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#MeToo: Woman in Meghalaya accuses Catholic priests of sexually abusing her throughout her childhood

OpIndia Staff
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#MeToo: Woman in Meghalaya accuses Catholic priests of sexually abusing her throughout her childhood

A tribal Khasi woman in Meghalaya has accused two Catholic priests of sexually abusing her since she was 5-years-old. As per reports, the woman, now 40, has shared her ordeal on a Facebook Post on how she was assaulted by one Br Francis Gale of the Christian Brothers and Br Muscat of Don Bosco group from the age of 5 until she was 12, leading her to attempt suicide thrice in her life.

“He would call children to his side of the table and ask us to choose toffees from his drawers and while we did, he would slide his hands up our thighs,” she said. The victim also mentioned that she could never tell anyone about the sexual abuse she faced by Muscat due to the larger abuse she faced from Gale. “The #metoo movement has triggered a lot of distress, but it also brings me hope and belief that justice will come, that we, each of us who have suffered silently will finally be heard, we might not be believed by everybody but we will be believed by many, and that matters,” she said.

Referring to Gale, of the Christian Brothers congregation, she accused him of sexually abusing her for eight years. The woman has reportedly stated that Gale was a trusted friend of my family and was held in great esteem as a religious man. “I was sent to him for tuitions. I was 5 when he first showed me his XXXX and asked me to touch it,” she has added.

According to reports, the woman has added that she had tried to share her ordeal with a trusted family member but was slapped in return. She has added that her poor family background probably made her an easy target for the priests. She added that Francis Gale continued to harass her until she was 12-year-old. When she attained puberty, she finally mustered the courage to stop him because she was afraid she will get pregnant.

The accused Francis Gale is now reportedly posted in West Bengal while the other accused Br Muscat is based in Shillong.

The victim has also stated that she has spoken to her lawyers on the next steps to be taken, with the first one being #MeToo, that has finally provided her supportable platform to vent the frightening abuse that she faced. “All I want is to be heard and supported, while I do the same for others who have faced these issues”, she said.

Media reports have also mentioned that the Archdiocese was unavailable for a comment over the allegations. The Meghalaya woman’s allegations have come in the wake of Jalandhar’s Bishop Franco Mulakkal being accused of rape by a nun that was had gained widespread attention in the country. Bishop Franco was arrested more than two months after the allegations were made and has been recently granted bail.

Sabarimala: HMO had warned Kerala govt about Left Wing Extremist groups instigating violence

Jhankar Mohta
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Sabarimala: HMO had warned Kerala govt about Left Wing Extremist groups instigating violence

Sabarimala temple in Kerala turned into a war zone as it opened its door for women aged between 10 and 50 years on October 17, following the controversial judgement of the Supreme Court allowing women of all ages to enter the temple.

As per several media reports, the Ministry of Home Affairs had issued a circular, dated October 16, addressed to Chief Secretaries and Director Generals of Police of Kerala, Karnataka and Tamil Nadu warning the governments to make adequate security arrangements at the Sabarimala Temple.

The advisory was accessed on Friday, shortly after two women made it within metres of the Sabarimala Temple in the morning but were forced to return after an hours-long deliberation between multiple groups.

The circular clearly stated that there should be no breach of law and order on October 17 when Sabarimala Temple in Kerala opened its doors to women of all ages. The circular even cautioned the state’s about the presence of Left-wing extremist (LWE) groups campaigning in favour of women’s entry into Sabarimala temple.

The MHA writing to the top bureaucrats of all three state’s had also warned that many devotees of Lord Ayyappa had planned protests on October 17.

The circular read:

“As per the information received, comprehensive security arrangements would be required at the Sabarimala Shrine on the date of its opening for monthly rituals on 17.10.2018, in the backdrop of the State Government’s decision to implement the recent order of Hon’ble Supreme Court to allow women of all ages to visit the shrine and wide-spread protests against the same from various quarters. Certain civil/women’s rights activists, Left parties/fronts and pro-LWE groups have been campaigning in favour of women’s entry into the shrine and actively using women to do so on 17.10.2018. While opposing groups/activists have threatened that they would not allow entry of women inside the shrine on that day.”

