The Supreme Court of
India laid down formal guidelines for dealing with sexual harassment at the
workplace in the case of Vishakha Vs. State of Rajasthan. The guidelines
clearly state that all workplaces should constitute a Complaint Committee to
deal with complaints of sexual harassment. Taking forward the Supreme Court
guidelines, “Sexual Harassment of Women at Workplace (Prevention, Prohibition
and Redressal) Act, 2013” was enacted which came into force with effect from
9th December 2013.
The Act casts a
responsibility on every employer to create an environment which is free from
sexual harassment. Employers are required to organize workshops and awareness
programmes at regular intervals for sensitizing the employees about the
provision of this legislation and display notices regarding the constitution of
Internal Committee, penal consequences of sexual harassment etc. An employer
will be liable to a fine of Rs 50,000/- in case of violation of his duties
under the Act and in case of subsequent violations, the amount of fine will be
double together with penalty in the form of cancelation of his licence,
withdrawal or non-renewal of the registration required for carrying out his
activity.
The Ministry of Women
and Child Development had issued advisories to States/UTs to ensure effective
implementation of the Act. The Ministries/Departments in Government of India
have also been advised to ensure the compliance of the Act.
This information was given
by the Union Minister of Women and Child Development, Smt. Maneka Sanjay Gandhi
a in written reply to an unstarred question in the Rajya Sabha today.
PIB
