The Supreme Court on Friday agreed to hear a petition demanding the implementation of the Sexual Harassment of Women at Workplace Act, 2013 (POSH Act) for women lawyers enrolled with State Bar Councils & Bar Associations.
A bench of Justices B.V. Nagarathna and R. Mahadevan issued notices to the Centre and the Bar Council of India on the plea filed by advocate and author Seema Joshi.
HC Ruling Challenged
The case stems from a July 7 ruling of the Bombay High Court which held that the POSH Act applies only in an employer–employee relationship, thereby excluding women lawyers from its ambit. When questioned by the bench on filing a petition under Article 32 against a high court judgment, the petitioner’s counsel agreed to drop the request for quashing the HC order.
Need For Uniform Protection
The plea, filed through advocates Ritika Vohra and Naman Joshi, argued that without clear precedent on the Act’s applicability to bar councils or associations, women advocates face uneven protection across states. This, it said, undermines the very mandate of the POSH Act.
It also sought directions for constituting or continuing Internal Committees under the Act to handle sexual harassment complaints from women lawyers.
Fundamental Rights At Stake
The petition highlighted that the preamble of the POSH Act recognizes sexual harassment as a violation of fundamental rights—equality under Articles 14 & 15, dignity and life under Article 21, and freedom to practice any profession under Article 19.
“The object and design of the statute is to give effect to these rights. Any interpretation excluding women advocates from its protection defeats the constitutional purpose it seeks to serve,” the plea stated.
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