Union Law Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad Tuesday said he would take up the issue of alleged sexual harassment of a woman additional district and sessions judge by a judge of the Madhya Pradesh High Court.
The minister, who visited the Supreme Court Tuesday, said if the government or those in authority cannot defend and protect the rights of women judges and legal professionals, then it would be a grave injustice not only to women but to the very edifice mandated to secure their rights and entitlements.
Prasad, who also practised as a lawyer in the court, was felicitated by the Supreme Court Bar Association on his maiden visit to the court after becoming minister.
He said he would try to attend to the problems faced by members of the bar, including their demand for more chambers.
Women members of the bar urged the minister to initiate the process of impeachment of the Madhya Pradesh High court judge accused of sexually harassing a woman additional district and sessions judge.
The women members said the high court judge should not be assigned any work, and also demanded that the resignation of the woman judge should not be accepted.
Some members carrying banners and placards sought an appropriate response from parliament.