MJ Akbar's name included in 'updated' Editor's Guild of India members' list; journalists and activists express dismay

A number of activists and journalists on Friday slammed the Editor’s Guild of India for allowing MJ Akbar , who is facing multiple allegations of sexual assault and misconduct, to remain a member. This was shortly after the organisation uploaded an updated members’ list, which included Akbar’s name.

Please find the updated members list of the Editors Guild here- https://t.co/d2xZWN8nPQ

— Editors Guild of India (@IndEditorsGuild) November 16, 2018

Almost exactly a month ago, on 17 October, Akbar resigned as Minister of State for External Affairs following massive pressure from the media and civil society. On Friday, the Twitter handle @IndiaMeToo, which seeks to “amplify voices from the second wave of #MeToo”, questioned why Akbar remains part of the Editor’s Guild. Journalist Nidhi Razdan also put out a post asking why this was so.

Some other Twitter users also pointed that Tarun Tejpal , who has been charged with rape, also continues to be a member of the guild. Last month, Akbar filed a private criminal defamation complaint in a court in Delhi against Priya Ramani: who had first made allegations against him on social media, spurring at least 15 other women to come out against him. Akbar told the court in his statement that “immediate damage” has been caused to him due to the “scurrilous”, concocted and false allegations of sexual misconduct levelled against him. Expressing her readiness to fight the defamation allegations, Ramani said, “Rather than engage with the serious allegations that many women have made against him, he seeks to silence them through intimidation and harassment.” With inputs from PTI