#MeToo: Film Body Suspends Sajid Khan for One Year Over Sexual Harassment Allegations
Mumbai, Dec 12: Director Sajid Khan has been suspended for one year by Indian Film & Television Directors' Association (IFTDA) over the sexual harassment allegations levelled against him by several women following an investigation.
IFTDA said acting on the recommendations of the Internal Complaints Committee's (ICC), it has suspended Sajid's membership for a period of one year with immediate effect, which will be reviewed after a year, the organisation said in a statement.
Three women, including a journalist and two actors, have accused Sajid of sexual harassment.
IFTDA president Ashoke Pandit said, "The reason we have set up a committee is to assure women and men that there is an avenue, which is gender neutral, for seeking redressal if they have been wronged by someone.
"By suspending Sajid for a year, we have only tried to put forth a word that there is redressal as long as you have the courage to speak up and bring out the complete truth, better late than never," he added.
Pandit believes the increasing awareness about the POSH Act guidelines and the #MeTooIndia Movement have encouraged women to speak up.
"It has given them the confidence to speak against sexual harassment. A complainant, who shows courage to speak against unwelcome behaviour regardless of who is the perpetrator, is not merely an object of pity or sympathy, but a survivor setting the world on fire with her truth. Now, it's our duty to uproot such unwelcome behaviour around us," he added.
Sajid, who was working on his next directorial venture "Housefull 4", had to step away from the project following the allegations against him.
The committee, in a statement, said the allegations in the complaints are serious instances of sexual harassment, unwelcome sexually determined behaviour, unwarranted contact by poking and advances, demands for sexual favours and abuse of power by Sajid.
Sajid was given an opportunity to put forth his defence but he did not give any explanation, response or defence to the allegations.
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Ajit Pawar wins Baramati battle, defeats nephew Yugendra by more than 1 lakh votes
Baramati, Nov 23: Maharashtra deputy Chief Minister and NCP president Ajit Pawar on Saturday won from his traditional Baramati assembly constituency by defeating his nephew and NCP (SP) candidate Yugendra Pawar by more than one lakh votes.
Ajit, who parted ways with his uncle Sharad Pawar last year and was seeking an eighth term from this family bastion in Pune district, polled 1,81,132 votes while Yugendra Pawar polled 80,233 votes.
Ajit, thus, defeated his younger brother's son by 1,00,899 votes.
Five months ago, Sharad Pawar-led NCP (SP) had triumphed in Baramati in the Lok Sabha elections, with incumbent MP and Sharad Pawar's daughter Supriya Sule defeating Ajit Pawar's wife Sunetra by a margin of 1.5 lakh votes.
Both the NCP factions did not leave a single stone unturned during the assembly campaign, and even Sharad Pawar's wife Pratibha Pawar and Sule's daughter Revati were seen campaigning for Yugendra, while Ajit Pawar brought his mother on stage during his concluding rally in Baramati.
While Sharad Pawar told the people of Baramati that they needed a new leadership, alluding to Yugendra Pawar whom he described as a highly-educated candidate, Ajit Pawar cautioned people not to fall prey to the "emotional pitch" by the senior Pawar.
After Saturday's results, Ajit Pawar, who along with several other NCP legislators sided with the BJP-Shiv Sena government in 2023, could claim to be the real political heir of his estranged uncle who founded the NCP in 1999.
Sunetra Pawar, now a Rajya Sabha member, thanked the people of Baramati for reposing their faith once again in `Dada' (elder brother in Marathi, as Ajit is fondly called).
