US-based journalist Pallavi Gogoi refuted former Union Minister MJ Akbar’s claim of having a "consensual relationship” with him and wrote on Twitter, “A relationship that is based on coercion, and abuse of power, is not consensual. I stand by every word in my published account.”
Akbar, who had to recently resign from the post of Minister of State for External Affairs after multiple sexual harassment allegations, denied the rape allegations levelled against him by the journalist and had claimed that he had a "consensual relationship" spanning several months with her but it ended "perhaps not on the best note".
Akbar's wife Mallika Akbar also broke her silence for the first time since accusations were levelled against her husband, saying that while she doesn't know Pallavi's reasons for telling this lie, it is a lie nevertheless.
US-based journalist Pallavi Gogoi, in a piece written for The Washington Post, accused MJ Akbar of raping her and threatening her with consequences if she refused the advances made at her, when she worked with him at The Asian Age.
- Gogoi said Akbar defiled her sexually, verbally and emotionally
- Gogoi also wrote about how she was in distress and couldn’t fight back
- Earlier, over a dozen journalists accused Akbar of sexual misconduct and harassment
- Akbar, who resigned as MoS for External Affairs, filed a defamation case against journalist Priya Ramani
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Akbar's Reputation Destroyed Due To Ramani's Allegation, Former Colleague Tells HC
A former woman colleague of journalist and politician M J Akbar told a Delhi court on Monday, 12 November that his reputation has been "destroyed" and "damaged irreparably" due to the allegations of sexual misconduct levelled by scribe Priya Ramani.
Joyeeta Basu, the editor of Sunday Guardian, who appeared as a witness to support defamation case filed by Akbar, told the court that Ramani posted all her tweets "intentionally with a purpose to harm" Akbar's "reputation and goodwill".
The court has now posted the matter for next hearing on December 7, when it is likely to record the statement of another witness named by Akbar in his complaint.
Akbar Case May Come Under the Radar of Rajya Sabha Ethics Panel
Fresh allegations against MJ Akbar may come under the scanner of the Upper House Ethics Committee.
Committee chairman and BJP MP Narayan Lal Panchariya told The Indian Express: “If any complaint comes, we will go by the procedure and Akbar case may come on Rajya Sabha ethics panel radar take up the matter.”
Tracking Fresh & Serious Allegations Against Akbar: Editors Guild
In a fresh statement issued by the Editors Guild of India on Friday, 2 November, the body, of which Akbar is a former President, said that it was “tracking with great concern fresh, and serious allegations of sexual misconduct against former editor MJ Akbar”.
Keeping in tune with its last statement against Akbar, it said that since Akbar was no longer a journalist, his membership with the Guild had become “dormant”.
Not a Consensual Relationship: Gogoi Refutes Akbar's Claim
In a statement released on Twitter, Gogoi refuted Akbar’s claim of sharing a "consensual relationship” and wrote, “Rather than taking responsibility for his abuse of me & his serial predation of other young man who have courageously came forward. MJ Akbar has insisted—just like other infamous serial sexual abuser of women—that the relationship was consensual. It was not. A relationship that is based on coercion, and abuse of power, is not consensual. I stand by every word in my published account.”