New Delhi: TERI's Executive Vice Chairman R K Pachauri, accused in a sexual harassment case, on Wednesday withdrew his plea seeking to restrain a media house from publishing reports on the proceedings and outcome of inquiry against him.
Pachauri, who has denied all allegations levelled against him, through his counsel told a bench of justices Gita Mittal and I S Mehta that damage has already been done and the publication is still going on, so there is no point in keeping the appeal pending before it.
Advocate Ashish Dixit, appearing for him, submitted that a civil defamation suit is pending before a trial court for consideration against the accused media house, which will be decided on merit.
Taking note of the submissions, the court allowed him to withdraw the appeal against a single bench order of February 18, 2015, which had refused his request for complete restraint on media from reporting on the outcome of the inquiry against him under the Sexual Harassment at Workplace Act.
"The appeal and all the applications stand withdrawn. Interim order shall stand discharged," the bench said. In its interim order, the high court had said, "any steps taken by the respondents (media house and a journalist) shall comply with Section 16 (prohibition of publication or making known contents of complaint and inquiry proceedings) of the Sexual Harassment of Women at Workplace (Prevention, Prohibition and Redressal) Act...".
Pachauri had challenged the single bench order allowing the publication and airing of reports regarding action taken by police, the proceedings of complaint filed by complainant before the committee, and connected court proceedings.
On February 13 last an FIR was registered against Pachauri on charges of sexual harassment under sections 354, 354(a), 354(d) (molestation) and 506 (criminal intimidation) of the IPC at Lodhi Colony Police Station, on a complaint filed against him by a former woman research analyst.
Currently, Pachauri is on anticipatory bail granted by the trial court on March 21, 2015.
Recently, police had filed a charge sheet in the case against Pachauri before a trial court for the alleged offences under several sections including 354 (outraging woman's modesty), 506 (criminal intimidation) and 509 (word, gesture or act intended to insult the modesty of a woman).