The Home Ministry in its advisory furthered cautioned that some Hindu outfits might organise protests on October 17 and may organise state-wide protests: “Hindu outfits plan to organise protest programmes on 17.10.2018 against Hon’ble Court’s order at Nilackal village in Pathanamthitta district and Erumeli village in Kottayam districts. Separately, Ayyappa devotees, Hindu outfits and certain caste-based outfits have been organising a state-wide protest against the Hon’ble court’s order. Participation in these protests has ranged from 50-3,000, including participation of a sizeable number of women. Hindu outfits have also organised a few protest programme in neighbouring states of Tamil Nadu and Karnataka.”

Despite the MHA circular which was sent a day before the temple opened, Sabarimala temple turned into a war zone. Section 144 had to be imposed in parts of Pathanamthitta district where Sabarimala temple is located. This raises questions as to whether due cognisance was taken by the state governments of the warning given by the Home Ministry?

In fact, few people on Twitter could also sense the conspiracy contrived by the leftist cabal the MHA had warned three states about, which the state’s clearly ignored.


As the communist government lathicharged and pelted stones at the protesting devotees, questions were raised whether the Communist government of Kerala was more than happy to allow Hindu religious sentiments to be hurt.

Rubbing salt in the wound, the Kerala CM Pinarayi Vijayan had made a controversial statement that certain customs are meant to be violated, hinting at the beliefs of the devotees of Lord Ayyappa. What further heightened the contempt of Hindu sentiments was when Kerala’s Finance Minister and member of Communist Party of India (Marxist) Thomas Isaac took to Twitter to call all protesting devotees of Lord Ayyappa as terrorists.

Keeping up with the anti-Hindu stance the Communist government seems to be fostering, CPM general secretary Sitaram Yechuri on Friday hit-out at RSS and said that the pattern of protest is similar to what was during Babri Masjid demolition. Stating that similar thing is being done here (Sabarimala), Yechury said, “It is an organized thing that the RSS is doing. RSS has lost the battle of not letting the gates of Sabarimala open, they even lost the battle that the temple shouldn’t open on time.”

All you need to know about the Amritsar train tragedy: A saga of neglect and vulturism

OpIndia Staff
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All you need to know about the Amritsar train tragedy: A saga of neglect and vulturism

At least 60 people have been killed and many others have been injured when the Jalandhar-Amritsar DMU ran over people gathered to watch Ravan Dahan near the Jora Phatak area in Amritsar last evening. According to reports, a crowd of more than 500 hundred people had gathered near the tracks when the tragedy occurred at about 7 pm yesterday.

Here are some details about the tragedy that has stunned the state of Punjab on the holy occasion of Dussehra:

  • Hundreds of people had gathered to watch the Ravan Dahan being organised on a ground near the railway tracks in the Jora Phatak area. As the tracks were on higher ground than the area near the effigy, many had claimed up to have a better view.
  • Punjab Congress Minister and former cricketer Navjot Singh Sidhu’s wife, Dr Navjot Kaur was the chief guest of the ceremony. She was present during the tragedy and several reports state that she departed from the scene after the incident.
  • According to reports, about 300 people were gathered close to the railway tracks during the ceremony. As the effigy started burning and the firecrackers went off, more people suddenly started rushing towards the tracks which were already crowded.
  •  As scores of people from the grounds area rushed towards the tracks to escape from the heat or to have a better view, people had no time to hear or see the coming 74643 Jalandhar-Amritsar DMU that, according to reports was rushing at a speed of 100 KM per hour.
  • As per reports, the grounds, called locally as Dhobi ghat grounds, is barely a few kilometres away from the Amritsar station and there are manned crossings close by. Reports also say that within seconds of the 74643 DMU running over people, a second train, the Amritsar-Howrah mail rushed over the adjacent tracks and the people who had jumped the first set of tracks in a hurry were mowed down too.
  • Reports emerged later that the organisers of the event had not informed the railways about the event being organised in the area so close to the tracks.
  • The Punjab police have clarified that they had given permission for the event and several police officials were also deployed for providing security to the chief guest, Navjot Kaur, but the event organisers had not sought other necessary permissions like that from the municipal corporation or the fire department. Amritsar Police commissioner SS Srivastava has stated that the event was organised by a local named Mithu Madan’s family. Mithu’s mother is the local Congress councillor of the area.
  • The grounds where the event was held belongs to the municipal corporation, but the corporation has stated that no permission was sought from them to hold the event. The organisers had not even barricaded the area near the tracks to prevent people from going there.
  • The negligence in obtaining the necessary permissions, failure of the police to provide adequate security to the people and keeping them away from the tracks, the organisers not taking adequate measures to either barricade or light the tracks are some of the reasons being cited that resulted in the tragedy.
  • The railway authorities have issued helpline numbers for passengers. All train services have been suspended on the route. However, Railway board chairman Ashwani Lohani has stated that it is wrong to hold the railways responsible for the incident.


