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RK Pachauri: Ex-UN climate head charged with sexual harassment

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Rajendra Pachauri, Chairman of the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) addresses a press conferenceImage source, AFP
Image caption,

Mr Pachauri has denied the allegations against him

The former head of the UN climate change panel (IPCC), Rajendra Pachauri, has been formally charged in an Indian court in a case of sexual harassment.

A female employee at the environmental think-tank The Energy and Resources Institute (Teri) had accused him last year of harassment.

Accusations by a second employee last month caused widespread outrage.

Mr Pachauri, who has denied the allegations against him, stepped down from the UN panel last year.

In February, he was forced to go on indefinite leave by Teri after the latest accusations.

On Tuesday, charges running into more than 1,400 pages were filed in the court of metropolitan magistrate Shivani Chauhan in Delhi, the Press Trust of India reported.

Mr Pachauri has been accused of sexual harassment, stalking and criminal intimidation, the agency said.

The charges relate to accusations made by the first woman. The magistrate has said she will hear the case on 23 April.

Mr Pachauri collected the Nobel Peace Prize in 2007 on behalf of the IPCC for its work in the scientific assessment of the risks and causes of climate change.

The IPCC shared the award with former US vice-president and environmental campaigner, Al Gore.