The Delhi High Court has quashed an FIR lodged against two employees of a leading automobile company on allegations of sexually harassing an intern working with the firm, noting that the duo was exonerated by an Internal Complaints Committee.
Justice Sudhir Kumar Jain said if the consequential proceedings arising out of the FIR are allowed to be continued, it will be a “misuse of power and an exercise in futility”.
The Court observed
The perusal of FIR bearing no. 594/2018 reflects that it was got registered on 01.12.2018 while the respondent no.2 left MSIL in the month of August, 2018. It reflects that the FIR bearing no.594/2018 was got registered much after leaving of MSIL by the respondent no.2. The respondent no.2 has made only general allegations without any specific detail. The respondent no.2 mentioned that the petitioner/Ashish Chauhan used to stare her in sexually offending manner by making gestures at her and used to pass lewd comments about her dressing and physical aspects but these allegations are without any specification. The respondent no. 2 did not make any allegation in FIR bearing no. 594/2018 but as per the Status Report, the respondent no.2 made allegation against the petitioner/Surajit Chatterjee regarding the sexual harassment in statement recorded under section 164 of the Code. If all the allegations as made by the respondent no.2 are taken to be true even then, no offences under sections 354A/506 IPC are made out.
The high court, in its January 25 order, allowed two petitions filed by the two employees and quashed the FIR lodged under sections 354A (sexual harassment) and 506 (criminal intimidation) Indian Penal Code.
It held that there was weight in the arguments advanced by the counsel for the two employees that the criminal proceedings or prosecution arising out of the FIR cannot be continued particularly when the petitioners were “exonerated by the Internal Complaints Committee (ICC)” through its final report filed in August 2019.
“The proceedings arising in pursuance of the FIR cannot be sustained in the law. If the investigation/ prosecution in pursuance of the FIR is allowed to be continued then it shall be an abuse of process of law,” the judge said.
After perusing the FIR, the high court noted that it was registered in December 2018 and the woman had left the company in August 2018 and she has only made general allegations without any specific details.
“It reflects that the FIR was registered much after leaving of (the company) by respondent no.2 (woman).
“Respondent no.2 has made only general allegations without any specific detail. Respondent no.2 mentioned that the petitioner (man) used to stare at her in a sexually offending manner by making gestures at her and used to pass lewd comments about her dressing and physical aspects but these allegations are without any specification,” the high court said.
It said the woman did not make any allegation in the FIR but as per the status report of the police, she made the allegation against one of the two men regarding the sexual harassment in the statement recorded under section 164 of the CrPC.
“If all the allegations as made by respondent no.2 are taken to be true even then, no offences under sections 354A/506 IPC are made out,” it said.
An ICC of the company constituted under the Sexual Harassment of Women at Workplace (Prevention, Prohibition and Redressal) Act, 2013, had received a complaint in the form of the FIR on December 4, 2018, after which a detailed and exhaustive inquiry was conducted.
The ICC, after examining the allegations made in the FIR, filed a final report in 2019 exonerating the two men from all the charges and allegations levelled by the complainant woman.
The court noted that the woman had withdrawn her complaint before the ICC which proceeded with the enquiry and decided the matter on merits.