Minutes after the incident, there were misleading details and incorrect information being actively circulated on social media. Many prominent people from the media were found propagating wrong ideas and attempting to shift the blame.

 

There are also several reports claiming that the police personnel deployed at the site were all busy providing security to the chief guest and they neglected to take adequate measures to safeguard the people. Though the event was not organised for the first time and have been held for quite some years, the local administration is being accused of not taking adequate measures to avoid such an incident.

Navjot Kaur Sidhu, when asked about the incident, stated to the media the she has left the venue when the tragedy happened. She also tried to blame the railways stating that the train was not slowed down. When it was pointed out that the organisers of the event were being blamed , she stated that people should not do politics over it and stated that neither they (herself and the organisers) have put the people on the tracks nor they have run the train over them.


Punjab Congress minister Navjot Singh Sidhu has stated that even if there was negligence at the event, it was not intentional. Their statements are being criticised as insentitive on the social media.


Meanwhile, Punjab CM Captain Amarinder Singh has announced a day of state-wide mourning and Rs 5 lakhs as compensation to the kin of each deceased person. PM Modi has also expressed his condolences over the incident and has announced Rs 2 lakh as compensation for the family of each of the deceased persons and Rs 50,000 each for the injured.

During hearing of defamation case against Anurag Kashyap, Court observes #MeToo cannot be misused

OpIndia Staff
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During hearing of defamation case against Anurag Kashyap, Court observes #MeToo cannot be misused

On 18th October 2018, news had surfaced that filmmaker Vikas Bahl, accused of sexually harassing a former worker had approached the Bombay High Court with a defamation suit seeking Rs 10 crore against his former Phantom Films partners Anurag Kashyap and Vikramaditya Motwane for defamation. Before suing for defamation, Bahl had sent both Kashyap and Motwane legal notices urging them to withdraw their statements and issue an apology.

The court had also directed that the victim woman who had made allegations against Bahl of sexual harassment and the fourth partner in Phantom Films, Madhu Mantena also to be made parties in the defamation suit.

The complaint read:

“The Plaintiff (Bahl) states that Defendant Nos. 1 and 2 (Kashyap and Motwane) taking advantage of the ongoing “#Metoo” movement in the country, published false, malicious, unsubstantiated imputations, allegations and statements against the Plaintiff through their Twitter accounts and other social media platforms”.

On 19th, during the hearing of the defamation case filed by Vikas Bahl, the woman who had claimed that she was sexually harassed by Bahl, submitted in the Bombay High Court that she would not like to file a complaint against Bahl in the matter.

According to Bar and Bench, the matter was heard in chambers by Justice SJ Kathawalla at 5 pm. Although the victim was not present in Court, she was represented by Senior Counsel Navroz Seervai, who submitted that his client did not want to file a complaint against Vikas Bahl.

The Court observed that the #MeToo movement cannot be misused by anybody and that nobody can use the victim’s shoulder to fire allegations of sexual harassment.

In Bahl’s complaint, he has asserted that Anurag Kashyap is taking advantage of the #MeToo movement to settle scores with him. It also states that no criminal complaint has been filed against him by the victim and Bahl has not even been called upon for any investigation with respect to the alleged sexual harassment. Bahl in his complaint has also asserted that the victim, who had accused him of sexual harassment continued to work at Phantom Films and “had a purely professional relationship” even after the alleged incident took place.

Vikas Bahl, the partner of controversial director Anurag Kashyap’s Phantom Films, was accused by a woman claiming to be an employee of their movie venture. The woman had claimed that Vikas Bahl had sexually harassed her during movie promotions. She has accused Bahl of trying to undress her and violated her by putting his hands inside her dress. However, she claimed that Vikas Bahl got agitated for her resistance and ended up masturbating on her.

Another woman accuses Vinod Dua of harassment, Dua says his video program on The Wire being targeted

OpIndia Staff
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Another woman accuses Vinod Dua of harassment, Dua says his video program on The Wire being targeted

After filmmaker Nishtha Jain accused The Wire‘s consulting editor Vinod Dua of stalking and sexual harassment, another journalist and a documentary filmmaker, Sunita Thakur has come forward and accused Dua of inappropriate behaviour.

