Court allows Rajendra K Pachauri to enter all Teri branches except Lodhi Road and Gurgaon offices

NEW DELHI: A lower court on Friday allowed Rajendra K Pachauri, Director of The Energy and Resources Institute ( Teri) to enter all offices of the institute except the head office on Lodhi Road and the office in Gurgaon.

Pachauri is on leave from leave following allegations of sexual harassment leveled by a woman who used to work in his office. The court rejected arguments from the investigating officer that some female employees were yet to be interrogated and from a lawyer representing the complainant that all Teri offices were inter-connected.

Modifying its earlier order banning Pachauri from all Teri offices, the court said the prosecution evidence in the case is in electronic form, besides the oral evidence of the complainant and other witnesses.

The electronic equipments/gadgets used by the complainant and accused have been sent to the Forensic Science Laboratory (FSL), Gandhi Nagar, Gujarat for examination.

The court recorded that the reports from the laboratories will take time. Holding that it does "not find merit in submissions that all Teri offices are interconnected and therefore, the accused would influence the witnesses and tamper with the prosecution evidence", the court observed that it "fails to understand as to how the accused will tamper with the evidence".

The court, however, ordered that since the complainant in the case has been shifted to the Gurgaon office, Pachauri will not be allowed to visit or enter Gurgaon office.