TVF row: India's sexual harassment laws need sharper teeth

The Viral Fever (TVF), a popular online entertainment networks, was caught in a controversy on Monday. An anonymous post on Medium by a former employee alleged rampant sexual harassment by its Chief Executive Officer Arunabh Kumar.

TVF’s response was a masterclass in evading the charges at hand. It immediately claimed the allegations were baseless. Instead of offering to open an internal investigation, the firm said it would “leave no stone unturned to find the author of the article and bring them to severe justice for making false allegations”.

But the Medium article opened the floodgates. Several other former TVF employees came out on Facebook and Twitter to support the anonymous writer, recounting other incidents of molestation.

Arunabh Kumar was unapologetic and had this to say to the Mumbai Mirror: “The kind of insinuations the FB post makes are untrue. I am a heterosexual, single man and when I find a woman sexy, I tell her she’s sexy. I compliment women. Is that wrong? Having said that, I am very particular about my behaviour – I will approach a woman, but never force myself.” 

What Kumar failed to acknowledge in his confession of sorts was the position of power he wields as the head of an organisation. For an employee, taking on the boss, especially in smaller companies where the person is hands on in day-to-day workings of the office, is a traumatic experience. Many choose to leave the organisation rather than stay and fight.

In the TVF case, it seems apparent that the company did not create an environment that encouraged women to file complaints about being molested. Former employees had to take to social media to highlight problems that should, under normal circumstances, have been dealt with by internal institutional mechanisms.

It was precisely such concerns that prompted India to pass the Sexual Harassment of Women at Workplace (Prevention, Prohibition and Redressal) Act in 2013. But the implementation of the law remains heavily skewed in favour of the harasser. In many instances, the strongest penalty a molesters may face is his contract being terminated. His next employer will probably have no clue about the recruit’s record. There is little data on the number of cases that have eventually reached the district officer in order to have penal action initiated against the harasser.

In smaller organisations like TVF, there is immense pressure on the survivour to hush up cases of harassment by claiming that making the charges public would cause immeasurably damage to the firm.

Companies should realise that success does not end with a healthy balance sheet. A stimulating work environment is a key element of a succesful company. Any slip- up on this front could cost the company dearly, as it has done to TVF. The process of making a sexual harassment complaints should be simplified. Provisions under the law that mandate that the investigation should be completed within 90 days should be strictly adhered to. It’s also clear that having more women in top leadership positions will encourage other women to discuss problems.

On the part of the government, it is important to ensure that companies are penalised if they fail to implement the law. In 2015, two years after the act had been passed, the Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry found that 36 per cent of all companies were still not in compliance with it. If harassment laws are to be taken seriously, workplace audits should be as big a priority as auditinI the finances of the company.

This story has been published in arrangement with scroll.in