How to file a case on instances of sexual harassment at workplace

Sexual harassment in the workplace is one of the biggest problems which has started to increase as the corporate culture has begun to flourish. Anyone can be a harasser, and anyone can be a victim. It is insignificant as to who commits the offense. It could be a manager, co-worker, or even a non-employee like a client, contractor, or vendor. If the person’s conduct creates a hostile work environment or interrupts an employee’s success, is considered sexually harassing. An act which may amount to sexual harassment may vary from a sexually colored involuntary encounter with a senior employee of colleague, winking, whistling inappropriate touch or similar behavior. An act of a senior employee asking for a non-consented sexual favor from the junior employee, in lieu of promotion in the job, falls in the category of sexual harassment at the workplace.

To govern such actions and create a healthy working environment for women, Supreme Court of India, in the landmark case of Vishaka v. State of Rajasthan to fill the legislative vacuum laid down Vishaka Guidelines for the protection of women from sexual harassment at workplace. Later an act was passed by the legislature named, Protection of Women from Sexual harassment at Workplace (Prevention, Prohibition and Redressal) Act, 2013.

As per the rules governing sexual harassment at workplace, it is compulsory for all organizations with 10 or more workers to constitute an Internal Complaints Committee (ICC) for registration of complaints relating to sexual harassment and take action against the guilty employer or employee. Constitution of ICC is a legal right, and in case the workplace is refusing to constitute the same, they can be legally penalized.

The constituted ICC can file a complaint against the incident of sexual harassment at your workplace. A complaint must constitute the following details.

1. Name of the person by whom the complaint is filed.
2. The date on which the incident of sexual harassment took place
3. The time when the incident happened
4. Description of the incident or inappropriate behavior
5. Name of the person accused of sexual harassment
6. Working relationship between the victim and accused.

The complaint with the details mentioned above must be filed within three months of sexual harassment incident, with full confidentiality and speedy process. This sexual harassment complaint can be filed by anyone irrespective of gender. Lodging of an internal complaint with the ICC does not cease the right of the victim to lodge a criminal complaint against the colleague or employer. Reply to the complaint must be filed by the accused within ten days. An inquiry has to be completed within 90 days. The final report generated thereof must be submitted to the Employer or District officer within ten days. The Employer or the District Office has to act on recommendations within 60 days. In addition to this, if the victim or accused is not satisfied with the recommendations of the ICC or LCC (Local Compliant Committee), a further appeal can be filed before a tribunal or a court.

In the case of  Apparel Export Promotion Council vs A.K. Chopra placed before the SC of India, Accused mentioned that the penalty on him was harsh and disproportionate to the charge leveled against him. It was concluded by the research that the accused had not actually molested the victim, but had only tried to assault her and had not made any physical contact with her. On this, the Staff Committee observed that no lenient view would be justified in a case of molestation of a woman employee when the charge was fully proved. Any sympathetic action in such a situation would have a demoralizing effect on working women. One of the judges from the bench, in this case, remarked that they would not wait for a girl to be raped and then the charges of sexual harassment could be logged. Hence the charges levied on the accused are reasonable and not disproportionate.

Apart from the complaint mechanism, the employer can take another recourse such as Criminal proceedings and Disciplinary action.

Know More:  Sexual Harassment at Workplace

Under Criminal proceedings, as per Vishakha Guidelines, when the conduct of accused amount to a specific offense under IPC or any other law, the employer shall initiate appropriate actions in accordance with the law. Attention must be paid to ensure that victim or witnesses are not victimized or discriminated against while dealing with the complaints of sexual harassment. Following are the specific provisions of Indian Penal Code, that can be applied in a sexual harassment case thereby making it a criminal complaint.

Section 294, talks about the obscene act in public place.

Section 354, embodies the provision when whosever assaults or uses criminal force on any women, intending to outrage her modesty.

Section 509 holds that whosoever intending to insult the modesty of women, utters any word, makes any sound or gesture or exhibits any object or intrudes upon the privacy of such women. The same shall be punished with simple imprisonment for a term which may extend to one year, or with fine, or with both.

In addition to the aforementioned recourses, when such conduct amounts to misconduct in employment as defined by the relevant service rules, appropriate disciplinary action must be initiated by the employer in accordance with the rules.

A civil suit can be filed for damages under tort laws. That is, the basis for filing the case would be mental anguish, physical harassment, loss of income and employment caused by sexual harassment.

