CJI Ranjan Gogoi faced with the allegations of Sexual Harassment by a former Supreme Court Employee

On April 19^th, 2019 the former Supreme Court employee and Junior Court Assistant made allegations of sexual harassment against CJI Shri Ranjan Gogoi who is currently serving as the 46^th Chief Justice of India in the form of an affidavit sent to all the judges of the court.

Background

The woman who made the allegations of sexual harassment against CJI Ranjan Gogoi was a former employee of his and worked under him for around 2 Years from October 2016 to October 2018. She was sent as a junior court assistant to Justice Gogoi’s court as a replacement for another Junior Court Assistant who was gone on leave.

The Affidavit sent by the former Supreme Court employee has listed all the events happened during her employment under Justice Gogoi and her sexual harassment during that time.

She further told in her affidavit that CJI Gogoi used to take a liking to her professional and personal interests which made her uncomfortable sometimes and he would also often ask her to send him good morning messages every day and a text message in evening when she reaches back home.

The affidavit further stated that CJI Gogoi kept telling her that she is special and repeatedly told her that once he becomes CJI, he would be in a position to help her to which she refused but told him once about his brother-in-law seeking a job who is disabled. He assured her that he would get him a job through the Discretionary Quota of Chief Justice and soon after his appointment as CJI, he provided her brother-in-law with the job.

After appointment of her brother-in-law he told her to write the things on a notepad about what she could do for him and come.

The alleged sexual harassment incident took place on 11^th October as follows:

“CJI said your whole family must be very happy. He told me that “If you put on some weight you will look good…”. The CJI once again asked me, “So, what can you do for me”. He asked me whether I have written anything down, I showed him a notepad on which I had written how grateful I was…The CJI read the note. He then got up from his chair and walked across and came and stood to my left. Since he was standing I too stood up as I could not continue sitting when the CJI is standing. He took my notepad from my hands and put it aside on the desk, he then took my hands into his and told me that my hands smell nice, he then pinched my cheeks, he then put his arms around my waist from the front, he said, “I want this from you”. When I had stood up I had put my hands behind my back. He hugged me around the waist, and touched me all over my body with his arms and by pressing his body against mine, and did not let go. He told me “hold me”, he did not let go of me despite the fact that I froze and tried to get out of his embrace by stiffening and moving my body away. Since he did not stop forcibly hugging me, I was forced to push him away from me with my hands. When I pushed him away, he hit his head against a book shelf/cabinet on my left. My first thought was why the CJI would think he can do something like this to me. I immediately left the room and was in a state of complete shock and was unable to think clearly after this. I sat at my desk.”

The trouble for the former employee started and in her affidavit she has stated that within a matter of few weeks, she was transferred three times. First time she was transferred to Centre for Research and Planning to Admin Material Section and then finally to the Library Section. Her husband and brother in law were also suspended from police and in March, 2019 she was charged with a serious offence of bribery by Naveen Kumar who paid her 50,000 Rs. for a job in the Supreme Court.

CJI Gogoi’s response to the alleged sexual harassment

After the affidavit was sent to all the judges of the court, the Supreme Court issued a notice that a special bench would be constituted comprising of CJI Ranjan Gogoi, Justice Arun Mishra and Justice Sanjiv Khanna to hold a sitting for special hearing at 10:30 AM in the Chief Justice’s Court. This case was mentioned by the Solicitor General Tushar Mehta.

Secretary General Sanjeev S. Kalgaonkar has referred to these allegations as false and baseless.

CJI Ranjan Gogoi while referring to the allegations made against him stated that he does not want to stoop low as to even deny these allegations and further went on saying that he would not be involved in this matter and let the other judges decide.

Another contention by the CJI was that the former employee was terminated from her post as she had criminal charges against her and the termination was done in accordance with the procedures.

CJI Gogoi then went on about how he has been serving selflessly for around 20 years with a bank balance of 6, 80,000. He also states that this allegation is baseless and is aimed at attacking the very independence of judiciary.

Independence of Judiciary

Judiciary is considered as the most important organ of the government for a variety of reasons. Supreme Court of India is the highest authority of Judiciary. In order for the courts to provide justice with just and unbiased judgments, independence of judiciary is an integral part of judiciary.

Independence of Judiciary refers to the state where Separation of powers is present and Judiciary has the power to act independently without any interference from executive and legislature for making just and unbiased decisions.

The separation of Judiciary from other organs of the state is important since “law is a language, the language of the people and their voice. Law is the language which translates the dreams of justice into reality” and that reality is possible only when there is least amount of interference while deciding a case.

Furthermore, Judiciary needs to be more independent and careful while exercising their duty since Judiciary is the leading authority on Law and Justice, if people lose their trust on judges and legal official sworn to uphold the law under any circumstances, it would be a black day.

Conclusion

If people lose their trust on the very authorities which as supposed to protect them, then whom will they trust? The importance of independence of Judiciary can be best understood from S.P. Gupta vs. Union of India case where the court held that “If there is one principle which runs through the entire fabric of the Constitution, it is the principle of the rule of law under the Constitution, it is the judiciary which is entrusted with the task of keeping every organ of the State within the limits of the law thereby making the rule of law meaningful and effective. It is well understood that if the judiciary by their performance and conduct does not meet the expectations for which such Constitutional protection has been provided, the judiciary will be reduced to any other organ of the State which we have come to distrust in recent times.”

The allegations imposed upon CJI Ranjan Gogoi has rightly been implied as a threat to Independence of Judiciary because if Judges and lawyers are into question like that then the very existence and the very foundation upon which Judiciary is built will fall down.