Day: June 25, 2024

BY VEENA GUPTA, LL.B.Founder Seam Group Long bygone are the days when men used to be the sole bread winners of a family. Globalization has brought a radical change in the status of women worldwide. However, with the larger influx of women in the mainstream workforce of India, sexual harassment at workplace has assumed greater dimensions. Workplace sexual harassment is a form of gender discrimination which violates men/ women’s fundamental right to equality and right to life, guaranteed under Articles 14, 15 and 21 of the Constitution of India (Constitution). Workplace sexual harassment not only creates an insecure and hostile working environment for women but also impedes their ability to delivering in today’s competing world. Apart from interfering with their performance at work, it also adversely affects their social and economic growth and puts them through physical and emotional suffering. More than 40-60 percent of women face sexual harassment at workplace every year, and only a handful of them come out in the open and are brought to the notice of the Authorities. THE PoSH ACT India’s first legislation specifically addressing the issue of workplace sexual harassment – the Prevention of Sexual Harassment at Workplace (Prevention, Prohibition and Redressal) Act, 2013 (PoSH Act) was enacted on 9 December 2013. The Government also subsequently notified the rules under the PoSH Act titled the Sexual Harassment of Women at Workplace (Prevention, Prohibition and Redressal) Rules, 2013 (PoSH Rules). The year 2013 also witnessed the promulgation of the Criminal Law (Amendment) Act, 2013 (Criminal Law Amendment Act). PoSH Act aims to ensure the safety of women in the workplace and protect them against sexual harassment. Sexual harassment not only violates a woman’s fundamental right to equality as per articles 14 and 15 of the constitution but also infringes upon her right to live with dignity and the right to practice any profession or carry on any occupation or business, which are guaranteed under articles 21 and 19 respectively. Furthermore, the right to work with dignity and protection of women against sexual harassment are basic human rights that are universally recognized by international conventions such as the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women (CEDAW). It is important to note that the PoSH Act has also been ratified by the government of India, emphasizing the commitment to upholding these rights and ensuring a safe working environment for women. #ME TOO ‘Me Too’ empowers those who have been sexually assaulted through empathy, solidarity, and strength in numbers, by visibly demonstrating how many have experienced sexual assault and harassment, especially in the workplace. Though there is much more work to be done, the #MeToo movement has helped create some progress in terms of accountability for sexual harassment at the larger institutional level in male-dominated industries and organizations, which we have already noticed in the past years. .Since then, the #MeToo movement’s legacy has broadened to encompass issues related to gender equality in the workplace and legal reforms to eliminate barriers that had prohibited victims from coming forward. History – CASE LAW – Vishakha vs. State of Rajasthan This is a landmark judgment that led to the enactment of the PoSH Act. It dealt with, for the first time, the evil of sexual harassment of female employees at the workplace. The case of Bhanwari Devi was a tragic incident that shed light on the challenges faced by women, especially those from marginalized communities, in seeking justice and protection from sexual violence. Bhanwari Devi’s courageous efforts to prevent a child marriage resulted in her facing brutal gang rape and subsequent mistreatment by both the community and authorities. The mishandling of her case by the police, delayed medical examination, and the acquittal of the accused due to lack of evidence highlighted systemic failures in addressing gender-based violence and ensuring justice for survivors. The subsequent protests and legal actions, including the filing of a writ petition by the women’s rights group Vishaka, underscored the importance of upholding basic human rights and constitutional protections for women in India. The momentous Vishaka case led to the Supreme Court issuing guidelines for the first time on the issue that emphasized the responsibility of companies to prevent sexual harassment in the workplace and establish mechanisms for addressing and resolving such incidents. This case and its aftermath have played a significant role in shaping laws and policies aimed at combating sexual harassment and promoting gender equality in India. The Vishaka Guidelines define sexual harassment to include unwelcome sexually determined behaviour such as: The court emphasized that sexual harassment can create a hostile work environment and may not necessarily involve physical contact. The guidelines aim to protect individuals from such behavior and ensure a safe working environment. It is important to note that reporting incidents of sexual harassment may require courage from the victim and should be addressed promptly by the compliance mechanism. Amendment Act 2024 (Latest) The Private Member Bill introduced by Dr. Sasmit Patra in February 2024 aims to amend the PoSH Act 2013. This bill seeks to enhance measures addressing sexual harassment and update existing laws to better align with the evolving needs of society. It is important to highlight that the Amendment Bill of 2024 has not yet undergone discussions or approval in both houses of parliament, nor has it received the necessary presidential assent to officially become an Amendment. Consequently, the bill remains pending, with the objective of modifying two sections of The Sexual Harassment at Workplace Act, 2013. The current Amendment Bill of 2024 seeks to prolong the established time limit of 3 (three) months for filing a sexual harassment complaint to 1 (one) year from the date of the incident, and in the case of a series of incidents, within 1 (one) year from the date of the last incident. PoSH Act, Gender Bias & Misuse of the Act The discussion of gender equality’s importance and the right to equality has highlighted society’s bias. In recent years this Act is being used as an…

