The Supreme Court on Friday declined to entertain a PIL demanding mandatory implementation of the Sexual Harassment of Women at Workplace (Prevention, Prohibition, and Redressal) Act, 2013 (POSH Act) across all political parties in the country.
A bench comprising Chief Justice of India B R Gavai and Justice K Vinod Chandran ruled that the matter falls under legislative policy, not judicial intervention.
“This is the domain of Parliament. How can we interfere? It is a matter within the domain of policy,” observed CJI Gavai while addressing senior advocate Shobha Gupta, who appeared for the petitioner.
Petitioner Withdraws Plea, May Challenge HC Ruling
Following the court’s remarks, the petitioner was allowed to withdraw the plea with liberty to challenge a previous Kerala High Court ruling, which had held that the POSH Act does not apply to political parties.
The PIL, filed by advocate Yogamaya M.G., argued that most political parties have not complied with the POSH Act, particularly with respect to forming Internal Complaints Committees (ICCs) — a mandatory mechanism for handling sexual harassment complaints.
Petition Sought Clear Mandate For Parties & ECI Oversight
The plea requested that political parties be required to:
Constitute ICCs In Line With Section 4 Of POSH Act
Recognize that individuals engaged in political work qualify as “employees” under Section 2(f) of the law
It also urged the Election Commission of India (ECI) to enforce POSH compliance as a condition for registration and recognition of political parties under the Representation of the People Act, 1951.
Political Parties Named In Petition
The petition named several major political parties as respondents, including:
- Indian National Congress
- Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP)
- Aam Aadmi Party (AAP)
- Communist Party of India (Marxist)
- All India Trinamool Congress
- Bahujan Samaj Party
- Nationalist Congress Party
- Communist Party of India
- National People’s Party
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