Assam pride Chief Justice of India (CJI) Ranjan Gogoi has finally got a sympathizer in union finance minister Arun Jaitley who on Sunday accused ‘institutional disrupters’ of destabilizing the institution of CJI by ‘lending shoulder to unverified allegations’ against the head of the Supreme Court.
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The union finance minister also called for ‘exemplary’ action against such people.
Jaitley in a blog stood firmly in the defence of Ranjan Gogoi by stating that, ‘It’s time to stand up with the judiciary’.
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The Supreme Court even held an extraordinary hearing on Saturday after a former employee of the top court accused the CJI of sexual harassment and persecution.
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The former employee has described two incidents of alleged molestation by Chief Justice Gogoi in her affidavit, both of which allegedly took place in October 2018, only days after he was appointed as the CJI.
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Jaitley had further stated, “In terms of personal decency, values, ethics and integrity, the present Chief Justice of India is extremely well regarded. Even when critics disagree with his judicial view, his value system has never been questioned. Lending shoulder to completely unverified allegations coming from a disgruntled person with a not-so-glorious track record is aiding the process of destabilization of the institution of the Chief Justice of India.”
Also read: ‘Sexual harassment’ charges against Assam-born CJI Ranjan Gogoi
The minister also said that those who ‘peddle falsehood to destroy the institution are not dealt with in an exemplary manner, this trend will only accelerate’.