Lt Gen A B Shivane,PVSM, AVSM, VSM (Retd)Former Director General – Mechanised Forces,Presently Strategic Advisor to Chairman CAPSI Suraksit Bharat for Viksit Bharat In the vision of Viksit Bharat of India, the evolution of a robust citizen security culture stands as the critical path of Suraksit Bharat. It emerges as a beacon of hope amidst the complexities of its socio-political landscape and escalating security threats. Embracing the ideals of justice, equity, and dignity, the nation grapples with the imperative of safeguarding its citizens from diverse threats and vulnerabilities. The recent bomb hoax calls in schools, malls and air flights have highlighted the inadequacy of response and lack of security consciousness among the citizens. If it would not have been a hoax the consequences would have been disastrous. Must we wait for it to happen? The recent spate of terror attacks in the Jammu sector in the recent times is a stark reminder of the dark shadow of terrorism on soft targets with high visibility and payoffs. As citizens we need to introspect and asses if we are security conscious and responsible? Is it a cultural deficit that exposes our vulnerability both to the escalating kinetic and non-kinetic threat? The path to Viksit Bharat requires sustainable citizen security. Empowering communities is the cornerstone of sustainable citizen security. Empowering communities requires a National Citizen’s Security Culture (NCSC) for which the Private Security Industry along with MHA can provide yeoman service to the nation. Accordingly a novel initiative was launched by Central Association of Private Security Industry (CAPSI) under the vision of its Chairman Kunwar Vikram Singh in March 2024. The first round table conference on 15 March 2024 was accordingly convened to deliberate and evolve a strategic construct for its manifestation. CAPSI thus has taken the lead to empower the nation and its citizen’s by evolving a National Citizen’s Security Culture. The Critical Security Deficit Gap With a crime rate rising faster than the population growth rate, new threats are emerging and challenging national security. In 2023 the total cognisable crimes were 58,24,946 against a population of 1.44 billion making the crime rate 422.2 per lakh persons. This is certainly very high and thus India ranks 79 among 197 countries in an assessment of crime rates by country in 2024. The public-to-police ratio at 152.80 per lakh against 222 per lakh defined by the UN shows how understaffed India stands and exposes citizens’ safety. Thus a critical security vulnerability gap exists. Bridging this gap is the responsibility of the Private Security Industry with a one crore workforce that must harness citizens as an extension of their arm to exhibit security consciousness as a culture. This would help create an environment where individuals can thrive, families can feel safe, and communities can flourish. This requires an expanded role of the PSI along with its transformation and technology integration to remain ready and relevant for the future. The national chorus must be – ‘Stay Alert – Stay Safe.’ After all, security is everyone’s responsibility. The Need for National Citizen’s Security Culture India needs to evolve its National Citizen’s Security Culture for several reasons: Challenges to Citizen’s Security “The true measure of any society can be found in how it treats its most vulnerable members” – Mahatma Gandhi India confronts a myriad of challenges in fostering a National Citizen Security Culture, including resource constraints, social fragmentation, institutional weaknesses, public security mechanism inadequacies, and technological disparities. The allocation of limited resources towards security initiatives often exacerbates socio-economic disparities and undermines the accessibility of justice for marginalized communities. Moreover, divisive forces fuelled by religious, ethnicity, and regional identities perpetuate social tensions and erode trust in institutions, posing formidable obstacles to inclusive security governance. Chanakya had stated four types of threats to a nation: Today, India faces all. They are both kinetic and non-kinetic in nature, which impact a citizen directly. They may be caused by inner political turmoil, or provoked, prompted or proxied by an enemy country, perpetrated even by such groups that use a failed, failing or weak state, causing insurgency, terrorism or any other subversive acts that target innocent citizens, cause animosity between and amongst groups of citizens and communities intended to cause or causing violence, destroy or attempt to destroy public and private establishments. Besides cyber-attacks, electronic warfare, psychological operations, data manipulation and misinformation campaigns are some of the faces of non-kinetic threats. Understanding Citizen Security in the Indian Context “Security is not a privilege; it is a fundamental right that every citizen deserves and must drive” In the Indian context, citizen security encompasses a broad spectrum of concerns ranging from traditional crime rates and communal tensions to emerging challenges posed by cyber threats and environmental degradation. Beyond the realm of physical safety, it embodies the aspirations of individuals to lead lives free from fear, discrimination, and violence. The quest for citizen security transcends geographical boundaries, cultural divides, and socioeconomic disparities, underscoring the need for a cohesive and inclusive approach towards its realization. National Citizen’s Security Culture refers to the shared values, norms, beliefs, attitudes, behaviours and actions of citizens and society that promote the protection and preservation of a nation’s security interests and the safety of its citizens. It elicits curiosity that exhibits security consciousness as a moral responsibility in a day-to-day schedule. The key challenge remains the ‘Cultural Change.’ Culture is changing the behavioural design. Tiny habits and small changes may change everything. So, behaviour equals a combination of motivation, ability, and prompts at the time of the behaviour. Fogg’ model explains that behaviour happens when motivation, ability and prompt come together at the same time. Motivation can range from low to high. Ability can range from being something very hard to do to something very easy to do. And then the prompt is something internal or external that says, all right, we want you to do this thing. Expectations from Citizen’s as Stakeholders of NCSC The expectations are very elementary in terms of following, reporting, providing and leading: Ends, Ways…