Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU) Professor Atul Johri’s lawyer has termed the complaint against him as a political conspiracy by the students.

“This was a political conspiracy & he was made a scapegoat. The children used to work with the Professor. He had reprimanded them for their attendance & had asked them to attend classes. The students conspired to complain against him,” said RK Wadhwa, lawyer of Professor Atul Johri.

JNU Professor Atul Johri was granted bail by Delhi’s Patiala House Court. Delhi Police had moved an application seeking 14-day judicial custody of Johri which was rejected. The Professor was produced before the court on Tuesday soon after his arrest.

During the hearing, Atul Johri, in his defence, said to the court that sending him to judicial custody will spoil his career.

Earlier in the day, Delhi police had registered eight FIRs against the Professor for sexual misconduct and arrested him.

Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU) Professor Atul Johri was called by the police for an enquiry earlier on Tuesday after students alleged him of sexually harassing female students in the classroom.

On Sunday, nine female students filed complaints against Professor Atul Johri with the police. The students accused him of sexual misconduct and abuse of power. Johri is a professor at the School of Life Sciences at the university.

Students of the varsity had also staged protests outside Vasant Kunj police station demanding the arrest of the Professor. A Twitter campaign with the hashtag #SuspendJohri was also launched by the students.