| MeToo allegations hit India’s wildlife conservation sector and dredge up memories of India’s 2018 movement. How much has changed – and hasn’t – since? Read on... The Big Story Indian conservation sector’s #MeToo points to a deep-rooted problem Like many stories of its nature, this one begins anonymously on social media. On March 16, an unidentified person on Instagram’s Women of the Wild India handle posted allegations of a “history of sexual harassment” against Shailendra Singh, a top wildlife conservationist and the director of the Turtle Survival Alliance India (TSA India), a non-profit that works to conserve and protect wild tortoises and freshwater turtles under the Wildlife Conservation Society. Like many stories of its nature, that first revelation paved the way for similar accusations against Singh by at least three other women who used their names. Like many stories of its nature the complaints by multiple women go back several years signalling a culture of impunity and silence. Within four days, the original post had gathered 302 comments and over 1,100 “likes”. Others detailed a toxic, misogynist working environment with details of sexual harassment by Singh. A wildlife conservationist wrote about her time as a 20-year-old volunteer in 2016 when the director molested her. Another volunteer, spoke of an incident at a new year’s eve party at the director’s house. And a third spoke of working at a remote facility where she literally had to beg for a toilet, was yelled at and abused in public until she went into depression and had to seek therapy. Three days later on March 19, TSA’s chair of equity, diversity and inclusion, Heather Barrett finally responded: “We take this very seriously. We understand that there is a current investigation in India, compliant with Indian laws, and we await the results and will be prepared to take appropriate action.” It is not clear which of the complaints is under investigation. On March 20, the National Commission for Women chairperson Rekha Sharma wrote to the Uttar Pradesh police to ensure a fair and time-bound investigation. For now, Shailendra Singh has been removed as director of TSA, India Cut off and isolated “Women in wildlife conservation typically work in remote, isolated areas, in field conditions where toilets are not available, sometimes not even separate rooms, and it’s common for a woman to find herself in an all-male team,” writes independent environmental journalist Bahar Dutt in The News Minute. [Read Bahar Dutt’s story here] The allegations by at least four women against Singh reflect the first time the Indian wildlife conservation sector has been hit by MeToo accusations. Women wildlife conservationists are most of the time “at the mercy of men”, Dutt told me on the phone. “Most of the time cell phones don’t work in remote forest areas and there is nobody they can call for help.” Ever since the TSA India #MeToo story broke, Dutt says she has been besieged by messages by women sharing stories of abuse. TSA India could be just the tip of the iceberg, she says. But shocking as these allegations are, the silence by TSA despite knowing about them since at least 2020 is inexplicable. Dutt reports that Lonnie McCaskill, a TSA board member and advisor to TSA India, wrote in an August 2020 email: “I’ve tried on each occasion to follow up and tried to get this [sexual harassment allegations] addressed but to date have not succeeded in getting the attention I feel it warrants.” So, why did it take an Instagram post in March 2023 for TSA to react and respond? The answer perhaps lies in the culture of impunity that allows workplace sexual harassment to continue. Although organisations have scrambled to set up POSH (prevention of sexual harassment) committees that are mandated by law, the gap lies in intent. Cracks between the law and reality In 1997, the Supreme Court passed the landmark Vishakha judgement that for the first time issued “guidelines” around preventing sexual harassment. But, it said, it was Parliament’s job to enact an appropriate law. It actually took 15 years for Parliament to enact that law which it did in 2013 in the wake of public protest against the December 2012 gang rape in Delhi.  (Image source: Culturetrip.com) Then in 2018, Indian actor Tanushree Pandey gave an interview to an entertainment channel where she spoke about a 10-year-old incident when she walked out of a film set after refusing to enact an intimate dance step with Nana Patekar. As she tried to leave, her car was surrounded by dozens of angry goons who threatened her and deflated her car tyres. The old video of Pandey in her car being attacked quickly went viral and lit the spark of outrage as dozens of women came forward on social media with accounts of their own sexual harassment at work, often with screenshots of propositions and lewd messages by male colleagues and bosses. Amongst those named was MJ Akbar, then a minister in the Narendra Modi government, who was named by at least 20 women. Akbar stepped down from his post and filed a criminal defamation case against one of his accusers, Priya Ramani who eventually won in a trial court. Akbar has filed an appeal against the verdict in the Delhi hight court. [I wrote a chapter about India’s MeToo movement in Saurabh Kirpal’s book, Sex and Supreme Court] A systemic problem The accusations against TSA’s Shailendra Singh come as grim reminder of the heavy-lifting that remains. All the women I have ever spoken to about workplace sexual harassment have one thing in common: They do not want to lose their jobs or mess up their careers. When they do speak up or complain, it is usually the last step, one that is taken simply because they want the harassment to stop. I can think of three reasons why workplace sexual harassment continues despite the law. The first is the imbalance of power between powerful male bosses and subordinate women employees. Women who complain can often face hostile work environments. Even when they quit, they are threatened with unfavourable reviews. “If you end on a bad note,” states the first complainant against Singh, “they make sure they bad-mouth you at each and every opportunity.”  Illustration by Prajna Ghosh | ThePrint At the Kalakshetra Foundation in Chennai, a senior teacher accused of sexually harassing students was on March 19 given a clean chit by an internal committee headed by the director, reports The Print. Students and staff are under a gag order that prevents them from discussing the events of December 2022 after a former director published details of the abuse online. That post has since been deleted. Second, is that by speaking up, women place themselves under the spotlight of public scrutiny: Why did she speak up? Why after so many years? What is her ulterior motive? Was she, perhaps, passed up for a promotion? It’s a trial that would daunt most, if not all. And third is the knowledge that to pursue a legal course of action, it is the individual woman who must consider the cost and time of retaining a lawyer. There must be substantial proof of the harassment – something that often takes place behind closed doors. And she must have immense powers of patience and perseverance to navigate India’s notoriously tardy legal system. “We need better support structures,” Dutt says. This would include more women in the field, more women in leadership positions, and better education of women on how they can protect themselves and of their rights in law. And zero tolerance by organisations against predatory men. | 
