The accused, Professor Gnanavel Babu, was arrested by the Chennai police on Friday (March 27) after they tracked him to the Tirunelveli region while he was attempting to evade the authorities.
Anna University professor arrested for sexual harassment
Police sources say at least four other students have also come forward with complaints against the professor, and investigations are underway
A female student of Anna University has lodged a complaint against a senior professor, accusing him of sexual harassment spanning three years. The accused, Professor Gnanavel Babu, was arrested by the Chennai police on Friday (March 27) after they tracked him to the Tirunelveli region while he was attempting to evade the authorities.
In her complaint filed at the Chennai Police Commissioner’s office, the student alleged that Gnanavel Babu had been harassing her both in person and over the phone since she began her studies at the university. She claimed he frequently called her after 10 pm, initially under the pretext of academic guidance, but later shifted to vulgar conversations.
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The student said the professor allegedly asked about her innerwear, forced her to share details of her menstrual cycle, and pressured her to meet him outside the campus. When she blocked his number, he allegedly contacted her friends to continue the harassment. She also mentioned that the professor had discussed other sexual harassment complaints within the university and warned her about them in a suggestive manner.
Complaints by other students also
The student further revealed that she had already filed a complaint with the university’s Prevention of Sexual Harassment (POSH) committee, urging the police to take strict action to protect other similarly-affected students. The complaint was forwarded to the Abhiramapuram All Women Police Station for investigation. Mylapore Deputy Commissioner of Police led the probe, during which it emerged that Gnanavel Babu had allegedly harassed multiple female students.
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A case was subsequently registered at the Kotturpuram All Women Police Station under sections pertaining to sexual harassment and the Tamil Nadu Prohibition of Harassment of Women Act. Mobile phone signals helped the police trace the professor to Trichy, where he had gone into hiding. A team from Chennai pursued him and arrested him while he was travelling in a car later in Tirunelveli. He is currently being brought back to Chennai for further interrogation.
Police sources confirmed that at least four other students have also come forward with complaints against the professor, and investigations into those allegations are underway.
2024 sexual assault case
This latest incident at Anna University has once again brought concerns over campus safety, coming barely over a year after the high-profile 2024 sexual assault case involving Gnanasekaran, a 37-year-old biryani vendor operating near the campus. In December 2024, Gnanasekaran was arrested for brutally assaulting a second-year engineering student on the university premises; he had threatened her and her male friend at knifepoint, sexually assaulted her, and recorded the act on his phone for blackmail.
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The case triggered massive public outrage after the FIR was leaked online, leading to a Madras High Court-mandated probe by an all-women Special Investigation Team. Gnanasekaran, who had multiple prior cases against him, was convicted on all 11 charges by the Chennai Mahila Court in May 2025 and sentenced to life imprisonment (minimum 30 years without remission) in June 2025.
Professor suspended
Anna University authorities have suspended Professor Gnanavel Babu pending a departmental inquiry. Police have seized the complainant’s mobile phone for forensic analysis of the alleged obscene messages and calls.