Sexual harassment: Law intern gives affidavits to committee

New Delhi: The law intern, who has alleged sexual harassment by a recently-retired Supreme Court judge, on Thursday sent certain applications and affidavits to the three-member committee probing the allegations levelled by her.

In a blog, she said she has presented all details of the case to the panel and asked media to "stop speculating" on her communications and continue to respect her "privacy". Writing in the 'Journal for Indian Law and Society', she said that during the meeting with the panel on November 18, she had presented all the details of the case to the committee.

"As requested by the committee, I appeared before them on November 18. During the meeting, I presented all the details of the case to the committee. I am confident that the committee will follow all the different lines of enquiry, and will establish the truth of my statements," the blog quoted her saying.

"The committee has assured me complete confidentiality. Some media reports are violating the confidentiality of testimony given by the committee. They have been distorting facts, and misreporting my statements.

"Such pernicious and mala fide reporting must cease immediately. I would like to request the media to stop speculating on my communications with the committee, and continue to respect my privacy," she said.

Official sources also confirmed that the intern had not appeared before the panel yesterday and an affidavit has been filed seeking exemption from appearance. "The intern, who was asked to appear before the committee on Wednesday, had sought exemption from appearance which was granted by the panel," they said.

"The applications sent by her are under consideration by the three-judge committee comprising justices R. M. Lodha, H. L. Dattu and Ranjana Prakash Desai," sources said, adding that this was decided at the committee's meeting held at 1.15 pm on Thursday.

However, next date of meeting and who is likely to appear before the panel has not yet been decided. The intern had appeared before the committee on November 18 and she was asked to appear before it next on November 20.

The young woman intern had accused the sitting judge, who retired recently, of having misbehaved with her in a hotel room last December when the nation was grappling with the gangrape of a 23-year-old woman in the capital.