SC Directs High Courts, States To Report On Gender Sensitisation Committees Under POSH Act

(MENAFN- KNN India) New Delhi, Jan 10 (KNN) The Supreme Court on Tuesday reviewed the implementation of gender-sensitive provisions under the Sexual Harassment of Women at Workplace (Prevention, Prohibition and Redressal) Act, 2013 (POSH Act).

The Court directed all high courts to report on the establishment of Gender Sensitisation and Internal Complaints Committees (GSICCs) across high courts, district and sub-divisional courts, tribunals, bar associations, and allied forums.

States and Union Territories were also instructed to comply with statutory requirements for appointing district and nodal officers for effective redressal of sexual harassment complaints.

Proceedings and Petitions

The orders were issued in two proceedings: a public interest litigation (PIL) filed by Geeta Rani seeking uniform implementation of the POSH Act, and a pending petition filed by a victim of sexual harassment.

In the PIL, the Court, led by Chief Justice of India (CJI) Surya Kant with Justice Joymalya Bagchi, called for a status report on whether high courts and other judicial forums have constituted GSICCs to address complaints from women and transgender persons.

Senior advocate Sonia Mathur, appearing for the petitioner, noted that seven high courts have yet to frame regulations for committee formation, while district courts under the high courts of Delhi, Punjab & Haryana have not constituted GSICCs.

She highlighted that despite the Supreme Court's 2014 ruling in Binu Tamta v Delhi High Court, many courts continue to lack mechanisms for women lawyers, litigants, and staff to report grievances. The petition argued that absence of such structures results in constitutional violations and discourages women from full participation in justice delivery.

States and Union Territories Under Review

In a separate proceeding, Justices BV Nagarathna and Ujjal Bhuyan assessed POSH Act implementation across states and UTs.

Advocate Padma Priya, assisting as amicus curiae, reported that while several states including Andaman & Nicobar, Arunachal Pradesh, Assam, Bihar, Himachal Pradesh, Kerala, Rajasthan, and Jammu & Kashmir have established ICCs in government establishments, others such as Chhattisgarh, Goa, Gujarat, Karnataka, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra, Mizoram, Uttar Pradesh, Uttarakhand, and West Bengal are still surveying institutions without ICCs.

Some states, including Bihar and Manipur, conducted surveys only in government institutions, neglecting private establishments as mandated.

The Court directed all states and UTs to submit status reports within three weeks and reminded them to appoint nodal officers under Section 6(2) of the Act.

(KNN Bureau)

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