Top 5 Advantages and Disadvantages of Section 498A IPC

Section 498A of the Indian Penal Code was introduced in the year 1983. This section was added to protect a married woman from subject to cruelty from her husband or her in-laws. The term “cruelty” here refers to any harm caused to the person both mentally or physically. Section 498A IPC protects a woman from harassment related to dowry or any marital issues. According to this section, the accused is subjected to 3 years of punishment or fine. Though this section was introduced to protect women from exploitation, it has got some disadvantages too, which we shall see in this article.

What is Section 498A IPC?

Here’s the text of the Article 498A IPC as mentioned in the Indian Penal Code:

Husband or relative of husband of a woman subjecting her to cruelty.—Whoever, being the husband or the relative of the husband of a woman, subjects such woman to cruelty shall be pun­ished with imprisonment for a term which may extend to three years and shall also be liable to fine.

Advantages of Section 498A IPC

• Prevents the Exploitation of Women:

The exploitation of women has always been a critical issue since for years. One of the major advantages of introducing this section is protecting women from getting exploited.  If any woman is being subjected to cruelty as explained in the section, then it would be taken as a punishable offense. And whoever subjects her to cruelty shall be punished for three years or pay a penalty fine.

• Empowers the Women:

Section 498A seems to have empowered women in Indian. It has encouraged women to come forward and file complaints. Initially, women hesitated to raise voice against the harassment with the fear of not being heard.  With the increased number of cases under this section, women do not feel hesitated any more to register their complaints. Women are now voicing against her husband or in-laws rather than staying silent in such gravity situations.

• Effectively Controls the Suicide Rates:

Given increased cases of cruelty on women by her husband or her in-laws, 498A was introduced. The number of suicidal cases due to cruelty has decreased greatly after the introduction of 498A IPC. Before the introduction of this section, it was found that about 40% of women deaths were suicidal cases. Reduction of suicidal cases is one of the main objectives behind introducing this law, which has been carried out effectively.

• The Deaths due to Dowry have been Reduced:

If a person has caused dowry death to a woman, then he would be taken in custody or may be punished. Increase in the number of dowry deaths is a serious concern for Indian Law. Therefore, 498A was introduced to reduce the cases of dowry deaths. If a woman is mentally or physically abused for not bringing a dowry with her, she has all the rights to register a complaint and seek justice. This provides them with an option to seek their right to live instead of committing suicide.

• Makes the In-Laws More Responsible:

All the cases registered under this section and the punishment given to them has set an example for others. Husbands and his relatives are now becoming more concerned about their responsibility and non-negligible towards their duties. The section 498A IPC thereby ensures that every woman needs to be treated with respect and care.

Disadvantages of Section 498A IPC

Apart from having so many advantages for the women there, the article 498A IPC has a huge number of shortcomings which need to be addressed to soon. There are several disadvantages of this Act which are making the premise redundant. The top 5 disadvantages of the section 498A IPC are:

• Easily Misused:

Many women use this power as a weapon against their husbands and their relatives. There are many cases under 498A, which involves wrong allegation cases. Many times, the women put false allegations on her husband of being beaten or getting exploited to instill in them a fear. In many cases, the husband is the victim but still ends up getting punished, and his family is left at the mercy of an ill-minded woman.

• Lack of Investigation increases Blackmails:

There is no proper investigation made on the complaints registered by the woman. In most of the cases, the husband is directly taken into custody without even investigating if that allegation is right or not. Therefore, it cannot be guaranteed completely that all the cases registered by the women under 498A are entirely true. This is misused by the privileged women in most of the cases.

• Too Complex a Process:

From registering a complaint to availing justice, section 498A involves a complicated process. It includes a lot of paperwork to finish the formalities. Moreover, it includes a lot of time and efforts. This discourages many women as they feel uneasy taking their time out, go to the police station, and file complaints. Furthermore, they feel the whole process testing their patience level to get justice, which is a clear violation of the saying Justice Delayed is Justice Denied.

• Unreliable Evidence:

When women resister their case, many times, they are asked for evidence to prove their point.  In many cases, women fail to find evidence in to file the case. There have been many cases which are declined due to no evidence presented. Not only women, but it happens in the case of men too. If they want to prove the allegation put on them wrong, they are asked to bring the evidence. And failure to present the evidence may lead to non-consideration of the complaint. This makes the law heavily biased, which is against the fundamental principle of equality as guaranteed by the Constitution of India.

