The only right thing to do now would be for CJI Ranjan Gogoi to step down in the interest of the Judiciary and in order to maintain the respect of the Supreme Court.
Whatever be the truth here, 'something' was brewing for the past several months and what is damning given present information is how J. Ranjan Gogoi and the Supreme Court Registry acting under him dealt with the situation. There was an attempt to cover up. The circumstances in which the woman was dismissed from service in an inquiry conducted without her when she had actually physically collapsed in the Supreme Court show this. A number of persons including Supreme Court Registrars, SHOs, the Police Commissioner, DCPs etc have been mentioned in the woman's complaint and they need to be questioned as witnesses.
How can J. Ranjan Gogoi continue as CJI in these crcumstances? What moral authority will he be seen to have? How will he continue to hear cases and pass administrative orders?
An investigation is needed and this investigation will take time.
J. Ranjan Gogoi should consider stepping down as CJI or proceeding on a leave of absence until this is resolved one way or the other.
The constitution of a Bench to hear the issue of an "alleged threat to the judiciary" stemming from this complaint in which J. Ranjan Gogoi included himself and his statements from that Bench vilifying and smearing his accuser in her absence, followed by the falsification of the court order of 20 April 2019 omitting his name from the Record of Proceedings further compound the completely wrong, unlawful and unjust manner in which CJI Ranjan Gogoi and the Supreme Court under him have handled this complaint.
If the Supreme Court had handled this whole situation differently right at the beginning and even after the complaint went public, the present impasse could have been avoided.
But CJI Ranjan Gogoi is himself responsible for creating the present situation and has painted himself into a corner.
What can he do now except offer to step down. Anything else and any further attempt to use the Supreme Court to silence the woman, to gag the media, and to avoid a proper investigation into the complaint of molestation and subsequent victimization will only bring the Supreme Court of India and the office of the Chief Justice of India into further disrepute.