In an article published on the left-leaning website, Scroll.in, Thakur narrates an incident from 1986, when she was new to Delhi and looking for a job. Thakur says she had just returned from the UK after working in BBC Radio and Dua had promised her a job in Newsline, a show which was about to be launched on Doordarshan.

She says while the details are a bit hazy, as it has been over three decades, she still remembers the incident well. “I remember driving that late afternoon, along Aurobindo Marg by INA market, his left arm around my shoulder, his right on the steering wheel, his singing romantic Hindi songs. I remember taking his arm off my shoulder and saying, “I think this belongs to you.” He wondered why I was being so coy, after all “English girls had a reputation.” I remember laughing and thinking how inane that was,” she recalls.

Thakur then says that Dua said their “relationship would be open.” She added, “It took me some time to understand that “our separate rooms” when traveling could also become a double when Vinod wished it to be. Did he imply this or explicitly state it on my pushing him to clarify, again I don’t remember.”

Without naming anyone else, Thakur alleges that Dua wasn’t the only one who behaved inappropriately with her. There were other men too.

So why am I singling out Vinod Dua? I’m not, but he has singled himself out, or you might say he’s been hoisted by his own petard. For years, many of my friends have known my story and have continued to work with him, even socialise with him. I accepted that he was on “our side”, of the liberal, the left, and that some things have to be overlooked for the sake of a larger cause. But now, not only is the #MeToo campaign puncturing holes in the perspective of he’s “creative”, “left” or just “a nice guy”, but also, Vinod Dua’s righteous indignation at filmmaker’s Nishtha Jain’s accusations, like MJ Akbar’s and others’, is too much to stomach.

Thakur says that she told about the alleged inappropriate behaviour of Dua to her friends, many of whom, she says, continued to work and socialise with thim. She says that she “accepted” that his alleged behaviour was “overlooked” for the “larger cause” because he was on the liberal, the left side.

Scroll reached out to Dua for his comments, and he denied even knowing Sunita Thakur, “as far as he could recollect”. Denying the allegations, Dua went on to say that the allegations against him “appear to be an effort to target his program Jan Gan Man Ki Baat on The Wire” which has, in his words, “confronted the highest and the mightiest in the land.”

Earlier this week, Dua had released a video for The Wire where, among other things, Dua had described the allegations of sexual harassment on himself as ‘keechad‘ (mud) virtually claiming that women coming out with their accounts of sexual harassment were indulging in mudslinging. Vinod Dua had claimed that the allegations of sexual harassment by various women, which are being marked as India’s #MeToo moment, were not “real issues” or the kind of questions that should be raised as 2019 general elections approach. The video was so outrageous that The Wire deleted the video and uploaded an edited version of the same.

Sabarimala: Will not allow activists to use the temple as a place to prove their point, Kerala Devaswom Minister

OpIndia Staff
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Sabarimala: Will not allow activists to use the temple as a place to prove their point, Kerala Devaswom Minister

Tension grew at Sabarimala as head priest at Sabarimala threatened to shut the temple door and handed over the keys as two women, Kavitha Jakkala, a journalist with Hyderabad based Mojo TV and activist Rehana Fatima, tried to enter the shrine.

The erstwhile royal family of Pandalam, who are the custodians of the Sabarimala temple, asked the head priest to close the doors of the shrine as two women headed for the temple under police protection. Protesters also squatted on the path leading to the hilltop temple.

Kadakampally Surendran, State Devaswom (religious trusts) minister said that while people of all ages should be allowed to go there, it should not be made into a place where activists come and showcase their power.


He added that Sabarimala temple should not be a place where these activists come to prove their point.

The two women, Kavitha Jakkala and Rehana Fatima had come to the temple and were escorted by the police but the priests refused to open the doors for them. Terming closing the doors as a ritualistic disaster, Kerala IG S Sreejith said that while they could escort the women and give them protection, the ‘darshan’ is something that can be done only with the consent of the priest.


Ramesh Chennithala, Kerala Congress leader said that he met the Governor and explained the situation. He said that not only Hindus but people from all religions are allowed entry there. He said that activist Rehana Fatima was given a police uniform, which was wrong.

Following this, the journalist and activist have returned. Another woman, Mary Sweety also returned midway after she was stopped by the protestors. She has been taken to the police control room.

