New Dehli: Will the judges learn from the agony that Chief Justice of India Ranjan Gogoi had to undergo from the charge of sexual harassment levelled by an ex-employee who once worked in his residential office that was ultimately dismissed as baseless?
The Bar Council of India (BCI) wants to build up a “Men too” movement on the strength of the CJI’s case as it organised on Tuesday a silent protest march by the lawyers at the India Gate here to change the laws that have given a fillip to the “Me too” movement of harassing men with the sexual allegations.
An online brief statement by BCI chairman Manan Kumar Mishra calling for the protest says it all: “The common lawyers who have trust in the institution should support the ‘Men Too’ movement and should assemble at India Gate today at 4 pm to show their solidarity with the CJI Mr Ranjan Gogoi.”
Last week also, the BCI chairman had issued a statement expressing his support for CJI Gogoi, in the face of mounting criticism against the clean chit given by the in-house inquiry committee with respect to the sexual harassment allegations levelled against him.
Amidst questioning the complainant’s motives and lauding the inquiry committee’s verdict in the matter as “totally just and proper,” Mishra also called for amending laws concerning sexual offences. This included recommending changes to the rape law under Section 376 of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) and the offence of outraging the modesty of women under Section 354, IPC.
The BCI statement also urged that statements by the prosecutrix in sexual offences should be viewed with more caution to avoid malicious cases. In this regard, the open letter states:
“The oral testimony of the prosecutrix is enough to convict under Section 354 and 376 IPC”, Why? We are not in 18th century, that no one can presume that a female will never make such allegations to falsely implicate her enemies. We have great respect for our women. But time has changed, we must keep it mind.”
The letter goes on to emphasise that when the law is applied properly, “we found 90% (of sexual offence) cases are resulting in acquittals.” However, since the “settled principals of Evidence Act (sic)” is kept in “waste paper boxes,” false implications are on the rise, states the letter.
The BCI has also called for imposing a limitation period to report on sexual offences, arguing that a delay in reporting such cases “normally very much proves and establishes that the so-called prosecutrix was/is either a liar or was a consenting party.”In view of these observations, the letter goes on to state that the Bar is hopeful that the judges will “realise the problems” and the “mental and physical agony and harassments of the common men.”
