“Worst fears have come true”, says complainant after CJI Ranjan Gogoi gets clean chit [Read Complainant’s Full Statement]

The former Supreme Court staffer who made the allegations of sexual harassment against Chief Justice of India Ranjan Gogoi says she is “highly disappointed and dejected” to know of the clean chit given to CJI Gogoi by the in-house panel..The three-Judge panel comprising Justices SA Bobde, Indu Malhotra, and Indira Banerjee that was looking into the allegations has cleared CJI Ranjan Gogoi’s name concluding that there is no substance in the allegations of the former employee of the Supreme Court..In her statement released shortly after the Supreme Court published the notice of the panel’s conclusion, the complainant states,.“I, the woman complainant, a former SC employee, am highly disappointed and dejected to learn that the In-House Committee “has found no substance” in my complaint and feel that gross injustice has been done to me as a woman citizen of India. I am now extremely scared and terrified because the In- House Committee, despite having all material placed before them, appears to have given me no justice or protection and said nothing about the absolutely malafide dismissals and suspensions, indignities and humiliations suffered by me and my family. I and my family members remain vulnerable to the ongoing reprisals and attack.”.The complainant had earlier withdrawn from the proceedings expressing her anguish at the procedure being followed in the hearings. She had cited several reasons for her stepping away from the proceedings, such as not being allowed to be accompanied by a lawyer or a support person, no video recording of the proceedings, among other things..She further states that she is not even aware if other persons named in the complaint, who were aware of her victimization, were called by the committee for their evidence..“I do not even know whether the SHO who took me to the CJIs residence to make me apologise to the CJIs wife in a humiliating manner, was called by the committee even though I had submitted a video recording of my interaction with him on that day. I do not even know whether the call records of the CJI or the Secretary-General were called for by the committee which would substantiate some of the facts mentioned in my complaint.”.Today, after the committee cleared CJI’s name, the complainant says her hope for getting justice is now shattered and her “worst fears have come true”..“Today, my worst fears have come true, and all hope of justice and redress from the committee have been shattered. In fact, the Committee has announced that I will not even be provided a copy of the Report, and so I have no way of comprehending the reasons and basis for the summary dismissal of my Complaint of sexual harassment and victimisation.”.Stating that she is “at the verge of losing faith in the capacity of our system to deliver justice to the weak andvulnerable who are pitted against the powerful within the system itself”, the complainant has said she will consult her lawyer to decide on the next step..Read the complainant’s statement:.Bar & Bench is available on WhatsApp. For real-time updates on stories, click here to subscribe to our WhatsApp.