Allegation Is Threat to Judiciary
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Established 1864 RNI No.2016/1957, REGD NO. SSP/LW/NP-34/2019-21 Follow us on: @TheDailyPioneer facebook.com/dailypioneer instagram.com/dailypioneer/ Late City Vol. 155 Issue 107 Published From *Air Surcharge Extra if Applicable LANDMARK 5 WORLD 7 SPORT 10 DELHI LUCKNOW BHOPAL EC ORDERS TRANSFER OF FOUNDATION STONE LAID FOR BHUBANESWAR RANCHI CSK EYE WIN RAIPUR CHANDIGARH MALDA POLICE CHIEF HINDU TEMPLE IN ABU DHABI AGAINST RCB DEHRADUN LUCKNOW, SUNDAY APRIL 21, 2019; PAGES 12+4 `3 www.dailypioneer.com USUALSUSPECTS SWAPAN DASGUPTA Allegation is threat to judiciary: CJI Festival of democracy After sexual harassment charges by ex-SC staffer on Gogoi, SC asks media for self-restraint PTI n NEW DELHI and made to rub her nose at cases” next week and this was Mishra and Sanjiv Khanna, her feet in the Chief Justice’s also last few weeks of the Lok said the “bigger force” behind llegations of sexual harass- residence, she alleged in her Sabha elections. The CJI did the controversy has the poten- must not be vipassana Ament have cropped up affidavit, adding that her dis- not name any of the cases. tial to shake the faith of public against Chief Justice of India abled brother-in-law was Besides the CJI, the Bench in the judicial system. here are many conflicting views of the role being played Ranjan Gogoi prompting him to removed from service at the also comprising justices Arun Turn to Page 6 Tby social media in 2019 general election. For many convene an urgent extraordi- Supreme Court. politicians, and not necessarily those confined to a particular nary hearing on Saturday and There was no immediate age group, social media is a strange and unfamiliar beast assert that the charges by a for- reaction from the Government that distracts from the ‘real’ campaign-meeting and speaking mer apex court staffer were or any major political party. Delhi court to hear cops’ to people. Mercifully, this has now become a minority view. “unbelievable” and part of a con- The court held the hearing Most political workers recognise that the sheer size of a Lok spiracy by some “bigger force” for about 30 minutes during Sabha constituency makes personal interaction and door-to- to “deactivate” the CJI’s office. which Gogoi said indepen- plea to cancel bail of door meetings with voters almost an impossible task. As the allegations by the dence of judiciary was under Consequently, social media serves as an additional mode of former woman staffer who had “very serious threat” and communication, particularly to voters who like to know what worked at Gogoi’s home office “unscrupulous allegations” of complainant on April 24 a party or candidate stands for. in Delhi and dating back to sexual harassment had been This election, partly as result of pressure from individuals October stunned the judiciary, levelled against the CJI as some New Delhi: A Delhi court on intimidation and criminal con- who have learnt too many needless lessons about ‘fake Gogoi said he would not stoop “bigger force” wanted to “deac- Saturday said it would hear on spiracy was lodged against the news’ and alleged Russian involvement in the Brexit too low even to deny them. tivate” the office of the Chief April 24, a police plea to can- woman on March 3, after a referendum and the election of US President Donald Trump, Anguished over the alle- Justice. He did not elaborate on cel the bail of a former woman complaint was filed by Naveen there is an organised attempt to regulate the use of social gations, the CJI warned “the who the “bigger force” was that Supreme Court employee, who Kumar, a resident of Jhajjar in media. Companies such as Facebook, Twitter and Snapchat judiciary of this country is he was referring to. The CJI has accused Chief Justice of Haryana, at the Tilak Marg are also understandably anxious because governments tend under very serious threat. We also said the woman had a India Ranjan Gogoi of sexual Police Station here. to demand that social media platforms take responsibility for will not allow this to happen”. criminal record and two FIRs misconduct, in a cheating and Kumar has alleged that all that appears on their sites. Consequently, most sites have “I will sit on this chair and dis- were lodged against her. criminal intimidation case. the former apex court employ- set up their own censor boards to monitor content and, if charge my judicial functions “How can she become a Chief Metropolitan ee had defrauded him of necessary, block accounts. Many social media activists have without any fear or favour. I Supreme Court staff when an Magistrate Manish Khurana `50,000, which he