However, on April 5, when the full court of the Punjab and Haryana High Court met to finalise postings of senior judicial officers of Punjab and Haryana, it cleared Bishnoi’s promotion.

When contacted by The Indian Express, Bishnoi said: “I have no knowledge of any complaint or any inquiry. I am hearing it from you for the first time.”

Justice Pal’s indictment was severe: “It is very unfortunate that Shri R K Bishnoi, a Senior Judicial Officer, having rendered more than 25 and a half years of service in the Judicial Department, who was expected to act as a guide, philosopher, and advisor to the junior lady officer, who considered him as a fatherly figure... instead of performing his pious duty, indulged in nefarious activities of sexually harassing them. He did not even spare the District and Sessions Judge”.

His conduct “in continuously sexually harassing (three woman judges are named), as is prima facie proved, from the evidence, discussed above, can be said to be unworthy and unbecoming of the holder of a senior judicial post,” says Justice Pal’s report...The acts of Shri R K Bishnoi fall within the purview of ‘mis-conduct’ and he is required to be proceeded against departmentally, as held in the Vishaka case by the Hon’ble Supreme Court.”

This is a reference to the landmark ruling where the apex court laid down guidelines and called for mechanisms to address sexual harassment of women in the workplace.

In one of the cases, according to Justice Pal’s report, Bishnoi allegedly harassed a woman judicial officer, a widow, when she was posted as a judicial magistrate when Bishnoi was Additional District and Sessions Judge, Sonepat. Bishnoi allegedly started making phone calls to her, sometimes as many as five times a day. On one occasion, he allegedly told her that she resembled actor Aishwarya Rai, the report says.

... contd.