Founder of The Wire files police complaint to investigate Twitter handles ‘which made false allegations’ against him

OpIndia Staff
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Founder of The Wire files police complaint to investigate Twitter handles ‘which made false allegations’ against him

The #MeToo movement has gripped India with many women coming forward to recount how they were sexually harassed. Celebrities from many industries have been named including those from Bollywood, Media and politics. One such person accused was Siddharth Bhatia, the founding editor of The Wire.

Bhatia was named by at least two different women, in two separate incidents and accused of having used his position of power of sexually exploiting women. One woman has accused Bhatia of ‘propositioning young interns in DNA (where Bhatia was previously associated with) offering tips on writing’. The second Twitter user has accused Bhatia of licking his ‘lower lip seeing bra straps of young women’ in office.

Now, Bhatia has filed a police complaint to investigate the Twitter handles who made these accusations. Bhatia has maintained that the allegations were false. He has also said that they had requested the ladies to come forward with more details but nobody has.


Bhatia explains that the lady who accused him of inappropriate behaviour while he was at DNA was false. He says no lady with that name worked at DNA while he was there. He also says that the second lady, he said, had claimed to work for The Wire Hindi. Bhatia asserted that the second allegations seem false as well because The Wire Hindi has no female staff.

In the note, Bhatia says that he had urged the women to come forward with more details but none of them has. He has now filed a police complaint with the Cyber Cell of Mumbai Police to investigate these Twitter handles. He says he will pursue this matter by all possible means until it is proven that these allegations were false and defamatory.

In its third election ever, Bhutan elects a third party, Druk Nyamrup Tshogpa (DNT) party to form government

Raju Das
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In its third election ever, Bhutan elects a third party, Druk Nyamrup Tshogpa (DNT) party to form government

Druk Nyamrup Tshogpa (DNT) party has won the general election in Bhutan, defeating incumbent opposition Bhutan Peace and Prosperity Party (Druk Phuensum Tshogpa-DPT) in the final round of general elections, where only these two parties were the participants. Ruling People’s Democratic Party (PDP) was eliminated in the first round of voting. The final round of voting for 47 seats of the National Assembly was held in the country on Thursday, and counting began immediately after voting was over at 5 PM in the country. According to provisional results, DNT has won 30 seats, crossing the majority mark of 24, while the rest 17 seats have gone to DPT. DNT party president Dr Lotay Tshering will become the third Prime Minister of the Himalayan nation. Lotay Tshering is a doctor by profession.

Dr Lotay Tshering, DNT president and Prime Minister-elect

Ten years ago, Bhutan had transitioned from a monarchy to constitutional monarchy and democracy, the change being led by then king Jigme Singye Wangchuck. This was the third general election in democratic Bhutan, and every time a different party has won the elections, making DNT the third party to form the government in the country.

The election to the National Assembly is held in two rounds. In the first round, every political party in the Himalayan nation can participate. At present, there are four registered political parties in the nation who participate in the primary round. After that, the two largest parties in the first round proceed to contest in the second round of polls, which determines the winner. In the first two elections, two major political parties had emerged in the country, People’s Democratic Party (PDP) and Bhutan Peace and Prosperity Party (Druk Phuensum Tshogpa-DPT).

Women waiting in line to vote display their identity cards. Photo: Bhutan Broadcasting Service

In the first-ever elections held in 2008, DPT had formed the first democratic government in the country, winning 45 of the 47 seats. Jigme Yoser Thinley became the first Prime Minister of Bhutan. The second election in 2013 saw a reversal of fortunes for the two major parties and People’s Democratic Party (PDP) formed the government, winning 32 seats. PDP leader Tshering Tobgayn became the second PM of Bhutan.

Constituencies won by the two parties. Source: Kuenselonline

The first round of the current elections to elect the third government in Bhutan was held on 16th September 2018, where all four registered parties had contested. Changing the trend of the previous two elections, this time three parties got almost the same votes. Ruling PDP came third winning 27% votes, while opposition DPT won 31% votes to grab the second position. Druk Nyamrup Tshogpa (DNT) party came first with 32% of the votes in the first round. The party had won 17% votes in the first round in 2013 elections. This had meant the that ruling PDP was out of the contest for the 3rd government in the country and the second round of contest took place between DNT and DPT.

Both paper ballots and Electronic Voting Machines (EVM) are used in the elections. The Election Commission of Bhutan has procured the EVMs from India.

