Another case of sexual harassment against BCCI Chief Executive Officer Rahul Johri has now come to light. Johri, who is currently on leave from his duties as an independent three-member panel probes an anonymous complaint against him posted on Twitter, has been accused by a woman of asking for sexual favours earlier this year, while serving as BCCI CEO.
The victim, who has chosen to be anonymous, is learnt to have sent a complaint to CoA member Diana Edulji. She had earlier approached former Mumbai captain Shishir Hattangadi, who is a friend of hers, with details of the incident and Hattangadi says he is ready to testify before the committee formed to consider the allegations against Johri. In a press release on Thursday, the CoA had announced the formation of this committee to investigate the anonymous complaint posted on Twitter earlier this month, which is from a time period before Johri took on his current role at BCCI.
“This is a part of Me too movement,” Hattangadi told CNN-News18. “There have been murmurs against the behaviour of Rahul Johri, I personally haven’t met or interacted with him. I was asked for advice by a lady who is a friend of mine, I advised her to speak to the members of CoA and write a letter to them. I respect the person who confided in me and will not reveal her name but I feel she has a very good reason to file a complaint.
“The letter describes what happened in the situation. It’s a detailed description about the pressure she faced, now it’s up to the committee to decide the course of action. He’s (Johri) using his position and I feel it’s time for the CoA to take the tough decision.”
The latest allegations are bound to increase the pressure on Johri. The independent committee itself was formed despite the protests of Edulji who had demanded Johri’s resignation or termination of contract on the basis of the earlier complaint.
