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Ensure PoSH Act compliance, SC tells state govts
The Supreme Court ordered a nationwide survey to identify workplaces lacking internal complaints committees for sexual harassment, with a report due by March 2025.
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The Supreme Court on Tuesday ordered chief secretaries of all states and Union territories to conduct a nation-wide survey identify the public and private institutions which are yet to set up an internal complaints committee (ICC) for handling complaints of sexual harassment at workplaces.
Monitoring the implementation of its 18-month-old judgment that directed all states and UTs to ensure setting up of ICC or a local committee under the Sexual Harassment of Women at Workplace (Prevention, Prohibition and Redressal) Act, 2013 or PoSH Act, the court also gave full expression to the other provisions of the Act by directing district officers to be appointed to coordinate efforts to implement the law through nodal officers for each area or taluk within the district.
A bench headed by justice BV Nagarathna said, “This law has to be implemented throughout the country. We are granting time for conducting the survey within three months and submit report by March 31, 2025.”
Setting further timelines for better compliance, the court directed district officers, wherever they are not appointed as per Section 5 of the PoSH Act, to be appointed by December 31 this year and directed local committees to be set up within all government ministries, departments, instrumentalities and public sector undertakings by end of January 2025. The court will monitor the case for passing further directions on February 11.
Laying down the contours for the survey, the bench, also comprising justice N Kotiswar Singh, said, “The Chief Secretary of states and UTs shall direct the deputy commissioner or district magistrate of each district to survey the private and public organisations which have already constituted the ICC and seek information as to the places where ICC is not constituted.”
Section 26 of the PoSH Act provides for imposition of penalty of up to ₹50,000 on any employer who fails to constitute the committee or comply with other provisions of the Act.
The 2013 POSH Act had replaced the court-mandated Vishaka guidelines of 1997 to address a vacuum in law for protecting women who face sexual harassment and discrimination at workplaces.
