Ganguly's indictment: Soni says people in position must quit

In the wake of indictment of former Supreme Court judge by an apex court panel in a sexual harassment complaint, senior Congress leader Ambika Soni today said those occupying high offices must step down, whether guilty or not, as it only increases their moral stature.

"The accusation of wrong behavior, to put it mildly is the same whether you are serving or you are a retired person. The accusation does not change," Soni told reporters outside Parliament.

Soni said it was expected of those in important places to take the high moral ground in such situations.

"Secondly, we expect people to show a certain high moral ground, from those who occupy or who have occupied high offices. I do feel that if a person occupies such a high office, even if he feels he did not do the wrong thing, steps down, he increases his moral stature than reducing it," Soni said.

A three-judge committee of the Supreme Court had yesterday indicted Justice Ganguly for "unwelcome behavior" and "conduct of sexual nature" toward a woman law intern, prompting demands that action under criminal law should be initiated against him.

Justice Ganguly, who retired from the apex court more than a year ago and currently heads the West Bengal Human Rights Commission (WBHRC), was accused by the intern of sexually harassing her in a hotel room in Delhi last year. He, however, had strongly denied the charge.