MJ Akbar returns to India. What fate awaits him?

With Union Minister M.J. Akbar returning to India on Sunday, the BJP is expected to break its studied silence on the possible actions against him. Replying to a volley of questions from reporters at the airport, the minister of state for external affairs said he would issue a statement later. "There will be a statement later," he said. Akbar was accused by multiple women of sexual misconduct in the #MeToo firestorm that recently swept the nation. Party sources told PTI that the charges against him are serious, and that his continuance as a minister is no longer guaranteed. A final call will be taken by Prime Minister Narendra Modi, they said. There is also a view within the party that there is no legal case against him, and allegations pertain to a time long before he became a minster.

When it came to the allegations against the former journalist, the saffron party stood divided. Among the political circles, strict action is expected against Akbar; Dattatreya Hosabale, the number third in the RSS food chain, tweeted in support of #MeToo.  

BJP president Amit Shah promised to look into the charges. "We have to see if charges on Akbar are true," Shah said, adding, "We have to check the veracity of the post and the person who posted it. You can also post something using my name." Union Minister for Women and Child Development Maneka Gandhi, without naming Akbar, had urged the Centre to launch an investigation into the matter. "There should be an investigation. Men in position of power often do this. This applies to media, politics and seniors working in companies," she said. However, Uttar Pradesh Tourism Minister Rita Bahuguna Joshi had extended support to Akbar saying the issue of his resignation should be raised only after a thorough probe.

The first direct allegation against Akbar was made by journalist Priya Ramani, who tweeted on Monday evening about an article she wrote on the MeToo movement for Vogue in October 2017. On Monday, Ramani revealed that the article was about Akbar, tweeting, “I began this piece with my MJ Akbar story. Never named him because he didn’t “do” anything. Lots of women have worse stories about this predator—maybe they’ll share.” The article describes how an unnamed editor tried to misbehave with Ramani during a job interview in his room at the Oberoi Hotel in Mumbai when she was just 23 and he was 43. In the article, Ramani claims the editor wanted her to sit close to him in the hotel room; she also accuses him of sending obscene messages to women staff. Shuma Raha, another journalist, replied to Ramani on Twitter that she had an unpleasant experience with Akbar during an interview at his room at the Taj Bengal in Kolkata in 1995. Raha claimed Akbar invited her for drinks after the interview. On Monday, Prerna Singh Bindra, a journalist-turned-wildlife conservationist, tweeted about a “brilliant,flamboyant #editor who dabbled in politics,” who called “me-my 1st job- to his hotel room to 'discuss work', after i put the edition to bed-read midnight, & made life at work hell when i refused”.

As THE WEEK pointed out in an earlier piece, the Congress is doing a tightrope walk on the issue, sensing that the M.J. Akbar issue is a double-edged sword, which could harm it as well.

One prime concern is the possibility that allegations against Akbar could take the focus away from the issues that the Congress wants to highlight, which include alleged corruption in the Rafale deal, farmers' distress, unemployment and weakening economy.

The Congress's dilemma was evident at a press conference addressed by party president Rahul Gandhi on the Rafale issue on October 11. As anticipated by the Congress, questions were asked on the allegations of sexual harassment that have been levelled against Akbar. Gandhi refused to comment, saying the briefing was specifically on the Rafale deal.

Akbar was on a diplomatic tour in Africa. Reportedly, he had headed to Malabo in Equatorial Guinea as per his schedule.