NEW DELHI: In a major development, the Supreme Court on Friday decided to hear the blanket constitutional immunity granted to State Governors from court proceedings, after hearing a plea filed by a woman employee of the WB Raj Bhawan, alleging sexual harassment charges against the state Governor.Article 361 of the Indian Constitution says, no criminal or civil proceedings whatsoever shall be instituted or continued against the President, or the Governor of a State, in any court during his term of office.A three-judge bench of the top court, led by the Chief Justice of India (CJI) D Y Chandrachud, and Justices JB Pardiwala and Manoj Misra asked the Attorney General, R Venkataramani to render his assistance in the case and issued notice to the West Bengal government on the plea filed by the woman contractual staffer.While seeking a response from the state government and other parties within three weeks, the top court granted liberty to the petitioner to implead the Union of India as a party in the petition and WB government accepted the notice on the plea.Senior lawyer Shyam Divan, appearing for the petitioner, argued before the top court that Article 361 of the Constitution should not be a bar against investigation. “Evidence has to be gathered right now. It cannot be deferred indefinitely,” the lawyer said.The woman employee of the WB Raj Bhawan, who had alleged sexual harassment charges against Governor CV Ananda Bose, moved the Supreme Court on July 4, seeking a direction against the blanket immunity from criminal prosecution granted to the Governor under Article 361 of the Constitution.The plea of the woman employee has sought a direction from the top court for a thorough probe into the case by the WB police and also prayed for guidelines to be framed concerning the immunity enjoyed by state Governors.The victim complaint pleaded that this court has to decide whether a victim like her can be rendered remediless, as her only option is to wait for the accused to demit his office and render the entire procedure a mere lip service, the plea said.The victim in her complaint claimed that the WB Governor had called her on April 24 and May 2 on the false pretext of offering a better job, but instead, he sexually harassed her within the premises of Raj Bhavan during working hours.The petitioner said that she was rendered voiceless and shunned to a life of depravity and ridicule. The Governor under the garb of discharging his official duties, conducts himself in a deplorable manner.The petitioner also sought a direction from the apex court that she be provided police protection by the State and also be compensated as well for the trauma she suffered during the course.In a similar development in the case, the Calcutta High Court had in May stayed the proceedings against the Officer on Special Duty (OSD-II) to the Governor after he was booked for allegedly restraining the victim and pressurising her to refrain from lodging any complaint of sexual harassment against the Governor.
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