Not a good day for NDTV: A show cause notice from ED over irregularities worth ₹4,369 crore and a ₹10,000 crore defamation suit

OpIndia Staff
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Not a good day for NDTV: A show cause notice from ED over irregularities worth ₹4,369 crore and a ₹10,000 crore defamation suit

Controversial media house NDTV limited has been issued a show cause notice by Enforcement Directorate (ED) over violation of Foreign Exchange Management Act (FEMA) rules. The case relates to ₹1,637 crore that the media company had received as FDI, and overseas investment of ₹2,732 crore that the company had made.


Other than NDTV Limited, the notice has also been issued to Prannoy Roy, Mrs. Radhika Roy, Vikram Chandra and other associated with the company for their involvement in violation of rules. The companies alleged to have violated the FEMA rules include Ms NDTV Lifestyle Holdings Ltd (now Ms Lifestyle and Media Holdings Ltd), Ms South Asia Creative Assets Ltd, Ms Astro Overseas Ltd and Ms NDTV Imagine Ltd (now Ms Turner General Entertainment Networks India Pvt Ltd).

A statement issued by ED says that the media group had received an FDI worth ₹725 crore without obtaining approval from cabinet committee on economic affairs (CCEA). According to rules, CCEA is mandatory for FDI above ₹600 crore, but while applying for FIPB approval the company had projected the value of FDI at ₹585 crore, eliminating the need for CCEA clearance. The statement says that “FDI was projected as below ₹600 crore as part of a larger conspiracy.”

The agency said that “further investigation on this aspect is continuing.”


 

According to ED, an FDI of ₹319 crore received by NDTV Ltd violated the press note 1 of 2005 of DIPP, while a downstream investment of ₹138 crore was made without FIPB approval.

Talking about the FEMA violation, the statement says that “overseas investment made by the NDTV and offences of Rs 582 crore relate to contravention of substantive provisions of FEMA and the remaining contraventions of Rs 2,414 crore relate to delays in filing reports and other requisite information before RBI.”

NDTV has rejected the charges of violation of FEMA norms. In a statement posted on its website it alleged that the channel is being targeted for its fair and independent journalism.

The companies have also been charged with delays in filing and reporting information with RBI.

 

The media house was also hit with a defamation suit for ₹10,000 crores. Anil Ambani led Reliance group has filed the case in Ahmedabad court over the channel’s coverage of the Rafale deal. This was informed by CEO of NDTV group Suparna Singh on Twitter.


The lawsuit is filed against NDTV’s weekly show, Truth vs Hype, which aired on September 29. The hearing has been listed for 26th October and NDTV say they will contest the case. The channel has outright rejected any charges of defamation and said that they will present material in court to support its case.

This is the latest in the series of several defamation suits that Reliance Group has filed against several politicians and media houses over the allegations made over the Rafale deal.

Asianet COO denies charges of sexual harassment, says court will prove him right

OpIndia Staff
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Asianet COO denies charges of sexual harassment, says court will prove him right

Note: After reaching out to Sonam Mahajan multiple times, before and even after the publication of this article, she has refused to communicate with OpIndia.com. However, she has spoken to The Print and her statements can be read here.

The ongoing #MeToo movement in India has seen many women coming out and sharing their stories of sexual harassment at workplaces, with the accused men belonging to varied industries especially journalism and Bollywood. The latest addition to the list is allegations of sexual harassment against the COO of Asianet, a media conglomerate owned by BJP MP Rajeev Chandrashekhar.

According to media reports, Abhinav Khare, the Chief Operating Officer (COO) of Asianet, has been accused of sexual harassment by Sonam Mahajan, a popular political commentator on social media. Sonam was reportedly working with Abhinav as a Digital Marketing Consultant at Namma Bengaluru Foundation (NBF), an NGO founded by Mr Chandrashekhar, however, Sonam says that she essentially worked with Mr Chandrashekhar’s office.

Mr Chandrasehkhar has been accused by Sonam of not helping her with her complaints about Khare, and instead, of shielding Khare. Media reports say that an internal complaints committee has found Khare guilty of misconduct and had asked him to tender an apology to Sonam, which was never done.

Khare insists that all the charges are fabricated and thus he refused to tender even a simple apology.

“My conscience is clear. If I didn’t do any wrong, why should I offer an apology?” Khare said when OpIndia asked him why he is not willing to offer an apology. He further said that it was not even an internal complaints committee, as according to the laws of the nation Namma Bengaluru is not expected to have one, but an ad-hoc committee which was formed illegally in the first place.

