NHRC takes up the issue of sexual harassment of women in workplace

The National Human Rights Commission has taken up the issue of sexual harassment of women in the workplace. It has started consultations with Government and has started consultations with Government Departments, Private Institutions/Agencies as well as NGOs for setting up a Complaints Mechanisms in these organizations for redressal of complaints relating to sexual harassment of women employees.

The Commission had received a complaint about the suicide of a woman lawyer on 15 June 2000 in Andhra Pradesh, allegedly due to sexual harassment by certain fellow and senior lawyers. While considering this case, the Commission had observed that the larger issues on sexual harassment of women at workplace ought to be considered by it. The Commission had also received complaints from NGOs that the guidelines prescribed by the Supreme Court in Vishakha v/s State of Rajasthan are not been followed by many of the Government Departments, PSUs, private and public institutions. Most of them are yet to set up Complaints Committees as envisaged under the Vishakha judgment of the Apex Court.

In this regard the Commission held a high level meeting on 4 May 2001 under the Chairmanship of Chairperson, NHRC which focused on matters relating sexual harassment of women in the legal profession. Besides the Members and senior officials of the Commission, the Attorney General of India, Shri Soli S. Sorabjee, Chairman of Bar Council, Shri D.V. Subba Rao and senior advocate of the Supreme Court Shri R.K. Jain were also present. It was decided at the meeting to set up a high level committee in consultation with the Attorney General and the Chairman of the Bar Council. The Committee will have representatives from prominent NGOs working in this field as well as members of the legal profession whose names will be suggested by the Attorney General. The Committee will consider all aspects of the problem of sexual harassment women in legal profession in detail. It will make suitable recommendations for penalisation/punishment within a given time frame. It will also recommend amendments to the Advocate Act and the Bar Council Rule for the consideration of the Commission.

The Commission has also taken up the issue of sexual harassment of women in universities and educational institutions, which generally have a large number of women students/employees. To discuss and evolve a consensus as to how these institutions could be involved in implementing the guidelines and norms prescribed by the Supreme court in the Vishakha judgment, the Commission on 25 April 2001 held a meeting chaired by the Chairperson, NHRC and attended by the Member and Secretary General of NHRC; Secretary, Department of Secondary & Higher Education and Secretary, Department of Elementary Education and Literacy of the Ministry of Human Resource Development, Government of India; Chairman, UGC; Chairman, CBSE; Principal Secretary, Education, NCT of Delhi; Senior Advocates and NGO representatives.

The Commission has asked the University Grants Commission to write to all the Vice Chancellors of various universities across the country to set up a Complaints Committee without further delay. The universities should keep the UGC informed about its working – failing which appropriate action should be taken against them. Setting up of the complaints mechanism should also be made a necessary precondition for all Aided and Affiliated Schools. The necessary bi-laws should be amended by the Central Board of Secondary Education to include this condition. The UGC and CBSE shall instruct all educational institutions to make periodical reviews of action taken by them with regard to setting up of the complaints mechanism and it should be made mandatory for all educational institutions to send their Action Taken/Status Reports to the UGC and CBSE for the purpose of monitoring.

The Jawaharlal Nehru University guidelines prepared for combating sexual harassment in JNU should be examined to see if the same could be replicated in other universities as well. Anti-ragging measures are also to be devised and adopted in all educational institutions.

It was felt that there was need to improve safety and security of women passengers traveling by the public transport system. A mechanism to ensure discipline was necessary to stop untoward incidents of sexual harassment in public transports. In this regard it was suggested that a Helpline for women should be initiated initially in the capital, which could then be replicated all over the country.

In order to ensure that the Vishakha guidelines were implemented in the right spirit, the Commission has decided to issue a directive to the press and electronic media whereby the body of a woman is not depicted in a vulgar manner or treated as a commodity, as this creates a contemptuous picture of women in general.