New Delhi: The Energy and Resource Institute (TERI) on Wednesday issued a statement saying it had been completely fair and totally neutral in dealing with the matter of the complainant in the sexual harassment case against climate scientist RK Pachauri.
The statement further said that the organization has not favoured anyone, a fact apparent from documented records.
"The complainant was allowed special leave with full pay for 90 days extra to her leave account for the period 18/02/2015 to 18/05/2015 in keeping with the provisions of the relevant Act. Subsequently, she was allowed to take leave with pay as admissible to her and as available in her leave account.", the statement read.
The statement also said," This period ended on 26/05/2015 beyond which she preferred to stay on leave without pay. Please note that during this period the organization was not provided any notification of whether and when she would like to resume work. Several reminders were sent to her, in response to which she has shown no inclination to resume work. In most organisations there is a time limit on the extent to which leave without pay is allowed. Since we did not receive any prior intimidation, 'Leave Without Pay' started with immediate effect from 26th May 2015 until date of resigning."
The complainant in the sexual harassment case resigned from TERI alleging that the organisation treated her in the "worst possible manner". The complainant said that she was harmed "mentally, professionally and economically".
In her resignation letter to TERI HR Director Dinesh Verma, the complainant has said that despite the inquiry committee finding Pachauri guilty of misconduct, the organisation has "failed" to do the "bare minimum" to ensure that she is not impacted.
"Your organisation has treated me in the worst possible manner. TERI failed to uphold my interests as an employee, let alone protecting them. The organisation has instead protected RK Pachauri and provided him with full immunity, despite being held guilty of sexual harassment at the workplace by your own inquiry committee. The Governing Council too let me down in an unprecedented way," she said.
"The Council could not even suspend a man pending inquiry and took no action despite the indictment. You also created a hostile environment for me which has only escalated and showed no signs of subsiding whatsoever.
It is becoming clear that the Governing Council works for the DG and under his instructions. There has been no changeover in the DG as well as stated on 23 July, 2015. I am tendering my resignation from TERI with immediate effect," the complainant wrote in the letter.
The complainant had registered a complaint against Pachauri for sexual harassment at the workplace and lodged an FIR with Delhi Police in February 2015.
The complainant also alleged that the organisation had changed her work profile and played "deaf" to all her request for not doing so. "You changed my work profile and played deaf to my requests for not doing so.I was given zero explanation of taking such an action and none of my emails/requests were heeded to.I only got vague responses.
I refuse to be associated with an organisation such as yours for the way you have mistreated me, for not standing by the law, for not having respect for my capabilities, for doing nothing to ensure that my career is not harmed and instead harmed me mentally, professionally and economically," she wrote.
She also said that she tendered her resignation without any prejudice to her rights to claim salary, damages and other dues/costs for the "gross misconduct and mental torture" meted out to her at the work place, apart from taking all pending litigation to their logical conclusion.
On February 13, an FIR was registered against Pachauri on charges of sexual harassment under IPC sections including 354 (assault or criminal force to woman with intent to outrage her modesty), 354 (d)(molestation) and 506 (criminal intimidation).
The court had granted him anticipatory bail while imposing the conditions that he will join the probe as and when called and not enter the TERI office premises. In the place of Pachauri, TERI governing council had on July 23 appointed Ajay Mathur as its Director General.
Pachauri had also stepped down from United Nations' IPCC and the Prime Minister's Council on Climate Change.
Comments
0 comment