Cape Town judge Siraj Desai, cleared of a rape charge, wants to spend time with his family before dealing with the media, his lawyer said on Friday.
An Indian judge on Thursday acquitted Desai, who serves on the Cape bench, of raping Aids worker Salome Isaacs in his Mumbai hotel room three months ago.
Desai, who attended the hearing, arrived back in Cape Town on Friday afternoon, but his local lawyer, Ashoek Adhikari, said the judge would not be making any statement at this point.
”The judge says that he needs the weekend to settle down and collect thoughts, and he’ll deal with the media on Monday,” Adhikari said.
”He needs the weekend to be with his family.”
Desai (53) who is married and has three children, was arrested by Indian police on January 19 after Isaacs, from Bela Bela in Limpopo, claimed he raped her when she visited him in his hotel room at 3am. They were attending a conference.
She subsequently withdrew the claim without explanation, but in terms of Indian legal procedure, the case had to be brought to a conclusion in court.
Mumbai judge S P Davare ruled on Thursday that the allegations ”do not seem probable” and that no force appeared to have been used.
Desai, who was allowed back to South Africa on bail, has denied any wrongdoing and said they had consensual sex; his legal team claimed blackmail was involved.
Cape Talk radio reported on Friday that Isaacs and her husband Mark were outraged at Desai’s acquittal.
”I don’t think … South Africa knows what type of documents judge Desai sent to us,” Isaacs told the station. ”[The] documents demand or ask for certain things that would raise the eyebrows of many South Africans.”
Desai was on special leave from the High Court while the case was under way.
Cape judge president John Hlophe told Sapa on Friday he was happy Desai had been cleared.
He said Desai was officially on long leave until the beginning of the next court term, at the end of July.
Asked whether Desai would then resume his post on the bench, he said: ”Whatever happens after that is beyond my control”. – Sapa