Delhi High Court on the Sexual Harassment of Women at Workplace (Prevention, Prohibition and Redressal) Act, 2013

In an order pronounced on January 16, 2014 in a case titled Swatanter Kumar vs  The Indian Express Ltd. & Ors (I.A. No.723/2014 in CS(OS) No.102/2014), the Delhi High Court vide para 57 opined that  in view of the recent stringent provisions incorporated in the Sexual Harassment of Women at Workplace (Prevention, Prohibition and Redressal) Act, 2013, which provides for a mechanism of dealing with the cases of sexual harassment, strict view  would have to be applied equally to both the sides, i.e. complainant as well as alleged accused specially in cases where the complaint is filed after the lapse of long period. The Hon’ble Court further lamented that there should be a limitation of time for the purpose of filing of such complaints, otherwise no one would know when the complaint ought to have been filed and decided. Thus, a balanced approach has to be taken, particularly, in these types of matters.

        It is brought out that said Act of 2013 takes care of both the above counts highlighted by the Court. Section 9 thereof, stipulates the time period of three months from the date of incident further extendable up to three more months if the circumstances were such which prevented the woman from filing a complaint within said period. Further, Section 14 thereof provides for punishment for false or malicious complaint and false evidence.

         However, it is noteworthy that whereas the alleged incident occurred in May 2011, the Sexual Harassment of Women at Workplace (Prevention, Prohibition and Redressal) Act, 2013 passed in February 2013 came into force from December 9, 2013. Moreover, notwithstanding its own binding guidelines of the Vishakha case (1997), the Supreme Court did not have a mechanism to receive such complaints in 2011. 

Dr. Rajender Goyal, Advocate, Bahadurgarh