On allegation of sexual harassment, CJI Ranjan Gogoi asks Justice SA Bobde to decide on next step; Supreme Court asks lawyer who claimed conspiracy to clarify 

CJI Ranjan Gogoi.

New Delhi: Two days after a special Supreme Court sitting, on April 20, in which two lawyers’ bodies cited “procedural impropriety” and said the “full court of the Supreme Court” should take all “necessary steps” to deal with the allegations of sexual harassment against Chief Justice of India Ranjan Gogoi, the CJI, on Monday, asked Justice SA Bobde, the second-most senior judge, to decide on the next step in the matter.

According to media reports, Justice Gogoi offered his versions of the developments and called the allegations a bid by a “bigger force to undermine the independence of the judiciary and deactivate the office of the CJI.”

The executive committee of the Supreme Court Bar Association issued a statement that said the Saturday session of the court in the matter of allegations made by ex-employee against the CJI is “in violation of procedure established by law as well as principles of natural justice.”

The Supreme Court Advocates-on-Record Association sought “immediate appointment of a committee headed by full court of Supreme Court to impartially investigate and inquire into the allegations.”

Lawyer claims conspiracy, asked to clarify

Soon after the sensational charges were leaked to the media, an advocate, Utsav Bains, filed an affidavit claiming there is a conspiracy to frame CJI Ranjan Gogoi in a sexual-harassment case. Considering the seriousness of his claim, the Supreme Court, on Tuesday, directed Bains for his personal appearance in the court to corroborate his allegation that certain corporate individuals, including Naresh Goyal of Jet Airways, and “fixer” Romesh Sharma could be involved in this conspiracy.

Meanwhile, the Supreme Court Employees Welfare Association came out in support of the CJI and said it “strongly condemns the false, fabricated and baseless allegations” against him. It also claimed that “unscrupulous allegations are aimed at maligning the institution.”

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