• Social Discouragement Enhanced:

In most of the cases, it was found that women gather all their courage to raise voice against the harassment but don’t file a case. The reason behind this is the discouragement of her family members, mainly in rural areas. Therefore, the real victims do not get to use the act at all while it is being misused by the privileged ones. The society is yet to accept this and hence shames the women raising their voices. Hence, due to a fear of social boycott, women are discouraged from taking any actions. 

Conclusion

Section 498A IPC has helped many women to get justice against the atrocities committed by their in-laws. However, it has got a few negative points too. Although women empowerment is a need of the hour, it is mandatory to make sure that no injustice is done to the men as well. A reformation in the act is required at the earliest to reap the benefits of this act by the last person of the pyramid.

10 Latest Developments In Change Your Name After Your Wedding In India?

Introduction

Anywhere in the world, Marriage is a life-changing decision. It places responsibilities on the husband as well as on wife. Whereas, in India, the responsibilities of the Husband is little more than of wife. While she has to leave her parents home and start living with the Husband’s family, she is also supposed to change her name. Indian law does not mandate name change for anyone. It is upon total discretion of the parties to change their name or not.  Name changing is a simple procedure. And it is common for all the states.

Before moving further, it must be noted that; Law allows a person to change his/her name only once during the lifetime. So before taking such decisions, one must be sure about it.

Registration of Marriage in India

Before applying for the name change, a person needs to acquire a marriage certificate. For that, registration of marriage is required. In short, registration of marriage provides a Marriage Certificate. You can download the form from the state government’s site and submit it at Sub Registrar’s Office. You need to attach photocopies of the documents like PAN card, AADHAR card etc., whose list you can find on the government’s Website. Once the marriage registration is complete, you will get the marriage certificate.

Read Also: Women, No Need to Change Your Name on Passport After Marriage

Procedure to Change Name After Marriage in India

After the Marriage Certificate, the procedure is straightforward but it may take some time. As mentioned above, it is not mandatory by law and you can change your first name only once.

• Making Of Affidavit

An affidavit is a written statement confirmed by Oath and Affirmation. For the name change, you need to create an affidavit with your detail and your wish to change the name. You need to provide details like your maiden name, proposed new name, husband’s name, and the new address. Also, with the affidavit, you need to supply the copy of the Marriage certificate. Moreover, you need to self attest the document with your recent photographs. Once the affidavit is complete, Print the document on an Rs. 10 stamp paper.

• Notarize the Affidavit

After printing the Affidavit, you need to get it Notarize. You can visit a Notary to get this done. A notary is a person who has the authority of government to witness signature on documents. In case a person is living abroad, the same can be done from the embassy. Once the affidavit is notarized, you are almost done with the name change.

• Publication of Name Change

After the Notarize, you need to get proof of your name change. Means, you need to get a statement from the third party stating that you have changed your name. Even if the statement is from the third party, you need to submit proclamation of the same yourself. For this, one has to do the following two things:-

1. Place an Advertisement– Publish an Ad in two daily locals regarding the same, that you have changed your name in the presence of the notary. Whereas one Ad should be in the local language daily and others in the English language. Every newspaper has designated columns for such kind of Ads. Once done, keep a few copies of such Ads for future reference.                                                                                                                                                                                                                                Sample-                                                                                                                                                                                                                                    “ I, (insert your maiden full name) married to (insert your husband’s full name), on (insert wedding date in DD-MM-YYYY format) residing at (insert your current permanent address) have changed my name to (insert your new name) with Affidavit dated (insert date of affidavit) sworn before Notary (insert name and city of the notary)”                                 
2. Gazette Publication– You need to make an announcement of name change in the Gazette of India. Gazette of India is an official government journal and it is published by the government. However, you need to submit an application form to the Department of Publication, which works under the Ministry of Urban Development. Moreover, you need to attach the Affidavit of the name change with the Application.

At this point, you can notify all the institutions, such as your bank, college, and workplace, that your name has changed after marriage.

Conclusion

Changing name after marriage in India is a simple process and it has its own benefits. Name changing can be an exciting and important part of the marriage. But one must do it the right way to avoid headaches. One must take help of a family law attorney while changing the name. Name change after the marriage has several effects. Name change after marriage helps in the documentation. While purchasing a joint property, it is easy to prove the Husband-wife relationship with a common surname with husband. Also, it is less complicated for children to write two surnames after the marriage or choosing the one.

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