The Delhi Commission for Women (DCW) today urged the Centre and Delhi government to issue suitable notifications under the concerned Acts for the constitution of an appellate authority to which victims of sexual harassment at workplace, denied justice by the Internal Complaints Committees (ICC) can approach.
In the wake of DCW receiving numerous complaints from women who have not been awarded justice by the ICCs, the latest being the case of a research student of St Stephens college, the DCW chief Swati Maliwal has written to Union Home Minister Rajnath Singh and Delhi's Women and Child Development Minister Sandeep Kumar over the same.
"However, it is sad to note that the Act has not been implemented properly in Delhi till date as the Central Government is yet to issue necessary notification under the Act," Maliwal said in her letter to Singh.
She said further that all complaints arising within the workplace are addressed to ICCs which consists predominantly of senior officers from within the workplace.
"As the ICCs consists of primarily officers from within the organisation, it is not surprising that many a times complainants are not satisfied with the outcome. This is a situation contemplated by the Act, which provides for a mechanism of appeal to the verdict of the ICC under Section 18 and rule 11 of the Sexual Harassment of Women at Workplace (Prevention, Prohibition and Redressal) Act rules. Under the applicable provisions of the Act, it is the state government which has to appoint the authority by notification in the official Gazette for all establishments under the control of the Central government and all workplaces," the letter said.
Under Section 5 and 6 of the Act, a District Officer for every district has to be notified by the Central Government to exercise powers under the Act. It is the District Officers who has to constitute the Local Complaints Committee in every district.
