Delhi Police file chargesheet against Pachauri for sexual harassment

Delhi Police on Tuesday filed a chargesheet in a court against TERI Executive Vice Chairman R.K. Pachauri for allegedly sexually harassing and outraging modesty of a former woman colleague.

Pachauri has also been accused of stalking and criminally intimidating the victim with gesture or act intended to insult her modesty, said the charge sheet filed in the court of Metropolitan Magistrate Shivani Chauhan who has fixed it for consideration on April 23, 2016.

Pachauri has denied all the allegations. Investigating Officer in the case, Pratibha Sharma, who submitted the over 1,400 page charge sheet, said the probe was also based on the SMSes and emails exchanged between the accused and the victim. She said the complaint of the former TERI woman employee was thoroughly examined and statements of witnesses, many of whom are present and former employees of the organisation and friends were recorded.

The IO said 23 persons, including friends, present and former employees of The Energy Research Institute (TERI), have been named as prosecution witnesses in the charge sheet.

Investigators have also relied on the statement of the victim before the police and magistrate, besides the SMSes and emails exchanged between her the accused, she said.

She said based on the complaint of the victim, offences punishable under sections 354 (assault/criminal force to woman with intent to outrage her modesty), 354 A (sexual harassment), 354 D(stalking), 506 (criminal intimidation) and 509(word, gesture or act intended to insult the modesty of a woman) of IPC, are made out against Pachauri.

On February 13, 2015, an FIR was registered against Pachauri and he was granted anticipatory bail in the case on March 21, 2016.