Justice Ganguly should resign as chief of WB HRC: Sushma

New Delhi: Leader of the Opposition in the Lok Sabha Sushma Swaraj on Monday said retired Supreme Court judge AK Ganguly should step down as the Chairperson of the West Bengal Human Rights Commission in view of sexual harassment allegations. She tweeted, "I strongly feel that Justice AK Ganguly should resign as Chairman of WB Human Rights Commission."

Earlier in the day, a silent protest was held outside the commission office in Kolkata. The Trinamool Congress has also demanded Justice Ganguly's resignation.

A law intern had named Justice Ganguly as an accused before the Supreme Court panel probing the sexual harassment allegations. Justice Ganguly had said he was shocked and shattered by the allegation and had denied all the charges saying he was a victim of circumstances.

However, former Attorney General of India Soli Sorabjee had said Ganguly should not resign over sexual harassment allegations and it would set a bad precedent.

Justice Ganguly had said he was shocked and shattered by the allegation and denied all the charges saying he was a victim of circumstances. "I am shattered and shocked. I deny all the charges."

He had added that the intern was like a child to him. "She came to my house on a number of occasions. The intern is like a child to me. The intern has worked with me, but she has never raised the issue with me."

He had said, "When I was in Delhi, she was in Delhi. I did not force her to come to me, she had dinner with me, she had the liberty to leave. She should have left if she felt uncomfortable. I am a victim of circumstances."

He had said in his defence that he was not given an opportunity to give a detailed reply to the Supreme Court panel which investigated the allegations. He said, "I did not get a chance to talk to the intern about the blog. People will judge me by my conduct."

He had said, "I am not ashamed of anything. If this trend continues, then it would be difficult for upright judges to work in the Supreme Court."

The members of the committee include Ravindra Maithani, Supreme Court Secretary General, Justices RM Lodha, HL Dattu and Ranjana Prakash Desai.

The woman lawyer had written a blog in which she charged a former Supreme Court judge of sexually harassing her, while she interned with him in 2012. The woman lawyer who completed her law degree from National University of Jurdicial Sciences, Kolkata wrote is her blog, "In Delhi at that time, interning during the winter vacations of my final year in the University, I dodged police barricades and fatigue to go to the assistance of a highly reputed, recently retired Supreme Court judge whom I was working under during my penultimate semester. For my supposed diligence, I was rewarded with sexual assault (not physically injurious, but nevertheless violating) from a man old enough to be my grandfather."

She had also claimed that at least three other girls have also faced harassment by the same judge. The girl said that she had refrained from disclosing the details initially due to the high position that the judge held.