ABSTRACT

Sexual harassment at the workplace is a serious issue that affects a person’s Fundamental Rights, particularly the right to equality, dignity, and the freedom to practice any profession.  In India, the legal journey to recognize and address this problem has developed over time through court decisions and new laws. This paper looks at how the law related to sexual harassment at work has grown from the landmark judgement in Vishaka and ors v. State of Rajasthan (1997) to the enacting and the implementation of the POSH Act, 2013 (Sexual Harassment of Women at Workplace Act). Before 2013, there was no proper law to handle cases of sexual harassment at the workplace. To deal with this, the Supreme Court created a set of rules known as the Vishaka Guidelines. These were based on international women’s rights agreements like CEDAW. These guidelines became the base for future laws on workplace  safety for women.

Later, in 2013, the Indian government made the POSH Act, which turned these guidelines into statutory law. This law made it compulsory for every workplace to have an Internal Complaints Committee (ICC) to deal with such complaints and made it the employer’s duty to ensure a safe working space. It looks at important cases, the details of the POSH Act, and why this change was necessary in Indian society. It further examines how well the POSH Act is working today, what problems still exist like people being afraid to complain, lack of awareness, or misuse of the law and what more needs to be done to protect everyone. By looking at the path from Vishaka to POSH, this paper shows why strong laws and respectful workplace environments are important. It shows that the law does not just react to the societal issues but also helps to make institutions more responsible in dealing with gender inequality. The paper ends with suggestions on how to make the law stronger and ensure it is properly followed in real life.

Keywords: Sexual harassment, Women’s right, POSH, Workplace 

INTRODUCTION

Workplaces ideally serve as environments where individuals can grow, find opportunities, and work with dignity. Nonetheless, for many women in India, these spaces have also been fraught with discrimination and harassment. Until the late 1990s, India did not have a specific law addressing sexual harassment at work. Women who experienced such mistreatment had to depend on general criminal provisions related to assault or obscenity, which often failed to capture the gravity and unique circumstances of workplace harassment. This lack of clear legal protection led to many cases going unreported and countless women silently enduring harassment, often out of fear of social stigma, retaliation, or loss of their livelihood.

The landscape shifted significantly in 1997 with the Supreme Court’s landmark decision in Vishaka v. State of Rajasthan. This case arose from the horrific gang rape of Bhanwari Devi, a social worker from Rajasthan actively involved in preventing child marriage. Her case brought to light the harsh reality that women could face threat and harassment simply for doing their work, while also revealing glaring deficiencies in the legal system’s ability to provide recourse. In its judgment, the Supreme Court asserted that sexual harassment at the workplace is a violation of a woman’s fundamental rights to equality under Article 14, freedom under Article 19, and to life with dignity under Article 21 of the Constitution. Recognizing the absence of any legislative provision, the Court issued binding guidelines, widely known as the Vishaka Guidelines, to address this urgent issue. The Vishaka Guidelines marked a significant turning point, as they not only articulated a clear definition of sexual harassment but also placed a direct responsibility on employers to prevent and remedy it. This was the first time Indian law explicitly acknowledged harassment not merely as a private matter but as a serious workplace and societal problem. However, since these were judicial directives rather than laws enacted by Parliament, their implementation was inconsistent. Many organizations neglected their responsibilities, and women continued to face significant challenges in accessing justice.

Following Vishaka, several other critical cases reached the Supreme Court, such as Apparel Export Promotion Council v. A.K. Chopra (1999), where the Court reaffirmed its firm stance that sexual harassment at work cannot be tolerated under any circumstances. By 2012–2013, in the MedhaKotwalLele case, the Court reiterated the urgent need for proper legislation on this issue. Responding to these judicial urgings and societal demands, Parliament passed the Sexual Harassment of Women at Workplace (Prevention, Prohibition and Redressal) Act in 2013, commonly known as the POSH Act. This law provided statutory backing to the Vishaka

Guidelines and established a detailed framework for complaint handling, inquiry procedures, and penalties against violations. This research paper aims to trace the evolution of sexual harassment law in India over time. It examines the circumstances before the Vishaka judgment when no specific legal mechanism existed, the judiciary’s pioneering role in framing guidelines to address the gap, and how those judicial directions eventually culminated in the comprehensive statute known as the POSH Act, 2013.

Additionally, the paper explores whether the current legal regime is adequate to protect women from harassment, and highlights the challenges that persist in implementing the law effectively. The analysis primarily draws from a doctrinal methodology, involving a thorough study of judicial decisions, constitutional provisions, and scholarly literature, with no primary field research conducted. The focus remains on the Indian legal framework while briefly considering international contexts where relevant for comparative insight.