Page 987 - Compendium of UGC Regulations 1957-2023

Regulations pertaining to Student’s Grievance Redressal, Promotion of Equity, Anti-Ragging Measures, and
Prevention of Sexual Harassment etc.:

5. Responsibilities of Internal Complaints Committee (ICC) - The Internal Complaints
Committee shall:
(a) provide assistance if an employee or a student chooses to file a complaint with the
police;

(b) provide mechanisms of dispute redressal and dialogue to anticipate and address
issues through just and fair conciliation without undermining complainant’s rights,
and minimize the need for purely punitive approaches that lead to further resentment,
alienation or violence;

(c) protect the safety of the complainant by not divulging the person’s identity, and provide
the mandatory relief by way of sanctioned leave or relaxation of attendance requirement
or transfer to another department or supervisor as required during the pendency of the
complaint, or also provide for the transfer of the offender;

(d) ensure that victims or witnesses are not victimised or discriminated against while
dealing with complaints of sexual harassment; and
(e) ensure prohibition of retaliation or adverse action against a covered individual because
the employee or the student is engaged in protected activity.
6. The process for making complaint and conducting Inquiry - The ICC shall comply
with the procedure prescribed in these Regulations and the Act, for making a complaint and
inquiring into the complaint in a time bound manner. The HEI shall provide all necessary
facilities to the ICC to conduct the inquiry expeditiously and with required privacy
7. Process of making complaint of sexual harassment - An aggrieved person is required
to submit a written complaint to the ICC within three months from the date of the incident
and in case of a series of incidents within a period of three months from the date of the last
incident.
Provided that where such complaint cannot be made in writing, the Presiding Officer or any
Member of the Internal Committee shall render all reasonable assistance to the person for
making the complaint in writing;

Provided further that the ICC may, for the reasons to be accorded in the writing, extend the
time limit not exceeding three months, if it is satisfied that the circumstances were such
which prevented the person from filing a complaint within the said period.”

Friends, relatives, Colleagues, Co-students, Psychologist, or any other associate of the victim
may file the complaint in situations where the aggrieved person is unable to make a complaint
on account of physical or mental in capacity or death.
8. Process of conducting Inquiry- (1) The ICC shall, upon receipt of the complaint, send one
copy of the complaint to the respondent within a period of seven days of such receipt.
(2) Upon receipt of the copy of the complaint, the respondent shall file his or her reply to
the complaint along with the list of documents, and names and addresses of witnesses
within a period of ten days.
(3) The inquiry has to be completed within a period of ninety days from the receipt of
the complaint. The inquiry report, with recommendations, if any, has to be submitted
within ten days from the completion of the inquiry to the Executive Authority of the
HEI. Copy of the findings or recommendations shall also be served on both parties to
the complaint.

986
UGC Regulations