Industrial tribunal can decide on R K Pachauri's appeal: HC

An ex-employee filed a petition against TERI for not acting upon a sexual harassment complaint

The Delhi High Court on Friday "left it open" for the industrial tribunal, which is hearing former TERI chief R K Pachauri's plea against internal complaints committee's findings on him in a sexual harassment case, to proceed further and decide the appeal as per the law.

"We are, therefore, of the view that it would be appropriate to leave it open to the Industrial Tribunal-I to proceed further and decide the appeal following due process of law subject to further orders in this petition. It is open to both the parties to raise all the grounds as permissible under law before the tribunal and the same be considered and determined in accordance with the law," a bench of Chief Justice G Rohini and Justice Sangita Dhingra Sehgal said.

"We make it clear that the pendency of this writ petition shall not preclude the tribunal to proceed with the appeal pending on its file and to pass an appropriate order in accordance with the law on its own merit," it said.

The bench further said, "We also make it clear that the interim order dated May 17, 2016, shall continue and the final order if any passed by the Industrial Tribunal in the appeal filed by the respondent No.5 (Pachauri) shall not be given effect to except with the permission of this court."

In its 2016 interim order, the bench had said that order, if any, passed by the tribunal in the appeal shall not be given any effect.

The court's order came on a petition by a woman, a former TERI employee, who has alleged that The Energy and Resources Institute (TERI) had not acted against Pachauri as per recommendations of an internal complaints committee (ICC) in connection with her sexual harassment complaint.

The high court said it is keeping the writ petition pending as vires of Rule 11 of the Sexual Harassment of Women at the Workplace (Prevention, Prohibition and Redressal) Rules 2013, is under challenge.

It said that the main petition would come up for hearing in April this year.