Try mediation, says SC in sexual abuse case involving Litmus 7 Systems CEO
NEW DELHI: The Supreme Court on Friday urged parties involved in a sexual harassment case against Venu Gopalakrishnan, CEO of Kochis Litmus 7 Systems Consulting, to explore mediation to resolve their dispute. A bench comprising Justices B V Nagarathna and K V Viswanathan said, ...We find that in the interest of all parties, there ought to be a settlement. The matter is referred to the Supreme Court Mediation Centre. The parties are directed to appear before the Centre on 07.01.2026 in person or through videoconferencing. On September 11, the Kerala High Court had denied anticipatory bail to Gopalakrishnan, citing the very serious nature of allegations. The other accused in the case Jacob P Thampy, Eby Paul, and Bimalraj Haridas were granted anticipatory bail. Gopalakrishnan had approached the Supreme Court, which on September 26 stayed all coercive actions against him. Senior counsels Mukul Rohatgi and Raghenth Basant, representing the petitioner, said the complainant, a former employee, had filed the charges after getting bail in an extortion case initiated by Gopalakrishnan. Justice Nagarathna expressed skepticism about the harassment claims. The accused alleged the woman and her husband had demanded Rs 30 crore during a hotel meeting on July 23, including an immediate Rs 10 crore transfer, with Rs 50,000 transferred from Venus account on July 28. The couple was arrested for extortion soon after. The woman denied knowledge of the Rs 50,000 transfer and alleged sexual harassment. The next hearing is on February 2.
17 C