claimed had their accounts blocked as a result. Some of these strong will decide the cases in the dence of judiciary is not affect- appointed CJI last October and FIR was pending against her,” listed the matter for she took as part of a bribe, actions may be warranted but in a large number of cases, seven months (of his remain- ed. The court, however, decid- her subsequent persecution. the CJI asked, adding that two Wednesday as the accused promising him a job at the Facebook pages and Twitter handles have been blocked on ing tenure as the CJI). I will do ed not to issue any gag order. The woman alleged that criminal cases were also pend- woman was not served with Supreme Court. account of their political partisanship. that,” he said. A three-judge special she was removed from service ing against her husband. The the copy of the police’s plea. He claimed that in June This raises a more fundamental question. One of the At the hurriedly called Bench headed by Gogoi was after she rebuffed his “sexual court, which said the judicia- The police sought cancel- 2017, he met the woman main functions of election campaigns is to expose voters to hearing in Court No 1 presided constituted after a sworn affi- advances”. She claimed that ry “cannot be made a scape- lation of the bail granted to the through a common friend, different and conflicting perspectives so that they can take by him after the allegations davit by the woman, copies of her husband and brother-in- goat”, said the media should not woman on March 12, after the Mansha Ram, regarding his informed decisions. Yet, informed decisions cannot really be were carried by some news por- which were sent to the resi- law, both of whom were head publish the woman’s complaint complainant claimed that he employment and she had told taken on the strength of sanitised party political broadcasts tals based on the affidavit by the dences of 22 apex court judges, constables, were suspended for without verifying its truth. was being threatened by the him she was a personal assis- on Doordarshan. Polemical exchanges may be funny or woman, the apex court said it became public. In her affidavit, a 2012 criminal case that had The CJI said this issue has former Supreme Court staffer tant of a judge in the Supreme offensive but they are is leaving it to the “wisdom of the woman described two inci- been mutually resolved. cropped up when a Bench and her associates. Court and her husband was It is their moral pressure to central to electoral media” to show restraint and act dents of alleged molestation by She was later also made to headed by him is scheduled to An FIR for the alleged also an officer. restrict the scope of politics that competition. Partisanship is responsibly so that indepen- Gogoi days after he was prostrate before Gogoi’s wife hear “many, many sensitive offences of cheating, criminal Turn to Page 6 has led to EC to impose bans a key feature of democracy, and certainly on musical parodies, wedding during an election when CAPSULE cards that called for a vote for people are choosing their Rohit’s spouse grilled for Modi and even a book release. futures. To censor these Farzi dosti of bua, babua will HOWRAH-DELHI POORVA Apart from anything else, these exchanges — unless on EXP DERAILS, 15 INJURED measures are an assault on account of unacceptable murder, mother says son’s Kanpur: Twelve coaches of the offensiveness — makes no Howrah-New Delhi Poorva Constitutional freedoms. We sense. There is, for fall apart after May 23: Modi Express derailed near Kanpur in need a sense of responsibility example, a professor of ties with wife not cordial Uttar Pradesh early on Saturday, but we don’t need the voters media studies somewhere Day after Maya’s injuring 15 people. The train was and candidates to be put on a in California who has made STAFF REPORTER n NEW DELHI going to New Delhi when the it his business to intervene fake OBC jibe, PM incident occurred near Rooma leash. The festival of democracy in Indian political matters. ohit Shekhar Tiwari did railway station — about 20 km must be a festival not a He is often funny, always hits back at BSP Rnot share a cordial rela- from here — in Kanpur Nagar vipassana strongly biased against tionship with his wife and district around 12.50 am. Narendra Modi and the chief, SP supremo was apparently upset over his BJP, and more often than is strictly necessary, falls back on political career not taking off, EC NOTICE TO SIDHU FOR four letter words. Yet, I would be absolutely horrified if, for PIONEER NEWS SERVICE n according to his mother PERSUADING MUSLIMS some reason, Twitter suspended his account in the same NEW DELHI/LUCKNOW/KOLKATA Ujjwala.