Khare went to court against the manner in which the committee was formed and how the inquiry was conducted which, he says, he had objected to in writing in February itself. He has termed it unfair and the result of ‘prejudging’ the case. Khare says that the moment Sonam Mahajan made the charges of ‘borderline mental and sexual harassment’ an ad hoc committee was immediately formed by NBF which he discovered much later in January or February when the committee sent him a questionnaire. Based on the questionnaire, he objected in writing about the manner in which the committee was formed and the direction of the inquiry.

The court has agreed with Khare that prima facie, he has proved that the formation and proceeding of the committee was illegal. Thus the court stopped the Namma Bengaluru Foundation on acting on its recommendation and further issued a restraining order.

NBF cites this court order as the reason why no action was taken against Khare because the matter is now sub-judice. NBF pointed out that if they never had any intention of helping Sonam Mahajan, as alleged, then why would they form the committee in the first place.

A statement released by Mr. Chandrashekhar reiterated that the BJP MP supports the women who have come out in the MeToo movement, but denied that Sonam was employed as a member of the MP’s office or immediate team – a claim Sonam has contested by releasing some WhatAapp chat messages that show Mr. Chandrashekhar discussing some work-related issues with Sonam. Sonam has also produced a letter where she is apparently being referred to as a member of Mr Chandrasekhar’s team.

However, Mr Chandrasekhar’s office claims that these aspects have been produced ‘out of context’ and the employment of Sonam Mahajan was limited to Namma Bengaluru Foundation, and not any other political or business interest of Mr Chandrasekhar.

OpIndia reached out to Sonam Mahajan on Wednesday to know her side of the story but she didn’t issue any statement as she has been restrained from commenting on the issue via the order of the court. However, on Thursday, she issued a statement on Twitter and named Abhinav Khare.

She accused Khare of defaming her by issuing statements to media that she was an extortionist “without providing any evidence to his malicious lies”.

“I stand by my statement,” Khare said when asked about his countercharges, “I am being blackmailed and pushed for ‘settling’ by paying her a seven-figure sum while she was running a Twitter campaign to defame me to put further pressure on me. Why did she not come out earlier? Why now? Because I did not pay her what she has been trying to extort. I did not give in to the monetary demands that came from her and from her so-called “mentors” who are all big political weights.”

Khare insists that Sonam’s discipline and performance in the office was not up to mark and these charges were level against him because he demanded accountability and hard work.

“It all started when she was informed that she is not performing up to the mark. Her lack of competence and indiscipline became a burden for the team she worked with and termination of her consulting contract was next on the cards. Realizing that her contract was about to be terminated, she framed these false “borderline mental and sexual harassment” charges in November 2017. And then used these baseless charges to fraudulently claim consultancy fees without doing any work for an entire year. This could be substantiated through her work and attendance record,” a statement released by Khare reads.

Abhinav Khare while talking to OpIndia also alleged that Sonam Mahajan had been drawing a salary for the past one year even when she did not attend work during that time span. Media reports indicate that Sonam’s contract has not been renewed after completion of one year.

Why should she lose her job when the internal committee had found Khare guilty? Khare insists that her contract was not renewed due to performance issues, and reports about him being found guilty in the committee report were misleading, even if one disregards the factor that the committee itself was constituted illegally.

OpIndia was informed that the observations of the internal committee had adverse comments on Sonam Mahajan as well, and thus to claim that the committee had found only one party ‘guilty’ would not be correct. Reportedly, there were several signed witness statements that claimed that Abhinav Khare was innocent, several of those being from women. The committee had even noted that there was a possibility that the complainant (Sonam Mahajan) is filing the complaint for “ulterior financial motives”.

Khare reiterated that the findings were not as Sonam was portraying. He alleged that these allegations surfaced a day after he had communicated to her that her services are not up to the mark and that her employment would be terminated.

“I invite any journalist to come to our office, talk to my female colleagues, in my absence, and decide for himself or herself about my work ethics and my character,” Khare told OpIndia.

“I will never ‘settle’ and pay her any money. If temporary humiliation is the price I need to pay for my principles, so be it. I am ready to fight it in the court,” he concluded.

Both the parties at the moment are accusing each other of defamation. In her statement issued on 18th October, Sonam too has said that she will broaden her legal fight against Khare in wake of counter allegations.

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