Australia: Man accuses ex-colleague of ‘fart bullying’ him; seeks Rs 12.4cr compensation

Melbourne, March 26: An engineer in Australia has sought $1.8 million (Rs 12.4 crore) in a legal suit against his former employer for a bizarre reason. No, it is not about being deprived of equal opportunity or income at the work place but farting. The 56-year-old man has alleged that one of his former colleagues bullied him for several months by constantly farting near him and even "thrusting his bum" at him.

According to a report in Yahoo News, David Hingst sought the legal suit against his former employer Construction Engineering although the supreme court said that there was no evidence to back his charge of bullying. In his appeal, Hingst said his ex-colleague Greg Short was a "serial farter" and that "flatulence was a form of bullying".

"I would be sitting with my face to the wall and he would come into the room, which was small and had no windows. He would fart behind me and walk away. He would do this five or six times a day," Hingst was quoted by Yahoo News.

Hingst also said that Greg, who was the manager of the company, abused him over telephone and taunted him with gestures. He said Short's behaviour was part of a conspiracy that left him with "psychiatric injuries".

Supreme Court Justice Phillip Priest dismissed the appeal saying farts were not the 'key issue' in the complainant's original claim.

The final ruling of the case is expected on Friday, March 29.