Justice Ganguly refuses comment on sexual assault allegations

Kolkata, Nov 29 :

Dodging queries on the allegations of sexual assault levelled against him, former Supreme Court judge A.K. Ganguly Friday refused to comment on the issue or whether he would step down as head of the West Bengal human rights panel.

Surrounded by clamouring media persons, who repeatedly quizzed him on the allegations, Ganguly kept on repeating: “I shall not comment on this”.

Ganguly, now chairman of the state human rights commission, was faced with a volley of questions from scribes on the sidelines of a programme here.

He was identified as the judge against whom a young lawyer intern had levelled charges of sexual harassment by a three-member panel that probed the charge.

The report, submitted to Chief Justice P. Sathasivam, also carries the statements of the victim, a young lawyer who had interned under the Supreme Court judge, and that of Ganguly, the sources said.

She had first alleged sexual harassment on Nov 6, in a blog for Journal of Indian Law and Society. Subsequently she repeated the allegation in an interview to Legally India website.

The young lawyer, who is at present working with organization Natural Justice: Lawyers for Communities and Environment, said besides herself she has heard three other girls too were sexually harassed by the same judge.

Trinamool wants Justice Ganguly to step down

West Bengal’s ruling Trinamool Congress Friday demanded the resignation of the state human rights panel chairman Asok Kumar Ganguly who has been accused of sexual harassment by a law intern.

“He has no moral right to continue as the chief of the human rights panel. What he did is a big blot to the judicial system of the country and a person who himself is an accused should not be allowed to determine about others’ rights,” said Trinamool MP Kalyan Banerjee.

A three-member panel that probed the charge of sexual harassment of a young lawyer by a Supreme Court judge, now retired, has identified Ganguly as the judge.

Ganguly though has denied the allegations.

The Mamata Banerjee-led state government and the rights panel do not share a cordial relationship. Besides making several recommendations against it, Ganguly has been vociferous in deriding the Banerjee regime over several issues including the rising crime chart.

In turn, the state government has been seeking clarifications regarding Ganguly’s trip to Pakistan earlier this year.

(IANS)