The Letter in the College Magazine
You edit the annual magazine of a government college in Kolkata. The 16-page issue is due at the printer in five days; the quote is ₹18,000 for 1,000 copies. A final-year student emails a 900-word letter saying a professor made sexual comments and touched her arm in the chemistry lab. She wants it published anonymously and says she has not gone to the Internal Complaints Committee (ICC); she will do so only if the magazine publishes first. Two other students say 'everyone knows', but will not be quoted. The professor sits on the magazine's advisory board. The college has an ICC, but its last annual report has not been circulated. The principal tells you to 'drop the whole thing to avoid a scene'. You have no lawyer on the committee and no budget for one. The printer needs the final PDF in 48 hours.
1. Should the letter be published as received? Give your decision and the three strongest reasons for it.
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No - not as received.
- Defamation risk: A written allegation of sexual harassment is defamatory if false. Publishing it to 1,000 readers without verification exposes the editor, publisher and possibly the college to civil defamation and to criminal defamation under Section 356 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, 2023. Anonymity protects the complainant's name, not the publisher from liability.
- Statutory confidentiality: The PoSH Act, 2013 requires confidentiality of the complainant's identity and the inquiry. A college magazine is not the ICC and cannot substitute for it. Publishing details can deter complaints and may breach confidentiality obligations.
- No fair process or verification: The professor has not been asked to respond; he also sits on the advisory board, a conflict that makes internal handling look biased. 'Everyone knows' is not evidence, and no inquiry has tested the claim.
A student magazine has neither the fact-finding power nor the legal cover to adjudicate a harassment allegation in print. The decision should be recorded as an editorial-policy decision, not as obedience to the principal.
2. What can you publish, and what process would make it defensible?
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Publish an awareness and process piece, not the letter: what the ICC is, how a complaint is filed, the timelines, confidentiality, interim relief, and where a student can get support. Interview the ICC presiding officer about procedure, not about this case. Ask the principal's office for a statement of policy and give it a chance to respond. If you report on the case at all, do not identify the student, do not publish the letter, and seek legal review from a senior teacher or outside lawyer. Give the professor a right of reply only if you publish specific allegations against him. Keep the email and your notes confidential; tell the student the limits of anonymity. A defensible editorial could be titled 'Why this magazine will not try harassment cases in print - and where to go instead'. That informs readers without converting a student publication into a court.
3. How do you respond to the principal's instruction, and what do you tell the student?
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Separate the two issues. The magazine is not publishing the letter because it fails verification, confidentiality and fair-process tests - not because the principal ordered a cover-up. Ask the principal to put the instruction in writing; record it. Explain that a student magazine cannot adjudicate a harassment claim, but that suppressing all mention of ICC procedure would be wrong.
To the student: explain that the magazine cannot publish an anonymous allegation without evidence; explain the ICC route, confidentiality and support; urge her to preserve evidence and not to name herself in public. Do not promise that nothing will be published, and do not share her name. If she wants public accountability, suggest a general piece on ICC delays using official data, or a letter to the ICC. If she fears retaliation, tell her about interim relief and the college's obligation to prevent victimisation. The reply should be respectful, documented and free of any suggestion that she is being silenced.