Inkpot India Conclave on Tuesday said public relations consultant and columnist Suhel Seth will not speak at their literary meet because of his travel commitments and impending fatherhood. Seth was earlier listed as one of the patrons of the conclave despite facing accusations of sexual misconduct by multiple women.

“Owing to his travel commitments and his impending fatherhood @suhelseth would not be at any public speaking engagement and hence has expressed his inability to be at @InkpotConclave,” the post on Twitter said.

The other people who were scheduled to speak at the event on November 18 at Delhi included Congress leaders Shashi Tharoor, Karan Singh, journalist Tavleen Singh and historian William Dalrymple. But Dalrymple and Tharoor on Tuesday said they will not be attending the event because of prior commitments. Dalrymple said he will be in Mumbai that week to promote his latest book, while Tharoor said he will be in the United Arab Emirates.

Several Twitter users had criticised Inkpot India Conclave’s announcement on Monday.

At the height of the #MeToo movement in India, at least seven women had publicly accused the high-profile brand consultant of sexual misconduct. Seth refuted one claim made by an anonymous accuser, telling The Quint that he was abroad and not in Mumbai when the woman claimed the incident occurred. Seth did not respond to the other allegations after that, and has not posted a single tweet since October 10 last year, when two women accused him of forcibly groping and kissing them. Other allegations in the case surfaced after that.

Tata Sons had terminated its contract with Counselage India, the consulting company founded by Seth, after the incident.

Also read: Why is Suhel Seth silent about the sexual harassment charges against him?

Now, follow and debate the day’s most significant stories on Scroll Exchange.