Pachauri abused power: Ex-TERI head forced kisses and insisted complainants read erotica

In February last year, the complainant accusing RK Pachauri, former director general of The Energy and Resources Institute (TERI) of sexual harassment recorded a detailed statement before the magistrate.

Economic Times accessed the statement and reported that Pachauri, during a climate change summit told the complainant that if she ever got a boyfriend, he (Pachauri) would castrate him. He said this after seeing her speak to a male colleague. Pachauri also forced a kiss on her, despite protests and also sent her a copy of erotic literature he had written, ‘Return to Almora’ and insisted that she read it.

The second complainant, too, according to the ET report, was asked by Pachauri to read the novel. The second complainant told the magistrate that she would be handing over more incriminating evidence to the police.

On 3 September, 2013, the first complainant had received an SMS, allegedly from Pachauri. The SMS had read “From now onwards I shall call you LIFE: Lovely Inspiration of Excessive Fondness,” reported an Economic Times  article_._ This is one of the  many lecherous messages, emails and inappropriate advances recorded in the 500-page chargesheet that has been compiled against Pachauri.

NDTV reported that the chargesheet will also include statements of 25 key witnesses. Scroll.in also reported that the Delhi police said that Pachauri was guilty of “outraging the modesty of a woman”, in addition to sexually harassing her, stalking and trying to intimidate the complainant. The chargesheet also states that Pachauri had misused his powers as the Director General of TERI and that there was “enough evidence to prosecute” Pachauri.

According to the ET report, Pachauri had made 34 calls to the complainant from his mobile phone between February 2014 and March 2015, the complainant called him 26 times. In addition to this, the chargesheet also lists 6000 SMSes, Whatsapp messages exchanged between Pachauri and the complainant between September 2013 and February 2015. Pachauri has denied the allegations, claiming that his email ids, mobile phone and WhatsApp messages have been hacked. But the police, however, will not wait for a Forensic Science Laboratory (FSL) report — the report will be filed in supplementary chargesheet when its received.