Who is Swaran Singh? The ‘creepy’ JNU professor fired over sexual harassment allegations
The Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU) has fired a senior faculty member and an expert on international relations over charges of sexual harassment against him involving a Japanese embassy official.
The alleged incident involving the professor took place a few months ago during a university event. The incident is not an isolated case. Many complaints of sexual misconduct had been received against the professor in the past, too, university officials told the news agency.
The decision to terminate the professor was taken by university’s Executive Council- the highest statutory body – after a detailed internal inquiry.
Victim works with Japanese embassy
The victim, who works at the Japanese embassy, was allegedly molested by the faculty member during the university event.
She returned to Japan and filed a formal complaint. The case was taken up with the Indian embassy through diplomatic channels and subsequently referred to the Ministry of External Affairs and the university. The Internal Complaints Committee (ICC) found the charges to be credible.
The Executive Council then recommended termination without any benefits.
JNU Vice-Chancellor Santishree Dhulipudi Pandit told that the dismissal reflects the university’s firm stance on campus safety and accountability.
“This administration is committed to a zero-tolerance policy towards sexual predators, rent seekers and corrupt staff,” she said.
Who is Prof Swaran Singh?
-The accused, Prof Swaran Singh, is a member of the Centre for International Politics, Organisation & Disarmament (CIPOD) at JNU’s School for International Studies. He teaches in the ‘Diplomacy and Disarmament’ division at CIPOD.
-Singh did his Master of Arts (MA) in political science from the University of Delhi. Singh did a PhD in International Studies from JNU. He also has a post-doctoral diploma in Conflict Resolution from Upasala, Sweden.
-Singh joined the School of International Studies at the JNU in 2001. Prior to that, he was a research faculty at the Manohar Parikar Institute for Defence Studies and Analysis (MP-IDSA), New Delhi.
-Singh is considered an expert on arms control & disarmament, conflict resolution and peace studies.
Known as ‘China Guy’
-Singh specialises in Arms Control & Disarmament, Conflict Resolution & Peace Studies, India’s Defence and Nuclear Policy, Multilateralism, Asian affairs, China’s foreign and security policies, China-South Asia, China-India relations, and Emerging Powers related debates, according to the JNU website
-Singh also appeared on TV as an expert on international relations and is known as ‘China Guy’ for his knowledge on China.
-Singh was an Asia Fellow from 2001 to 2002, where he worked at the School of International Studies, Beijing University. He has been awarded several visiting Professorships in China, UPEACE and other universities.
‘Creepy’ professor
-Singh has served as the president of the Association of Asian Studies (2006) and general secretary of the Indian Congress of Asian & Pacific Studies in 2008. He was also the chief vigilance officer at the JNU from 2012 to 2014.
-Singh has also been a visiting professor, University of British Columbia (Vancouver, Canada) from June 2022 to May 2023.
-On campus, Singh is known as a ‘creepy’ professor, according to at least two JNU research scholars who did not want to be named. “There have been several complaints by women against him. He came across as someone who is creepy around women,” said a former CIPOD scholar.
-“He is one of the most senior faculty members at the Centre. Mostly visible on TV, but his citations are not so strong,” another scholar said.
Singh was about to retire in a year.
