A lawyer was arrested by the Delhi Police earlier this month for molesting and harassing a woman journalist inside the Supreme Court premises.
The 32-year-old accused Pranay Kumar was arrested on Monday, September 3 after an FIR under Section 354 of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) was registered against him.
While speaking to Bar & Bench, the complainant recounted that the accused allegedly molested her on two occasions, both inside the Supreme Court premises. The first instance occurred on July 12 in the corridor of the Supreme Court, right outside Chief Justice’s Court while the second incident, on July 27, was inside a Court no. 3 while the Court was in session.
“Can we women please be allowed to come to court and work with dignity, as lawyers, journalists, judges or other court staff? Can men in Indian courts kindly respect a woman and her body? It is unacceptable that a number of women I know, and now I myself, have faced sexual harassment in Indian courts,” the complainant said.
After the second incident, the complainant approached the Assistant Commissioner of Police stationed at Supreme Court, the office of the Registrar of Security in Supreme Court and the Sexual harassment Cell at the Supreme Court in an attempt to initiate action against the accused.
“My case is showing up many holes in the functioning of the office of the ACP who has an office in the Supreme Court, the Registrar of Security and the Supreme Court sexual harassment cell… This will need to be fixed and urgently (sic),” the complainant added.
Subsequently, the complainant was able to file a written complaint against the accused at the Tilak Marg Police Station late on July 27 which detailed her ordeal comprehensively.
The Tilak Marg Police Station registered an FIR against the accused charging him under Section 354 of the IPC which related to sexual harassment and outraging the modesty of a woman on August 14. The arrest was made on September 3.
On why it took over a month after submitting a written complaint to arrest the accused, the Deputy Commissioner of Police (New Delhi), Madhur Verma told Bar & Bench:
“On the basis of the complaint of the journalist, we booked the offender, we investigated, and recorded statements of the witnesses and got a statement recorded under Section 164 (of the Code of Criminal Procedure) also and thereafter arrested the accused.
In these kinds of cases, till the time we do not verify from the witnesses… and the statement to the Magistrate is also required. And despite issuing notices, the accused was not joining so it took some time to arrest.”
This is a second time in less than a month when an instance of sexual harassment inside the Top Court of the country has surfaced. Less than a month ago, a young woman lawyer had taken to Twitter to speak out about a law clerk who sexually harassed her.
Security of women is a concern even spoken about by one of the sitting Supreme Court judges, Justice DY Chandrachud recently.