On Thursday, the High Court of Delhi adjourned the hearing on the plea of Ex-Union Minister MJ Akbar challenging a Trial Court order which had dismissed the criminal defamation case filed by him against journalist Priya Ramani over the allegations of sexual harassment.
The Bench of Justice Mukta Gupta adjourned the matter to May 5 as the concerned bench did not assemble today.
Additional Chief Metropolitan Magistrate Ravindra Kumar Pandey while passing the Trial Court order judgement on Feb 17 had said that Indian women are capable, the way should be paved for them to excel, & they only require freedom & equality.
The Court said that “The ‘glass ceiling’ will not prevent Indian women as a roadblock for their advancement in society if equal opportunity & social protection are given to them”.
Ramani during cross-examination submitted that she had no “malafide” & “extraneous” motive for making the allegations of sexual harassment against Ex-Union Minister M J Akbar.
She had said, “It is wrong to suggest that my conduct as a journalist has been unethical as I had neither identified my sources nor attributed credits”.
Ramani was the first woman to accuse Akbar of sexual harassment during the #MeToo campaign.
The allegations levelled against him forced him to resign from the Union Cabinet on Oct 17, 2018.
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