NEW DELHI — A court in New Delhi on Wednesday acquitted an Indian journalist of defamation after she accused M.J. Akbar, a prominent former government minister and newspaper editor, of sexual harassment, a dispute widely seen as a barometer of the country’s fledgling #MeToo movement.
Mr. Akbar said the accusations of the journalist, Priya Ramani, amounted to criminal defamation. But the court found that Mr. Akbar failed to prove his case, saying Ms. Ramani’s disclosure was in the interest of preventing sexual harassment in the workplace.
The court said in its order that the “right of reputation can’t be protected at the cost of right to dignity.”
“I feel vindicated on behalf of all the women who have ever spoken up on sexual harassment in the workplace,” Ms. Ramani told reporters outside the courtroom.
She said she hoped the verdict would “discourage powerful men from filing false cases against women who share their truths.”
“Despite the fact that it was me the victim who had to stand as the accused,” Ms. Ramani said, “I’m happy that sexual harassment got the attention it deserves.”
Had Ms. Ramani been found guilty of defamation, she could have been imprisoned for up to two years, fined or both. Under Indian law, individuals can make a criminal defamation claim in the courts, though the legal standard is higher than for civil defamation cases.
Supporters of Ms. Ramani — particularly other women journalists — cheered the judgment as a significant victory for the #MeToo movement in India, which has been slow to address persistent sexual harassment in the workplace.
“A day to remember that #MeToo is not a movement but a consciousness about demanding and expecting safe workplaces, whether at home or outside,” Ghazala Wahab, a journalist who testified in Ms. Ramani’s case about her own alleged abuse by Mr. Akbar, wrote on Twitter.
Mr. Akbar declined an interview request, but a member of his legal team, Niharika Karanjawala, said, “We respectfully disagree with the decision.” He added that Mr. Akbar would appeal.
Even though Ms. Ramani was acquitted, experts say the defamation suit could still have a chilling effect for women seeking to come forward to complain of harassment and violence at the hands of powerful men. Mr. Akbar, a member of the Indian Parliament, mustered a team of nearly 100 lawyers to press his claim.
In court, Mr. Akbar argued that if Ms. Ramani’s complaint had merit, she should have turned to the justice system rather than a “social media trial.”
The court, though, agreed with Ms. Ramani’s defense that there was no clear remedy in 1993 when the harassment is said to have occurred. At that time, sexual harassment at work was not explicitly illegal in India.
“The time has come for our society to understand the sexual abuse and sexual harassment and its implications on victims,” the court said.
The Supreme Court passed guidelines in 1997, and protections for women were further codified in 2013 when lawmakers enacted the Sexual Harassment of Women at Workplace Act.
The law, known as the Posh Act, requires employers to set up internal committees to investigate sexual harassment complaints. The committees were designed as a workaround to India’s notoriously clogged court system and meant to empower women, including those with informal jobs whom rights groups say are often targeted for sexual abuse.
The committees have the power of civil courts to impose fines or order remedies. Complaints have risen in the years since the Posh Act became law, according to industry lawyers.
But it is difficult for women to win sexual harassment cases, even with this legal framework. The Posh Act requires that complaints in most instances be made within 90 days.
The court in Ms. Ramani’s case said “the woman has a right to put her grievance at any platform of her choice and even after decades,” the court said.
Sunieta Ojha, who represents many women making claims of sexual…
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