Hassan Johar Head of Ahmedabad based NGO SPART, has been reported by Desh Gujarat on 30.01.2021, to have been booked by Ahmedabad West Women’s police on charges of sexual harassment. Hassan Johar President of NGO SPRAT (Society for Promoting Rationality) has been booked under section 354A(i) pertaining to physical contact and advances involving unwelcome and explicit sexual overtures, on complaint received by Johar’s former employee.

The 33 year old complainant, resident of Gandhinagar is originally from Patna in Bihar. In her complaint she allege shehad applied for job in NGO SPRAT on 1st of October 2020.

Her interview was taken by President of NGO Hassan M Johar on 10th October 2020. She joined SPART on 13 October 2020 as field and social work officer. She was asked to deposit Rs. 43,000 as per HR policy of company.

As she was unable to pay the sum she was asked to deposit her original documents. Hassan Johar initially asked her to take up additional work of HR department to which she denied. She had frequent verbal arguments with him over this issue.

He would speak to her allegedly in an indecent manner. He would say ‘I want some partner with whom I can have sexual relation.’

Hassan would when find opportunity, hold her hand and hug her and speak to her in an offending manner.

He would say when he feels bored, he masturbates. He would askher whether she has any boy friend and has sex.

He would speak in such offensive manner once in a week, and if she opposed it, he would start harassing over her work in the company. Fed up with this, she resigned on 12th of December, but Johar has not returned her original documents she had submitted in SPRAT, therefore, she filed this police complaint.

Complainant woman has named five persons as her witnesses including a woman, member of Majur Adhikar Manch NGO.

Johar has faced similar complaint in the past too. In 2019, a 44-year old person from Bihar had filed complaint of cheating and breach of trust against Johar for allegedly demanding Rs. 50,000 to return the complainant’s original documents, which he had submitted while taking up a job at the said NGO.

Notably, Hassan Johar is ex-husband of Zakia Soman, founding member of the Bharatiya Muslim Mahila Andolan, a ‘human rights movement’. Zakia has been heard referring several times in the past in TV debates about her traumatic marriage and the difficulties she faced to divorce her husband. She had even mentioned in the debates that she has struggled with her marital troubles due to the continuance of old inhuman Sharia marriage laws, despite being a highly educated woman, which prompted her to found the BMMA along with like minded individuals as a ‘human rights movement’.

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