Will Priya Ramani be summoned as accused? Court reserves order

New Delhi, Jan 22: Delhi's Patiala House Court on Tuesday reserved its order on whether to summon journalist Priya Ramani, against whom former union minister MJ Akbar has filed a defamation case for levelling sexual harassment charges against him, as an accused. The order will be passed on January 29th.

Akbar had sued Ramani, seeking her prosecution under Sections 499 and 500 of the IPC for defamation. On October 17 last year, Akbar had stepped down as Minister of State for External Affairs following a flurry of allegations made against him several women, who accused him of sexual misconduct during his stint as the editor of The Asian Age.

Priya Ramani was one of the first to come forward about Akbar's harassment As many as 20 women accused Akbar of sexual harassment and inappropriate behaviour when he worked as a newspaper editor.

He had then issued a statement denying allegations of sexual harassment against him and said had that he would take legal action.

Akbar had said, "Pertinent to remember Priya Ramani and Ghazala Wahab kept working with me even after these alleged incidents. It clearly establishes they had no apprehension and discomfort. The reason, why they remained silent for decades, is very apparent, as Ms Ramani has herself stated, I never did anything."