CPI activists in Bhubaneswar protest against the alleged sexual harassment case involving Maheswar Mohanty. Picture by Sanjib Mukherjee

Bhubaneswar, March 26: Faced with charges of sexual harrassment from an Assembly staffer, Speaker Maheshwar Mohanty today decided against presiding over the House until an inqury cleared him of the accusations.

What added to the intrigue was that the woman in question — assistant lady marshal Gayatri Panda (29) — was untraceable today while the Assembly witnessed a daylong din with the Opposition insisting on Mohanty’s resignation even though he denied the charges as “false and baseless”.

The allegations against the Speaker appeared as reports in a section of the vernacular press. According to the reports, Panda alleged that Mohanty sent several people to her residence to seek a private meeting with her.

“He had sent his official vehicle to my house at 11pm twice,” she claimed.

Mohanty, she alleged in the reports, also tried to “touch her” several times when she was standing at her duty point.

Panda, who was suspended last month, alleged that the action was motivated to pressure her into succumbing to the Speaker’s wishes.

Panda also said she had written to the Assembly secretary on February 21 to complain against the Speaker,but rued that no action was taken.

In the Assembly today, Mohanty made a suo motu statement dismissing the charges as “false and baseless”, alleging, in turn, that she had been suspended for “unauthorised absence and negligence in duty”.

“This is a serious allegation against the high office of the Speaker, perhaps the first of its kind in parliamentary history. I wouldn’t like to preside over the House while an inquiry is on,” said Mohanty, before leaving the House.

Suggesting a House committee probe, Mohanty described Panda’s allegations as a “conspiracy" and alleged that powerful persons were involved.

However, the Opposition rejected the suggestion and demanded an “impartial” inquiry. The House had to be adjourned because of the ensuing din. An all-party meeting convened to resolve the crisis remained inconclusive as chief minister Naveen Patnaik stayed away.

Till the afternoon today, mediapersons camped outside the Mahila police station waiting for Panda to come and lodge an FIR as some of the newspaper reports had claimed.

However, she did not turn up.

Later, a group of activists, including Mahila Congress state president Asima Mahananda and AIDWA state secretary Tapasi Praharaj, came to the police station to annnonce that Panda was “untraceable”.

She responded to their calls till 1pm, but switched off her phone soon after. Her house was locked, they said.