Vishaka v. State of Rajasthan: the case that created workplace sexual harassment rules
In 1997 the Supreme Court held that sexual harassment at work violates women's fundamental rights and laid down binding guidelines for employers. They were the basis of the POSH Act, 2013.
- Case
- Vishaka v. State of Rajasthan
- Court
- Supreme Court of India
- Bench
- J.S. Verma C.J.I., Sujata V. Manohar J., B.N. Kirpal J.
- Decided
- 13 August 1997
- Case number
- W.P. (Crl.) Nos. 666-670 of 1992
- Citation
- (1997) 6 SCC 241; AIR 1997 SC 3011
In 30 seconds
- Sexual harassment at the workplace violates women’s fundamental rights to equality, to practise any profession, and to life and dignity (Articles 14, 15, 19(1)(g) and 21).
- With no law on the subject at the time, the Court laid down the Vishaka Guidelines, binding on employers until Parliament legislated.
- Parliament later enacted the Sexual Harassment of Women at Workplace (Prevention, Prohibition and Redressal) Act, 2013, known as the POSH Act.
Background
Bhanwari Devi, a social worker employed under a Rajasthan government programme, was gang-raped in 1992 after she tried to stop a child marriage in her village. Women’s rights groups and activists filed a petition in the Supreme Court seeking protection for working women from sexual harassment.
The issue
Does sexual harassment at the workplace violate fundamental rights, and what must employers do to prevent it when no law addresses it?
What the Court held
The Court held that gender equality includes protection from sexual harassment and the right to work with dignity. In the absence of domestic law, it relied on international conventions, especially the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women (CEDAW), which India had ratified.
Its guidelines required employers to:
- prevent sexual harassment and deal with complaints;
- set up a complaints committee headed by a woman, with at least half its members women, and a third-party member from an NGO or similar body familiar with the issue;
- spread awareness of women’s rights at the workplace;
- take disciplinary action, and help with criminal proceedings where the conduct is an offence.
Why it matters
Vishaka is a leading example of the Supreme Court using international law to fill a gap in Indian law. Its guidelines governed workplaces for 16 years and shaped the POSH Act, which requires an Internal Committee in every workplace with 10 or more employees.
Key terms
CEDAW: the UN convention on eliminating discrimination against women, which India ratified in 1993.
Internal Committee: the committee the POSH Act requires employers to set up to hear sexual harassment complaints.