Former Supreme Court judge AK Ganguly (Fiel pic)
The BJP has said it will raise in Parliament the allegations of sexual harassment against former Supreme Court judge AK Ganguly and once again demanded that he should resign as the Chairman of the West Bengal Human Rights Commission.
"Someone who has violated human rights cannot continue as Chairman of Human Rights Commission. We will raise this matter in Parliament," senior party leader Sushma Swaraj said in a comment posted on micro-blogging site Twitter.
Justice Ganguly has been indicted for sexually harassing a young intern. On Thursday, Chief Justice of India P Sathasivam said there was evidence of "unwanted conduct of a sexual nature" by Justice Ganguly in a five-star hotel last December. But he also said that the Supreme Court has no administrative control over a retired judge and can therefore take no action against him.
Yesterday, BJP's Arun Jaitley said the Supreme Court's response to the case is glaringly inadequate and that it "cannot follow an escapist route."
Law Minister Kapil Sibal also disagreed with the court's stand and said, "Why did they wash their hands off the matter? The fact of the matter is that we all know that ultimately the infallible are also ordinary mortals... and this is a case where the dignity of a woman is involved."
The Delhi Police has contacted the young woman lawyer, asking her if she would like to file a formal complaint against Justice Ganguly. She has yet to reply, said sources.
West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee has written to President Pranab Mukherjee seeking "urgent appropriate action" against Justice Ganguly, who has been a frequent critic of her government.