after a parent complained about her private Instagram images.

A university spokesperson said that her choice to upload certain pictures of herself on social media has caused “immense and irreparable damage” to their image. A father has called her images “objectionable”.

Guardian’s Complaint

Image Courtesy: Instagram/livewire

Sharing her story to Live Wire, the ex-professor also shared the complaint of the parent. It read that he was appalled to see his son looking at her “sexually explicit” images that were causing “deliberate public exposure.”

The professor was in swimwear, which the guardian called “dressed in her undergarments, uploading pictures on social media is utterly shameful.”

He further stated that he had tried to shield his son from indecency and objectification of the female body. “It is obscene, vulgar and improper for an 18-year old student to see his professor dressed in scanty clothes exhibiting her body on a public platform,” he added.

University’s Response

Image Courtesy: Instagram/livewire

The St Xavier’s University of Kolkata allegedly forced her to resign. The professor reported that she was called to a conference where four men were already present. They were a part of an emergency committee formed by the university.

She said that the guardian’s letter was read out loud in the room, and a few of her images were pinned to it and circulated for confirmation if it was her in them, all without her consent.

In her complaint to the police, she also shared that her images in the blue swimsuit were from before she joined the university. She shared those images on her Instagram stories, which automatically vanish after 24 hours. She also pointed out that her profile was private, and not open for the public to see.

She suspected her account to be hacked and called it sexual harassment. She said, “For close to an hour, I was slut-shamed and harassed.”

Twitterati Reactions

People on Twitter came in support of the professor and pointed out the troubling levels of misogyny surrounding the entire incident. People said it was her right to post anything on her private account and slammed the university for taking such action over a moralistic complaint.

A user wrote, “Instead of ‘shielding’ his son from objectifying the female body, he should’ve considered teaching and normalising the female body for him.”

Instead of 'shielding' his son from objectifying the female body, he should've considered teaching and normalising the female body for him. Why would being an employee in an educational institution mean sacrificing the liberty to dress and posting on your own social media acc? https://t.co/WANsasdc5N

— Batman's girl 🫦 (@rkivekiwife) August 9, 2022

Another tweeted, “And then we wonder why men grow up with such a huge sense of entitlement regarding their behaviour.”

And then we wonder why men grow up with such a huge sense of entitlement regarding their behaviour.

Terrible parenting. Pathetic is a mild word for such assholes https://t.co/h6ijsYsmTG

— Richa Singh (@richa_singh) August 9, 2022

Stalking, Sexual Harassment, Ignorance & Misogyny

We agree with all these people supporting the professor. She is the victim here, and it is evident that the 18-year old boy came across her images unethically.

It is a shame that even in 2022, a parent, instead of taking this opportunity to teach his son about consent and privacy, resorted to complaining about the professor who posted an image on her private social media account.

Don't Miss: Sexist Things We Wish Our Mothers Never Told Us

What is more shocking is the reaction of the university. It is peak misogyny. If the professor’s allegations are true, then the university not only forced her to resign but had four male professors grill her in a room and question her over her private images, obtained non-consensually. On top of everything, she was also asked to pay money for damaging the reputation of the institution.

A student of St. Xavier’s Kolkata was recently caught looking at a pic of a Prof in her swimsuit (taken from her private IG). His father sent a letter to the uni condemning HER for his son’s leching.

Prof was forced to resign in a strikingly humiliating manner.

2022… damn. pic.twitter.com/2RNLnXBd0p

— Sukhnidh ⚆ _ ⚆ (@skhndh) August 8, 2022

If a reputed educational institution like St Xavier’s University has such puritanical views, what is it going to teach our future generations? Even in 2022, authorities would rather turn a blind eye to a legally adult man stalking his teacher and instead shame the woman whose privacy was clearly violated.

It raises the question about the safety of other female professors and students on the premises. This is not only a reflection of the institute's failures, but of the parent who failed to teach his son the right lessons.

Don't Miss: Women Share The Most Annoying Sexist Jokes They Have Heard

This is why we need to educate young kids on the concept of consent and privacy. As guardians, we must stop blaming the victim and call the right perpetrator out. We need to call out academic spaces that preach about morality, but only when it comes to women.