Several videos apparently online show a professor officiating a wedding in a West Bengal classroom with a college student present. The videos, including ceremonies like ‘haldi’ and the exchanging of garlands, have university staff worried.

An official says the said event happened around 150 km from Kolkata in the Psychology Department of Haringhata Technology College in Nadia. The college is governed by Maulana Abul Kalam Azad University of Technology (MAKAUT).

Dressed in bridal outfit and wearing garlands, the professor known as Payal Banerji shows on the videos. Still, she denied the authenticity of the marriage and maintained it was just a academic exercise meant for internal use.

Watch the video here:

Banerjee has been put on leave pending an inquiry and a three-member committee has been assigned to review the issue. An official said, “Without a thorough investigation, we can’t take harsh actions.”

One of the viral videos shows the students being anointesis with ‘haldi’ according to Hindu marriage customs; another has the couple exchanging garlands and circling a candle seven times around it to represent the sacred fire. Furthermore the student is noticed to be administering sindoor on Banerjee’s hair parting and giving her a rose.

Online too popular is a college letterhead showing the signatures of the student and the instructor, where they recognize each other as husband and wife. There are three sets of signatures of witnesses for each side in the paper.

Having been teaching psychology for years, Banerjee justified her actions, saying the scene was one of a “psychological play” designed to illustrate ideas in class. She also claimed the video was released to damage her integrity.

Efforts to reach the student for remarks proved futile.