New Delhi: The 27-year-old woman researcher, who filed a sexual harassment case against former director general of The Energy and Resources Institute (TERI) RK Pachauri, has written a letter to Prime Minister Narendra Modi urging him to sack the 74-year-old from all posts of the green body so that the investigation is carried out in a "free and fair" manner.
The woman in her letter to Pm Modi said: "Given the kind of influence and clout the accused enjoys, I feel very apprehensive and fear for how the investigations would unfold. I request you to take cognisance of my circumstances and of the facts so far to ensure that investigation is carried out in a fair and free manner."
"It is imperative that the accused should not be holding the highest position in the organisation where more witnesses are yet to depose and the accused can exercise his clout and influence to sabotage other aspects of investigation," she said in her letter written on Friday night.
On February 13 this year, an FIR was registered against 74-year-old Pachauri on charges of sexual harassment levelled by the woman, a senior TERI employee.
On July 23, Pachauri was removed as the Director General of the green body by its governing council on July 23 and replaced with Ajay Mathur, currently DG of Bureau of Energy Efficiency (BEE).
Pachauri was granted anticipatory bail on March 21 but was directed not to enter the TERI offices till investigation is complete. On July 17, a court allowed the environmentalist to visit the offices, except two establishments in one of which the complainant worked.
Environmentalist Pachauri stepped down as chairperson of the UN Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC).
Citing several SMS texts, e-mails and WhatsApp messages as evidence, the woman accused Pachauri of sexually harassing her soon after she joined TERI in September 2013 and filed a complaint in February this year.
(With agency inputs)
